Predamaged Glass Ceramic Components for Clean Thick-Glass Separation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Thicker glass and glass ceramic components, particularly those with a thickness of at least 3.5 mm, face challenges in achieving high-quality cut edges with low roughness and high rejection rates during separation, necessitating costly multi-step methods and complex cleaning processes.
Innovation Solution
Components with predamages arranged along a predetermined dividing line, consisting of a row of cylindrically symmetrical microchannels with minimal material loss and increased density around the pre-damaged points, produced using a Bessel beam of the 0th order laser to ensure continuous and precise separation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional engraved cutting methods are used on thicker glass components (≥3.5 mm), then continuous straight-line cuts can be achieved, but the cut edge quality deteriorates with high roughness and increased rejection rate
Solution Approach 1:
The cutting process is segmented into two distinct stages: first, laser-induced predamages are created along the dividing line to define the separation path; second, mechanical force is applied to propagate the crack along this pre-defined path. This segmentation allows the laser to create a precise guide without directly causing the final break, thereby maintaining edge quality while enabling clean separation.
Solution Approach 2:
The laser creates predamages in advance along the predetermined dividing line before the actual separation occurs. These predamages serve as pre-prepared crack initiation points that guide the subsequent mechanical breaking process, ensuring that the final separation follows the exact desired path with high precision and minimal edge damage.
2Manufacturing precision
If costly multi-step methods (engraved breaking, mechanical milling, polishing) are used, then manufacturing precision improves with tolerances of less than one millimeter, but device complexity and production cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts and isolates the most critical function of the multi-step process—the definition of the cutting path—into a separate preliminary laser predamage step. The subsequent mechanical breaking step then follows this pre-defined path, eliminating the need for additional milling and polishing steps while maintaining high precision tolerances of less than one millimeter.
Solution Approach 2:
The laser predamage step performs the preliminary action of creating a precise separation path before the main breaking operation. This pre-prepared guide path enables the mechanical breaking step to achieve high precision without requiring complex multi-step processes, thereby simplifying the overall device while maintaining tolerances of less than one millimeter.
3Ease of manufacture
If conventional cutting methods are used, then separation can be achieved, but harmful factors increase due to particles requiring complex cleaning processes
Solution Approach 1:
The invention converts the potentially harmful laser-material interaction into a beneficial process by using the laser to create controlled predamages rather than direct cutting. This approach generates minimal harmful particles compared to conventional mechanical cutting methods, as the laser energy is confined to creating discrete predamage points that guide the subsequent clean mechanical separation.
4Strength
If thicker glass components (≥3.5 mm) are processed, then component strength and application suitability improve, but manufacturing difficulty increases due to poor cut edge quality
Solution Approach 1:
The laser-created predamages serve as an intermediary between the laser and the final mechanical break. For thick glass components (≥3.5 mm), these predamages act as a guide that directs the mechanical force along the desired path, enabling clean separation with good edge quality that would be difficult to achieve through direct mechanical cutting of thick material.
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 solution results in lower rejection rates and improved edge quality, allowing for seamless integration into further treatment processes without additional cleaning, while maintaining precise cutting and reducing material loss.
Implementation Method 1
produced using a Bessel beam of the 0th order laser to ensure continuous and precise separation
Implementation Method 2
Bessel beam of the 0th order laser
Implementation Method 3
the glass or the glass ceramic has a material compaction of at least 1% relative to the actual material density in a radius of 3 μm about the longitudinal axis of the respective pre-damaged point
Data Source
AI summary
A component includes a glass or glass ceramic having a thickness and a plurality of predamages. Each predamage of the plurality of predamages has a longitudinal axis and passes continuously through the thickness of the glass or the glass ceramic. The component also includes a material compaction of the glass or glass ceramic that is at least 1% relative to an actual material density in a radius of 3 μm about the longitudinal axis of each predamage so that the glass or the glass ceramic has a relative weight loss per predamage that is less than 10%.