Laser etching of materials in liquids.

摘要

Laser etching of a substrate (28) in a liquid (12) is accomplished by laser induced sonic cavitation at the substrate surface. The preferred substrate (28) is laser (22) energy absorbing and has a finite melting temperature. The preferred liquid (12) is an organic or inorganic inert liquid which does not chemically react with the substrate (28) at room temperature. The laser (22) is preferably a copper vapor laser but a chopped beam cw argon ion laser or a YAG laser adjusted to a low power output sufficient to avoid the formation of a recast layer can also be used. The laser (22) parameters are adjusted for causing the growth and collapse of bubbles at the substrate surface. The laser etching has particular application in the fabrication of rails (46) in magnetic head sliders and dicing of Al2O3-TiC, TiC, SiC, Si/SiO2, and laser energy absorbing metal and metal oxides.