Provided are a silicon ingot slicing apparatus capable of slicing silicon ingots in various forms such as blocks or wafers using microbubbles and wire electric discharge machining.

A processing method for a workpiece includes a cutting step of cutting the workpiece along streets by a cutting blade having a V-shaped tip end, to form V grooves of which shallower parts are wider than deeper parts, and a cleaning step of cleaning a back surface of the workpiece with cleaning water, after the cutting step is carried out.

A processing method for a workpiece includes a cutting step of cutting the workpiece along streets by a cutting blade having a V-shaped tip end, to form V grooves of which shallower parts are wider than deeper parts, and a cleaning step of cleaning a back surface of the workpiece with cleaning water, after the cutting step is carried out.

A hammer punch tool having a guide and a punch that is slidably coupled to the guide. The guide has a force transfer surface and a cavity accessible through an opening in the guide. The punch has a portion that is slidably received within the cavity of the guide through the opening in the guide. The guide slides relative to the punch between a reset position of the guide (or extended position of the punch), in which a portion of the punch engages the guide to retain at least a portion of the punch within the cavity, and a hammer position of the guide (or retracted position of the punch), in which the force transfer surface of the guide engages the punch. A method of forming material with the hammer punch tool by striking the punch with the guide.

A silicon carbide ingot is cut using a wire. The silicon carbide ingot has a polytype of 4H—SiC. The silicon carbide ingot includes a top surface, a bottom surface opposite to the top surface, and a side surface between the top surface and the bottom surface. A direction from the bottom surface toward the top surface is a direction parallel to a [0001] direction or a direction inclined by less than or equal to 8° relative to the [0001] direction. In the cutting of the silicon carbide ingot, the silicon carbide ingot is cut from the side surface at a (000-1) plane side along a straight line parallel to a direction within ±5° relative to a direction that bisects an angle formed by a [1-100] direction and a [11-20] direction when viewed in the direction from the bottom surface toward the top surface.

Provided is a method for manufacturing at least one solar cell, a method for manufacturing a monocrystalline silicon wafer and a photovoltaic module. The method for manufacturing a monocrystalline silicon wafer includes: providing a monocrystalline silicon rod; squaring the monocrystalline silicon rod to form a quasi-square silicon rod with quasi-square cross-section having an arc, a length of the arc being not less than 15 mm; slicing the quasi-square silicon rod to form at least one quasi-square silicon wafer having the arc. The method for manufacturing at least one solar cell includes: using the method described above to obtain a quasi-square silicon wafer having an arc; forming a first solar cell by processing the quasi-square silicon wafer; scribing the first solar cell to obtain a square-shaped sub-solar cell and at least one strip-shaped sub-solar cell. The above methods improve the utilization rate of the monocrystalline silicon rod and reduce production cost.

Provided is a method for manufacturing at least one solar cell, a method for manufacturing a monocrystalline silicon wafer and a photovoltaic module. The method for manufacturing a monocrystalline silicon wafer includes: providing a monocrystalline silicon rod; squaring the monocrystalline silicon rod to form a quasi-square silicon rod with quasi-square cross-section having an arc, a length of the arc being not less than 15 mm; slicing the quasi-square silicon rod to form at least one quasi-square silicon wafer having the arc. The method for manufacturing at least one solar cell includes: using the method described above to obtain a quasi-square silicon wafer having an arc; forming a first solar cell by processing the quasi-square silicon wafer; scribing the first solar cell to obtain a square-shaped sub-solar cell and at least one strip-shaped sub-solar cell. The above methods improve the utilization rate of the monocrystalline silicon rod and reduce production cost.

A method of manufacturing a hexagonal Group-III nitride semiconductor plate crystal using a crystal cutting wire. where the hexagonal semiconductor crystal has one principal face on one side and another principal face on an opposite side, and the hexagonal semiconductor crystal is cut by causing the crystal cutting wire to move so as to (i) divide the one principal face and the another principal face and (ii) satisfy conditions of Expressions (A) and (B):

25°<α≤90°  Expression (A); and

β=90°±5°  Expression (B) where α represents an angle formed by a c axis of the hexagonal Group-III nitride semiconductor crystal and a normal line of a crystal face cut out by the wire, and β represents an angle formed by a reference axis, which is obtained by perpendicularly projecting the c axis of the hexagonal Group-III nitride semiconductor crystal to the crystal face cut out by the wire, and a cutting direction.

A method for fabricating MAS NMR rotors and drive caps made of diamond to increase the maximum achievable spinning frequency and enhance MAS NMR sensitivity and resolution. Diamond is an excellent choice for making MAS NMR rotors due to its high tensile and flexural strength, however, micromachining diamond is difficult due to its hardness. Although laser cutting is often employed to cut diamond sheets, this process cannot be used to create the high aspect ratio and small features required for MAS NMR rotors. In the present invention, a laser micromachining process is used to create the desired high aspect ratio while maintaining the small lateral features. In this process, the laser is used to first convert the diamond into graphite followed by a conversion to carbon dioxide in the presence of oxygen. To create a rotor, a rectangular log has a center hole drilled by the laser, and is then micromachined into a hollow cylinder.

Methods of recycling silicon swarf into electronic grade polysilicon or metallurgical-grade silicon are described herein are described. In an example, a method includes cutting a silicon ingot and recovering silicon swarf having a first purity from the cutting process. The recovered silicon is purified in an upgraded metallurgical silicon process to produce electronic grade polysilicon particles having a second purity higher than the first purity. The upgraded metallurgical silicon process can include dissolving the recovered silicon particles in a molten aluminum metal smelt.