Various embodiments may be used for
laser-based modification of target material of a workpiece while advantageously achieving improvements in
processing throughput and / or quality. Embodiments of a method of
processing may include focusing and directing
laser pulses to a region of the workpiece at a pulse repetition rate sufficiently high so that material is efficiently removed from the region and a quantity of unwanted material within the region,
proximate to the region, or both is reduced relative to a quantity obtainable at a lower repetition rate. In at least one embodiment, an
ultrashort pulse laser system may include at least one of a
fiber amplifier or
fiber laser. Various embodiments are suitable for at least one of dicing,
cutting, scribing, and forming features on or within a
semiconductor substrate. Workpiece materials may also include metals, inorganic or organic dielectrics, or any material to be micromachined with
femtosecond and / or
picosecond pulses, and in some embodiments with pulse widths up to a few nanoseconds.