Laser Modified Glass Substrate Cutting via Wet Etching
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cutting methods for glass substrates in electronic devices often result in excessive stress, chipping, and cracking, necessitating additional edge grinding processes that increase complexity and cost.
Innovation Solution
A cutting method that uses a laser process to create a modified region on the glass substrate with etching selectivity, followed by a wet etching process to cut the substrate, thereby reducing defects and eliminating the need for edge grinding.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional cutting methods are used on glass substrates, then the cutting process is simple, but the glass substrate suffers from excessive stress, chipping, and cracking
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by performing laser modification on the glass substrate before the actual cutting process. The laser creates a modified region with different physical properties that facilitates subsequent cutting while reducing stress and defects. This pre-treatment step prepares the material in advance to avoid chipping and cracking during cutting.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary approach by using a modified region created through laser irradiation as a mediator between the cutting tool and the glass substrate. This modified region acts as a transition zone that reduces the harmful effects of direct mechanical cutting, thereby reducing stress concentration and preventing cracks while maintaining process feasibility.
2Manufacturing precision
If edge grinding process is added to reduce defects, then the glass substrate quality improves, but the manufacturing process complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the need for the separate edge grinding process by integrating the defect reduction function into the laser modification step. The laser-created modified region inherently reduces chipping and cracking, making the additional edge grinding step unnecessary. This removes the complex post-processing step while maintaining edge quality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the functions of cutting and edge quality improvement into a single integrated process. The laser modification simultaneously prepares the cutting path and creates stress-relief zones that prevent chipping, combining what were previously separate operations (cutting + edge grinding) into one unified process step.
3Manufacturing precision
If laser modification is applied to create etching selectivity, then the cutting precision improves, but the process time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by optimizing the laser processing parameters (energy density, pulse duration, scanning speed) to achieve the desired modified region depth and width in minimal time. By carefully controlling these parameters, the laser creates sufficient etching selectivity for precise cutting without excessive processing time, balancing precision and efficiency.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The method effectively reduces defects such as cracks in the glass substrate, simplifies the manufacturing process, and lowers costs by eliminating the need for edge grinding.
Implementation Method 1
The glass substrate is irradiated with picosecond infrared light or femtosecond infrared light to form the modified region
Implementation Method 2
A wet etching process is performed on the modified region of the glass substrate to remove the modified region
Data Source
AI summary
A substrate structure and a cutting method thereof are provided. The cutting method includes the following steps. A first substrate structure is provided, wherein the first substrate structure includes a glass substrate and a redistribution layer disposed on the glass substrate. A laser process is performed on the glass substrate to form a modified region on the glass substrate. A wet etching process is performed on the modified region of the glass substrate to remove the modified region and form a plurality of second substrate structures.