A laser processing method that can reduce warpage occurring in a glass and reduce a stress generated on the glass at a time of releasing a protective material from the glass. The laser processing method includes: forming the protective materials on both surfaces of the glass; processing the glass by radiating a laser beam onto the glass together with the protective materials after the protective material formation; and releasing the protective materials from the glass after the laser processing.

A laser beam machining method and a laser beam machining device capable of cutting a work without producing a fusing and a cracking out of a predetermined cutting line on the surface of the work, wherein at pulse laser beam is radiated on the predetermined cut line on the surface of the work under the conditions causing a multiple photon absorption and with a condensed point aligned to the inside of the work, and a modified area is formed inside the work along the predetermined determined cut line by moving the condensed point along the predetermined cut line, whereby the work can be cut with a rather small force by cracking the work along the predetermined cut line starting from the modified area and, because the pulse laser beam radiated is not almost absorbed onto the surface of the work, the surface is not fused even if the modified area is formed.

A plurality of molded cover members are manufactured by first singulating a single sheet of cover material, such as glass, into a plurality of separate, discrete cover members, placing the cover members in spaced-apart positions on a releaseable carrier, and applying a molded material to the perimeter of each cover member. The molded material can be applied by a blanket molding technique whereby gaps between adjacent cover members are filled, and then the cover members are singulated, leaving a portion of the cover material on the perimeter of each cover member, and then the singulated, molded cover members are released from the releasable carrier. Alternatively, the molded material is applied by a patterned molding technique whereby molding material is applied to the perimeter of each cover member without fully filling the gaps between adjacent cover members, and then the molded cover members are released from the releasable carrier.

A system and method for sintering a thin, high purity fused silica glass sheet having a thickness of 500 m or less, includes a step of rastering a beam of a laser across a sheet of high purity fused silica soot; wherein a pattern of the rastering includes tightly spacing target locations on the sheet such that the laser sinters the soot and simultaneously forms tiny notches on a first major surface of the sheet when viewed in cross-section, wherein the tiny notches are crenellated such that at least some of the notches have generally flat bottom surfaces and at least some respective adjoining caps have generally plateau top surfaces offset from the bottom surfaces by steeply-angled sidewalls.

Processes of chamfering and/or beveling an edge of a glass or other substrate of arbitrary shape using lasers are described herein. Three general methods to produce chamfers on glass substrates are disclosed. The first method involves cutting the edge with the desired chamfer shape utilizing an ultra-short pulse laser. Treatment with the ultra-short laser may be optionally followed by a CO.sub.2 laser for fully automated separation. The second method is based on thermal stress peeling of a sharp edge corner, and it has been demonstrated to work with different combination of an ultrashort pulse and/or CO.sub.2 lasers. A third method relies on stresses induced by ion exchange to effect separation of material along a fault line produced by an ultra-short laser to form a chamfered edge of desired shape.

A manufacturing method of a glass substrate with a hole having a diameter .sub.f, and with a thickness .sub.f includes setting a thickness .sub.1 of a glass plate that is to be processed; preparing a glass plate with the thickness .sub.1, having first and second surfaces opposite to each other; forming one initial characteristic object or two or more initial characteristic objects in the glass plate by irradiating the glass plate with a laser from a side of the first surface of the glass plate, the initial characteristic object having a size of a diameter .sub.1 on the first surface; and performing wet etching for the glass plate having the initial characteristic object, so that from the initial characteristic object a hole having the diameter .sub.f on the first surface is formed, and a thickness of the glass plate is adjusted from .sub.1 to a target value of .sub.f.

Methods of laser processing a transparent material are disclosed. The method may include positioning the transparent material on a carrier and transmitting a laser beam through the transparent material, where the laser beam may be incident on a side of the transparent material opposite the carrier. The transparent material may be substantially transparent to the laser beam and the carrier may include a support base and a laser disruption element. The laser disruption element may disrupt the laser beam transmitted through the transparent material such that the laser beam may not have sufficient intensity below the laser disruption element to damage the support base.

Methods are provided for laser processing arbitrary shapes of molded 3D thin transparent brittle parts from substrates with particular interest in substrates formed from strengthened or non-strengthened Corning Gorilla glass (all codes). The developed laser methods can be tailored for manual separation of the parts from the panel or full laser separation by thermal stressing the desired profile. Methods can be used to form 3D surfaces with small radii of curvature. The method involves the utilization of an ultra-short pulse laser that may be optionally followed by a CO.sub.2 laser for fully automated separation.

Provided is a heat reflective member, which is prevented from braking even in a high-temperature environment. It generates no dust in use, and can be washed with a chemical liquid. The heat reflective member has a laminated structure in which quartz glass layers are formed on an upper surface and a lower surface of a siliceous sintered powder layer. The heat reflective member includes: an impermeable layer which is formed at a portion of the siliceous sintered powder layer at an end portion of the heat reflective member, which has a thickness at least larger than half of a thickness of the siliceous sintered powder layer, and through which a gas or a liquid is prevented from penetrating; and a buffer layer which is formed between the impermeable layer and the siliceous sintered powder layer, and which changes in density from the impermeable layer toward the sintered powder layer.

Methods of fabricating formed glass articles are described herein. In one embodiment, a method for fabricating a formed glass article may include forming a glass ribbon, forming a parson, and shaping the parson to form a glass article. The glass article may be attached to the glass ribbon at an attachment region defining an edge of the glass article. The process may also include contacting the attachment region with a focal line of a laser beam and separating the glass article from the glass ribbon at the attachment region. The attachment region may be perforated by the laser beam and the focal line may be substantially perpendicular to the plane of the glass ribbon.