System and method of laser processing a section of web, or “strip” in a “step and repeat” manner while doing so with a continuously moving web during laser processing. The combination of continuous laser processing with a step and repeat manner of cutting parts from the strip, increases throughput for parts. The method includes retracting and indexing a web between passes of continuous laser processing of the web of material and alternating laser processing between two webs in a dual web system further increases throughput results from laser processing.

A laser processing apparatus includes a laser beam applying unit for applying a laser beam to a wafer. The laser beam applying unit includes a laser oscillator for emitting the laser beam, a beam condenser for focusing the laser beam emitted from the laser oscillator into a focused spot and positioning the focused spot in the wafer held on a chuck table, a focused spot position adjuster disposed between the laser oscillator and the beam condenser for adjusting the position of the focused spot, and an upper surface position detector for detecting the position of an upper surface of the wafer. The upper surface position detector includes a first upper surface position detecting unit, a second upper surface position detecting unit, and a selector for selecting either the first upper surface position detecting unit or the second upper surface position detecting unit depending on a feature of the wafer.

A method of manufacturing a diamond substrate includes: a step of placing a laser condensing unit 190 configured to condense laser light B so as to face an upper surface 10a of a block 10 of single crystal diamond; and a step of forming a modified layer 20, which includes a processing mark 21b of graphite and a crack 22b extending along a surface (111) around the processing mark 21b, along the surface (111) of the single crystal diamond at a predetermined depth from an upper surface of the block by radiating the laser light B on the upper surface 10a of the block 10 from the laser condensing unit 190 under predetermined conditions and condensing the laser light B inside the block 10, and moving the laser condensing unit 190 and the block 10 in a relative manner two-dimensionally.

A method for forming at least one freestanding microstructure on a diamond crystal includes the step of removing material from the diamond crystal so as to form a structured surface, wherein the removing of the material includes creating at least two trenches, each trench having a bottom and two side walls and wherein adjacent side walls of the at least two trenches form side walls of the structured surface. The method also includes the steps of depositing at least one masking layer on the structured surface, removing at least a portion of the at least one masking layer from the bottom of each of the at least two trenches, removing additional material from the diamond crystal at least along the side walls so as to deepen the trenches, and undercutting the diamond crystal so as to form the freestanding microstructure.

A method of producing a glass substrate having a hole is provided. The method includes preparing the glass substrate having a first surface and a second surface facing each other; forming a hole in the glass substrate with a laser; and annealing the glass substrate placed on a first support substrate having a thermal expansion coefficient whose difference from a thermal expansion coefficient of the glass substrate is less than or equal to 1 ppm/K, where the first support substrate is placed on a second support substrate having a thermal expansion coefficient of less than or equal to 10 ppm/K.

A laser crystallizing apparatus includes a first light source unit configured to emit a first input light having a linearly polarized laser beam shape. A second light source unit is configured to emit a second input light having a linearly polarized laser beam shape. A polarization optical system is configured to rotate the first input light and/or the second input light at a predetermined rotation angle. An optical system is configured to convert the first input light and the second input light, which pass through the polarization optical system, into an output light. A target substrate is seated on a stage and output light is directed onto the target substrate. A monitoring unit is configured to receive the first input light or the second input light from the polarization optical system and measure a laser beam quality thereof.

An ingot is processed by applying exciting light, and detecting fluorescence occurring from an upper surface of the ingot. A distribution of the number of photons of the fluorescence on the upper surface of the ingot is stored as two-dimensional data in association with XY coordinate positions, and a Z-coordinate position at which the two-dimensional data is obtained is also stored. A laser beam forms a peeling layer by irradiating the ingot while positioning the condensing point of the laser beam at a depth corresponding to the thickness of a wafer from the upper surface of the ingot. A wafer is separated from the ingot with the peeling layer as a starting point, and three-dimensional data is generated representing the distribution of the number of photons of the fluorescence in the whole of the ingot on the basis of two-dimensional data at each Z-coordinate position of the ingot.

A laser beam application unit of a laser processing machine includes a laser oscillator that emits a laser beam, an fθ main lens that focuses and applies the laser beam which has been emitted from the laser oscillator, to a workpiece held on a holding table, a scan unit that is arranged on an optical path between the laser oscillator and the fθ main lens, scans the laser beam, and guides the resulting scanned laser beam to the fθ main lens, and an fθ sub-lens that is arranged on the optical path between the laser oscillator and the scan unit and converts the laser beam from parallel light into diffused light.

A laser beam applying unit in a laser processing apparatus includes a laser oscillator for emitting a laser beam, a beam condenser for focusing the laser beam emitted from the laser oscillator and applying the focused laser beam to a workpiece held on a holding table, and a scanning unit that is disposed on an optical path of the laser beam between the laser oscillator and the beam condenser and that has scanning mirrors for scanning the laser beam and guiding the scanned laser beam toward the beam condenser. The scanning mirrors are housed in a chamber having a first window for allowing the laser beam emitted from the laser oscillator to pass therethrough to the scanning mirrors and a second window for allowing the laser beam scanned by the scanning mirrors to pass therethrough to the beam condenser.

A laser beam irradiation unit of a laser processing apparatus includes a first splitting unit that causes a laser beam emitted from a laser oscillator to branch into a first optical path and a second optical path, a first beam condenser that focuses the laser beam having been introduced to the first optical path, and a second beam condenser that focuses the laser beam having been introduced to the second optical path. The laser beam irradiation unit further includes a second splitting unit on the first optical path between the first splitting unit and the first beam condenser that splits the laser beam into at least two laser beams, and a laser beam scanning unit on the second optical path between the first splitting unit and the second beam condenser that executes scanning with the laser beam and introduces the laser beam to the second beam condenser.