US 8,943,855 B2 · Methods for laser cutting articles from ion exchanged glass substrates

Abstract

A method of cutting an article (172) from a chemically strengthened glass substrate (110) includes generating a pulsed laser beam (108) from a laser source (106). The pulsed laser beam (108) may have a pulse duration of less than about 1000 fs and an output wavelength such that the chemically strengthened glass substrate (110) is substantially transparent to the pulsed laser beam (108). The pulsed laser beam (108) may be focused to form a beam waist (109) that is positioned in the same horizontal plane as an inner tensile region (124) of the chemically strengthened glass substrate (110). The beam waist (109) may be translated in a first pass along a cut line (116), wherein the beam waist (109) traverses an edge (111) of the chemically strengthened glass substrate. The beam waist (113) may then be translated in a second pass along the cut line (116) such that a crack (119) propagates from the edge (113) along the cut line (116) ahead of the translated beam waist (109) during the second pass.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A method of cutting an article from a chemically strengthened glass substrate comprising:

generating a pulsed laser beam from a laser source, the pulsed laser beam having a pulse duration less than about 1000 fs and an output wavelength such that the chemically strengthened glass substrate is substantially transparent to the pulsed laser beam;
focusing the pulsed laser beam to form a beam waist;
positioning the beam waist of the pulsed laser beam such that the beam waist is located in the same horizontal plane as an inner tensile region of the chemically strengthened glass substrate;
translating the beam waist in a first pass along a cut line, thereby forming a molten defect line within the inner tensile region of the chemically strengthened glass substrate, wherein the beam waist traverses an edge of the chemically strengthened glass substrate;
and
translating the beam waist in a second pass along the cut line that retraces the first pass, wherein the beam waist traverses the edge of the chemically strengthened glass substrate and travels along at least a portion of the molten defect line formed by the first pass such that a crack propagates from the edge of the chemically strengthened glass substrate along the cut line ahead of the translated beam waist during the second pass.

3 more elements

A method of separating an article from a substrate having an inner tensile region positioned between a first and second surface compression layer, the method comprising:

forming an internal compression region within the inner tensile region of the substrate along a cut line, wherein the cut line begins at an edge of the substrate and the formation of the internal compression region generates a first and a second internal tension layer positioned above and below the internal compression region, respectively;
and
heating the generated internal compression region such that a tensile stress of the first and second internal tension layers is increased and a crack initiates from the edge of the substrate and propagates along the inner tensile region.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Methods for laser cutting articles from ion exchanged glass substrates

Life of this patent

Methods for laser cutting articles from ion exchanged glass substrates

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims20