Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Panasonic Corporation

Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.

Ming Li

Xinbing Liu

Makoto Ishizuka

Chen-Hsiung Cheng

Tetsuo Ohara

Rajminder Singh

Daniel Hogan

Jimmy Yi-Jie Jia

Mitsuhiko Kimoto

Daisuke Ueda

Hiroyuki Sakai

Masaaki Nishijima

Kazuaki Ohkubo

Satoshi Yamauchi

A method of drilling holes in a work piece includes receiving a laser beam directed along an optical path; and directing the laser beam through a beam former, disposed in the optical path, to form an array of sub-beams of a first pitch size. The method demagnifies the array of sub-beams to form a reduced-size pattern of a second pitch size on the work piece. The array of sub-beams is translated, or moved in a perpendicular direction to the optical path. After translating the array of sub-beams, the method forms the reduced-size pattern of the second pitch size on the work piece. The second pitch size may be smaller than the wavelength of the laser beam.

Method and apparatus of drilling high density submicron cavities using parallel laser beams

A method for forming a via in a sapphire substrate with a laser machining system that includes an ultrafast pulsed laser source. The sapphire substrate is provided. Pulses of laser light are substantially focused to a beam spot on the first surface of the sapphire substrate such that each focused pulse of laser light ablates a volume of the sapphire substrate having a depth less than the substrate thickness. The beam spot of the focused laser light pulses is scanned over a via portion of the first surface of the sapphire substrate. The sapphire substrate is moved in a direction substantially normal to the first surface to control the volume of the sapphire substrate ablated by each pulse of laser light to be substantially constant. The pulsing and scanning steps are repeated until the via is formed extending from the first surface to the second surface of the sapphire substrate.

Via hole machining for microwave monolithic integrated circuits

A multicore optical fiber with an integral diffractive element. The multicore optical fiber includes: a first optical fiber core formed of a non-photosensitive material having an initial index of refraction; and a second optical fiber core including a second longitudinal core axis substantially parallel to the first longitudinal axis. The first optical fiber core includes: a first longitudinal core axis; and a number of index-altered portions having an altered index of refraction which is different from the initial index of refraction. The index-altered portions are arranged within the non-photosensitive material of the first optical fiber core to form a diffractive structure of the integral diffractive element.

Multicore optical fiber with integral diffractive elements machined by ultrafast laser direct writing

An ultrafast laser machining system and method to form diffractive structures in optical fibers. The fiber is mounted with its longitudinal axis perpendicular to the beam path of the laser pulses. A region of the fiber is illuminated and then imaged with two cameras. These cameras are aligned substantially orthogonally. A position of the beam spot is determined. The beam spot is aligned to a starting position within the region. This position is within a portion of the fiber to be machined for which the beam path passes through the greatest length of material. The beam spot is scanned along a path designed to pass the beam spot through all of the portion to be machined such that the beam path does not pass through previously machined material. The laser pulses, which have a duration of less than about 1 ns, are generated as the beam spot is scanned.

Ultrafast laser machining system and method for forming diffractive structures in optical fibers

A method for controlling the shape of the area machined by a pulse of laser light on a surface, such that the shape has a desired elliptical shape with its major axis aligned in a desired direction and the length of this major axis is less than or equal to a diameter of a beam spot. The pulse is generated and focused to the beam spot within a target area. The polarization of the pulse is adjusted to be elliptically polarized with an axis of the polarization ellipse oriented in the desired direction. The ellipticity of the polarization of the pulse is adjusted such that the pulse of laser light has contours of constant machining capacity on the workpiece surface, which have a similar shape to the desired shape. The fluence of the pulse light is controlled such that the area machined by the pulse is substantially the desired shape.

Method of controlling hole shape during ultrafast laser machining by manipulating beam polarization

A multimode long period fiber Bragg grating (LPFBG) for a predetermined wavelength band. The LPFBG formed of a non-photosensitive material having an initial index of refraction. The multimode optical fiber core includes a substantially cylindrical surface, a longitudinal core axis, a core radius, and a number of index-altered portions having an altered index of refraction different from the initial cladding index of refraction. Each of the index-altered multimode optical fiber core has a first transmission surface and second transmission surface that is substantially parallel to the first transmission surface. Also, these index-altered portions are arranged within the non-photosensitive material of the multimode optical fiber core such that the first transmission surface of one portion of the plurality of index-altered portions is substantially parallel to the second transmission surface of a neighboring portion to form a long period Bragg grating structure.

Multimode long period fiber bragg grating machined by ultrafast laser direct writing

A laser pulse shape measuring system to measure the pulse shape of pulses generated by a pulsed laser. Each pulse includes a pulse width and a peak wavelength. The system includes: a beam splitter coupled to the laser to separate each of the pulses into a test pulse and a probe pulse; a pulse width compression means coupled to the beam splitter to compress the pulse width of each probe pulse; a controllable delay means to control a time offset between each test pulse and a corresponding probe pulse; a nonlinear optical medium arranged such that the test beam path and the probe beam path intersect within it to generate wavelength converted pulses corresponding to intersecting pairs of pulses; a detector coupled to the nonlinear optical medium to detect the pulse energies of the wavelength converted pulses; and a processor to determine the pulse shape of the laser pulses.

Ultrafast laser pulse shape measurement method and system

A method for manufacturing a microstructure, which includes at least one fine feature on an existing feature, using an NSOM laser micromachining system. A microstructure device preform is provided. A portion of its top surface is profiled with the NSOM to produce a topographical image. This profiled portion is selected to include the existing feature. An image coordinate system is defined for the profiled portion of top surface based on the topographical image. Coordinates of a reference point and the orientation of the existing feature in the image coordinate system are determined using the topographical image. The probe tip of the NSOM is aligned over a portion of the existing feature using the determined coordinates of the reference point and the orientation of the existing feature. The top surface of the microstructure device preform is machined with the micro-machining laser to form the fine feature(s) on the existing feature.

Method for modifying existing micro-and nano-structures using a near-field scanning optical microscope

A system for measuring radiation at a peak wavelength that is radiated from a probe tip of a near-field scanning optical microscope (NSOM) probe used for laser machining, including: a laser source; the NSOM probe; a coupling substrate that is substantially transmissive to the peak wavelength; an NSOM mount to controllably hold the probe and the coupling substrate; an NSOM probe monitor coupled to the mount; an NSOM controller; and a photodetector optically coupled to the substrate. Light is coupled into the probe. The mount includes a Z motion stage. The probe monitor determines the distance between the probe tip and the coupling substrate. The controller is coupled to the probe monitor and the motion stage. It controls the distance between the probe tip and the coupling substrate such that radiation is coupled from the probe tip into the coupling substrate. The photodetector measures the power of this radiation.

Method and apparatus for calibration of near-field scanning optical microscope tips for laser machining

A dynamically variable, amplitude grating based diffractive optic including: a substantially transmissive, elastic substrate; a substantially opaque, elastic material formed in a predetermined pattern on the first surface of the elastic substrate; and a substrate mount coupled to the elastic substrate to hold it under tension. The predetermined pattern of the substantially opaque, elastic material substrate forms an amplitude grating on the elastic substrate. The substrate mount includes a variable tensioner to stretch the elastic substrate and the substantially opaque, elastic material, thereby allowing at least one optical property of the amplitude grating to be dynamically varied. Alternatively, the elastic substrate may include at least one substantially transparent portion and at least one substantially opaque portion, the substantially opaque portion(s) arranged in a predetermined pattern to form the amplitude grating within the elastic substrate rather than on its surface.

Fresnel zone plate based on elastic materials

A method for manufacturing a microstructure, which includes at least one feature having a dimension less than 200 nm, on a work piece. Pulses of UV laser light having a duration of less than about 1 ps and a peak wavelength of less than about 380 nm are generated. These pulses of UV laser light are focused to a substantially diffraction limited beam spot within a target area of the work piece. The fluence of this substantially diffraction limited beam spot in the target area of the work piece is controlled such that the diameter of the section of the target area machined by one of the pulses of UV laser light is less than 200 nm.

Method of precise laser nanomachining with UV ultrafast laser pulses

A near-field scanning optical microscope (NSOM) laser micromachining system for laser machining features on surfaces using an ultrafast laser source and a method of laser machining such features. The system includes: the ultrafast laser source to generate pulses of laser light having pulse durations less than 1 ns and a peak wavelength; an NSOM probe having a substantially cylindrical shape; an NSOM mount to controllably hold the NSOM probe and the microstructure workpiece to be machined; an NSOM probe monitor coupled to the NSOM mount for determining the distance between the probe tip of the NSOM probe and the surface; and an NSOM controller coupled to the NSOM probe monitor, and motion stages in the NSOM mount. The NSOM mount includes an XY motion stage and a Z motion stage. These motion stages are couple to either the NSOM probe or the microstructure workpiece, or one motion stage to each.

Near-field scanning optical microscope for laser machining of micro-  and nano- structures

A microcavity forming device is provided for making microcavities in a tungsten wire. The microcavity forming device includes a source of particles; a housing for receiving a heated tungsten wire; and a plurality of jet nozzles disposed in the housing for spraying the particles toward the heated tungsten wire. The particles are 0.35&#x2013;0.75 micron in diameter. The heated tungsten wire is received in the housing and the jet nozzles spray the particles toward the tungsten wire to form the microcavities in the tungsten wire.

Method and apparatus for forming discrete microcavities in a filament wire using microparticles

The invention is an apparatus and a method for drilling holes in a work piece with a laser. A laser beam is received by the optical system and directed along an optical path. The system directs the laser beam through a moveable mask aperture creating a sub-beam, that is reduced in size by a lens system as it is imaged onto a work piece. Multiple features are formed in the work piece by moving the mask.

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Chelmsford, MA, United States of America

Ming Li