A laser beam irradiation apparatus including a laser source configured to emit light; a collimator configured to collimate the emitted light; a scanner configured to adjust the collimated light to change an irradiation direction thereof; a first lens part configured to focus the adjusted light to irradiate a laser beam on a sealing part; a camera configured to receive visible light passing through the scanner; a heat sensing part configured to receive infrared (IR) light passing through the scanner; and a control part configured to control a moving direction and an intensity of the laser beam.

A laser processing system that can effectively blow out a material of a workpiece melted by a laser beam by effectively utilizing an assist gas emitted from a nozzle. The laser processing system comprising a nozzle including an emission opening configured to emit a jet of an assist gas along an optical axis of a laser beam, the nozzle being configured to form a maximum point of velocity of the jet at a position away from the emission opening; a measuring instrument configured to measure a sound generated by the jet impinging on an object; and a position acquisition section configured to acquire information representing the position of the maximum point based on output data of the measuring instrument.

A laser processing system that can effectively blow out a material of a workpiece melted by a laser beam by effectively utilizing an assist gas emitted from a nozzle. The laser processing system comprising a nozzle including an emission opening configured to emit a jet of an assist gas along an optical axis of a laser beam, the nozzle being configured to form a maximum point of velocity of the jet at a position away from the emission opening; a measuring instrument configured to measure a sound generated by the jet impinging on an object; and a position acquisition section configured to acquire information representing the position of the maximum point based on output data of the measuring instrument.

This invention relates to a device for rapid focus control of one or more lasers. The controlled beam (5), is refracted by the dynamic refraction device (1) whose refractive index is set by its response to the control beam (3). The invention can be used for rapid focus and re-focus of a laser on a target as might be useful in such industries as flat panel television manufacturing, fuel injector nozzle manufacture, laser material processing/machining, laser scanning and indirect drive inertial confinement fusion.

The invention relates to a device (100) for an additive manufacture. The device (100) comprises a laser device (110) for machining material using a laser beam (112), said laser device (110) being designed to deflect the laser beam (112) onto a machining region of a workpiece (10); at least one supply device (130) for a supply material, said supply device being designed to supply the supply material to the machining region; and an interferometer (140) which is designed to measure a distance to the workpiece (10) by means of an optical measuring beam (142).

In a control device for a laser machining apparatus including a plurality of lasers and a plurality of scanners which respectively scans laser beams outputted from the plurality of lasers, the control device includes: a laser control unit which controls the plurality of lasers, in which the laser control unit includes: a machining program analysis unit which analyzes a machining program, and generates a machining condition command for setting a machining condition of the plurality of lasers, a storage unit which stores machining condition information in which a plurality of the machining conditions and a plurality of the machining condition commands are respectively associated, and a plurality of machining condition reading units which references the machining condition information and reads a machining condition corresponding to a machining condition command analyzed by the machining program analysis unit, and sets the machining condition which was read in a laser of a control target.

In a control device for a laser machining apparatus including a plurality of lasers and a plurality of scanners which respectively scans laser beams outputted from the plurality of lasers, the control device includes: a laser control unit which controls the plurality of lasers, in which the laser control unit includes: a machining program analysis unit which analyzes a machining program, and generates a machining condition command for setting a machining condition of the plurality of lasers, a storage unit which stores machining condition information in which a plurality of the machining conditions and a plurality of the machining condition commands are respectively associated, and a plurality of machining condition reading units which references the machining condition information and reads a machining condition corresponding to a machining condition command analyzed by the machining program analysis unit, and sets the machining condition which was read in a laser of a control target.

A wafer processing method includes: cutting a device layer stacked on a semiconductor substrate along division lines to form cut grooves; positioning a focal point of a laser beam having a transmission wavelength to the semiconductor substrate inside an area of the semiconductor substrate corresponding to a predetermined one of the division lines and applying the laser beam to the wafer from a back surface of the wafer, thereby forming a plurality of modified layers inside the wafer along all of the division lines; and grinding the back surface of the wafer to be thinned, causing a crack to grow from each of the modified layers formed inside the area of the semiconductor substrate corresponding to the predetermined one of the division lines to the front surface side of the wafer, thereby dividing the wafer into individual device chips.

A wafer processing method includes: cutting a device layer stacked on a semiconductor substrate along division lines to form cut grooves; positioning a focal point of a laser beam having a transmission wavelength to the semiconductor substrate inside an area of the semiconductor substrate corresponding to a predetermined one of the division lines and applying the laser beam to the wafer from a back surface of the wafer, thereby forming a plurality of modified layers inside the wafer along all of the division lines; and grinding the back surface of the wafer to be thinned, causing a crack to grow from each of the modified layers formed inside the area of the semiconductor substrate corresponding to the predetermined one of the division lines to the front surface side of the wafer, thereby dividing the wafer into individual device chips.

Laser-assisted micromachining methods and systems capable of providing flexible beam positioning and low incident angles. Such laser-assisted micromachining systems preferably include a laser beam source, a cutting tool, means for engaging a workpiece with the cutting tool, optical elements arranged to define a path of a laser beam emitted by the laser beam source wherein the optical elements include at least a first mirror mounted in fixed relation to the laser beam source, and means for adjustably mounting a second mirror to project the laser beam onto the workpiece in proximity to the cutting tool and at an incidence angle relative to a surface of the workpiece.