Composite laser beam separation technology for brittle transparent materials

By combining a picosecond Bessel laser and a continuous-wave (CW) fiber Gaussian laser with the same optical axis, a composite laser beam separation (CLBS) technology that allows the fast, high-quality separation of brittle transparent materials was developed for the first time, to the best of our knowledge. In this experiment, 1-mm-thick soda lime glass was separated using this CLBS technology, and the CLBS separation mechanism was analyzed. The experimental results show that a separated surface similar to frosted polishing can be obtained by CLBS, and the edge chipping of the separated upper surface was no more than 0.5 µm. The separated sidewall was flat and smooth without separation defects such as cracks or broken edges, and the surface roughness (Ra) was 0.12 µm. The separation speed reached 12 mm/s and can be further improved by increasing the CW laser power density. This research provides a new way for lasers to separate brittle transparent materials.