Patent · US Expired

Laser machining apparatus with rotatable phase grating

US6031201A · kind A · utility

110Cited by
13References
5Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateJul 9, 1997
Grant dateFeb 29, 2000
Priority date
Expiry dateJul 9, 2017

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG02F1/13439
  • WIPO fieldMachine tools
  • WIPO sectorMechanical engineering

Abstract

A laser machining method and apparatus for performing high-speed and high-precision machining on a thin film deposited on a substrate, as well as a liquid crystal panel. The apparatus includes: a plurality of pulse laser generators; a system for alternately driving a plurality of pulse laser generators so that the plurality of pulse laser generators generate laser beams having a delay in phase between each other; a system for making the laser beams generated by the plurality of laser beam generators equal in quality; a system for converting the laser beams generated by the plurality of laser beam generators into elliptically polarized laser beams; and a system for dividing each laser beam emitted by each of the plurality of laser beam generators into a plurality of laser beams; whereby an object to be processed is selectively illuminated with the plurality of laser beams produced by the beam-dividing system. The system for dividing each laser beam emitted by each of the plurality of laser beam generators into a plurality of laser beams is embodied by a phase grating. The phase grating has a structure on its surface which divides each laser beam into a sub plurality of laser beams h…

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.