Technology for laser immersion processing of materials

   Objectives. The work set out to develop a technological process for low-defect laser cutting of fragile materials, including glass, semiconductor materials, and various optical materials.

   Methods. The advent of new industrial lasers based on short- and ultra-short pulse radiation has made it possible to create new technologies for laser immersion processing of materials (LIPM). The LIPM technology applies short- and ultra-short laser radiation to a material to form a small-sized region in the contact zone of the material with the cooling immersion liquid, which is filled with a supercritical fluid resulting from the absorption of laser radiation energy. This region, which has a relatively high specific energy, serves as a thermal accumulator (TA) in the LIPM technology. At the same time, the temperature effect on the processed material continues after the completion of the laser pulse until the self-destruction of the TA along with the transformation of the supercritical fluid into an immersion liquid without the formation of a gas phase.

   Results. The processes of interaction between pulsed radiation, the processed material, and the immersion liquid in the contact zone with the formation of a supercritical fluid are described along with a determination of the composition and properties of the working body in the laser impact zone. The existence of TA is confirmed to intensify the material cutting process while simultaneously reducing the thermal impact zone. The intensification of the material cutting process in the TA zone is determined by both the increased duration of the thermal impact of the TA on the processed material and the presence of highly active atomic and molecular compounds in the supercritical fluid.

   Conclusions. As a result of the conducted research, a new LIPM technology was developed that allows for high-efficiency laser drilling of microholes having a diameter of 30 μm or less, as well as the formation of holes of arbitrary shape and cuts along curved contours in both fragile optically transparent and optically opaque materials with high quality.

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