• Laser Solutions
• /
• v.11 no.1
• /
• pp.19-24
• /
• 2008

It has been recognized that laser dicing of wafers results in low mechanical strength compared to the conventional sawing techniques. Thermal shock generated by rapid thermal loading is responsible for this problem. This work presents a two-dimensional ultra-short thermo elastic model for numerical simulation of femtosecond laser ablation of metals in the high-fluence regime where the phase explosion is dominant. Laser-induced thermoelastic stress is analyzed for Ni. The results show that the laser-induced thermal shock is large enough to induce mechanical damages.

• Laser Solutions
• /
• v.6 no.2
• /
• pp.27-33
• /
• 2003

A laser shock cleaning technology is a new dry cleaning methodology for the effective removal of small particles from the surface. This technique uses a plasma shock wave produced by a breakdown of air due to an intense laser pulse. In order to optimize the laser shock cleaning process, it needs to evaluate the cleaning performance quantitatively by using a monitoring technique. In this paper, an acoustic monitoring technique was attempted to investigate the laser shock cleaning process with an aim to optimize the cleaning process. A wide-band microphone with high sensitivity was utilized to detect acoustic signals during the cleaning process. It was found that the intensity of the shock wave was strongly dependent on the power density of laser beam and the gas species at the laser beam focus. As a power density was larger, the shock wave became stronger. It was also seen that the shock wave became stronger in the case of Ar gas compared with air and N$_2$ gas.

• Laser Solutions
• /
• v.7 no.1
• /
• pp.29-36
• /
• 2004

The dynamics of laser-induced plasma/shock wave and the interaction with a surface in the laser shock cleaning process are analyzed by optical diagnostics. Shock wave is generated by a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser in air or with N$_2$, Ar, and He injection into the focal spot. The shock speed is measured by monitoring the photoacoustic probe-beam deflection signal under different conditions. In addition, nanosecond time-resolved images of shock wave propagation and interaction with the substrate are obtained by the laser-flash shadowgraphy. The results reveal the effect of various operation parameters of the laser shock cleaning process on shock wave intensity, energy-conversion efficiency, and flow characteristics. Discussions are made on the cleaning mechanisms based on the experimental observations.

• Laser Solutions
• /
• v.5 no.2
• /
• pp.9-15
• /
• 2002

Basic principles and unique characteristics of laser-induced shock cleaning have been described compared to a conventional laser cleaning method and the removal of small tungsten particles from silicon wafer surfaces was attempted using both methods. It was found that the conventional laser cleaning was not feasible to remove the tungsten particles whereas a successful removal of the particles was carried out by the laser-induced shock waves. From the quantitative analysis using a surface scanner, the average removal efficiency of the particles was more than 98% where smaller particles were slightly more difficult to remove probably due to the increased adhesion force with a decrease of the particle size. It was also seen that the gap distance between the laser focus and the wafer surface is an important processing parameter since the removal efficiency is strongly dependent on the gap distance.

• Laser Solutions
• /
• v.6 no.3
• /
• pp.29-35
• /
• 2003

In semiconductor processing, there are two types of particle contaminated onto the wafer, i.e. dry and wet state particles. In order to evaluate the cleaning performance of laser shock wave cleaning method, the removal of 1 m sized alumina particle at different particle conditions from silicon wafer has been carried out by laser-induced shock waves. It was found that the removal efficiency by laser shock cleaning was strongly dependent on the particle condition, i.e. the removal efficiency of dry alumina particle from silicon wafer was around 97％ while the efficiencies of wet alumina particle in DI water and IPA are 35％ and 55％ respectively. From the analysis of adhesion forces between the particle and the silicon substrate, the adhesion force of the wet particle where capillary force is dominant is much larger than that of the dry particle where Van der Waals force is dominant. As a result, it is seen that the particle in wet condition is much more difficult to remove from silicon wafer than the particle in dry condition by using physical cleaning method such as laser shock cleaning.

• Laser Solutions
• /
• v.12 no.4
• /
• pp.17-25
• /
• 2009

The surface cleaning method based on the laser-induced breakdown (LIB) of gas and subsequent plasma and shock wave generation can remove small particles from solid surfaces. In the laser shock cleaning (LSC) process, a high-power laser pulse induces optical breakdown of the ambient gas above the solid surface covered with contaminant particles. The subsequently created shock wave followed by a high-speed flow stream detaches the particles. In this work, a novel surface cleaning process using laser-induced breakdown of liquid is introduced and demonstrated. LIB of a micro liquid jet increases the shock wave intensity and thus removes smaller particle than the conventional LSC method. Experiments demonstrate that the cleaning force and cleaning efficiency are also increased significantly by this method.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Laser Processing Conference
• /
• 2002.05a
• /
• pp.21-24
• /
• 2002

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Laser Processing Conference
• /
• 2004.10a
• /
• pp.86-89
• /
• 2004

• Laser Solutions
• /
• v.6 no.1
• /
• pp.17-24
• /
• 2003

The purpose of this study is to evaluate thermal shock resistance and thermal shock fracture toughness for ATJ graphite. Thermal shock resistance and thermal shock fracture toughness of ATJ graphite are evaluated by using CO$_2$ laser irradiation technique. The laser heat source is irradiated at the center of specimens. Temperature distribution on the specimen surface is measured using the thermocouples of type K and C. SEM and radiographic images are used to observe the cracks which are formed at the thermal shock specimens.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Laser Processing Conference
• /
• 2003.05a
• /
• pp.18-21
• /
• 2003