Thermal stress cleavage of a single-crystal round sapphire bar by carbon dioxide laser

This study is the first attempt of applying thermal stress cleavage to a single-crystal round sapphire bar having a morphologically continuous circumference surface. Previously, thermal stress cleavage was only applied to brittle material substrates or wafers owing to the crack propagation behaviour induced by thermal stress distribution. To overcome this issue, a V-shaped groove was prepared on the circumference as an initial point for crack propagation, and a continuous-wave carbon dioxide (CO2) laser was used as the heat source. The thermal stress behaviour was simulated via finite element analysis, and the effect of the initial crack morphology on the thermal stress behaviour was evaluated. In addition, the crack propagation was monitored using an acoustic emission sensor, and the separation mechanism of the round sapphire bar was investigated. Results indicated that the thermal stress cleavage using the CO2 laser beam allowed the complete separation of the round sapphire bar with the V-shaped groove without any final edge remaining. The crack propagation behaviour was determined from the relationship between the thermal stress distribution and morphology change during crack propagation. The fabricated sharp V-shaped groove improved the quality of the cleaved surface, and the high aspect ratio of the groove enabled a high-quality cleavage. The initial crack propagation immediately after the start of laser beam irradiation was affected by the tip of the V-shaped groove, and the crack propagation direction could be controlled through the tip morphology of the V-shaped groove.