Process of making components for electronic and optical devices using laser processing including ablation

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2021301381-A1
Application number	US-202117336855-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jun 2, 2021
Priority date	Mar 30, 2020
Publication date	Sep 30, 2021
Grant date	—

Abstract

The present invention relates to processes of making components for electronic and optical devices using laser processing and devices comprising such components. Such process uses a laser to introduce chemical and/or structural changes in substrates and films that are the raw materials from which components for electronic and optical devices are made. Such process yields components that can have one or more electronic and/or optical functionalities that are integrated on the same substrate or film. In addition, such process does not require large-scale clean rooms and is easily configurable. Thus, rapid device prototyping, design change and evolution in the lab and on the production side is realized.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A process of making an electrical component, an optical component or a combined electrical and optical component, said process comprising:
a) pattern illumination-based annealing at a specific intensity and for a specific time, at least one material that comprises two or more regions that are amorphous, nanocrystalline, microcrystalline or crystalline with the proviso that at least two of said regions are not identical with respect being amorphous, nanocrystalline, microcrystalline or crystalline, said at least one material comprising a transition metal and an element selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, sulfur, selenium, phosphorous and mixtures thereof, using a laser or lamp, to form on, within or on and within said material:
(i) at least two electronic elements selected from a conductor, semiconductor and an insulator;
(ii) two or more different conductors having at least one of the following: different electrical properties or different optical properties;
(iii) two or more different semiconductors having at least one of the following: different electrical properties or different optical properties; or
(iv) two or more different insulators having at least one of the following: different electrical properties or different optical properties;
said process being performed under one of the following conditions: vacuum of less 100 torr, air or under a fluid blanket other than air; said pattern illumination-based annealing resulting in at least one of a chemical change or structural change, and optionally the removal of material, in at least one of said materials that results in an electrical component, an optical component or a combined electrical and optical component being created to form on, within or on and within said material; or b) pattern illumination-based annealing at least one material that comprises at least one region that is amorphous, nanocrystalline, microcrystalline or crystalline, said at least one material comprising a transition metal and an element selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, sulfur, selenium, phosphorous and mixtures thereof, using a laser or lamp, to form on, within or on and within said material:
(i) at least two electronic elements selected from a conductor, semiconductor and an insulator;
(ii) two or more different conductors having at least one of the following: different electrical properties or different optical properties;
(iii) two or more different semiconductors having at least one of the following: different electrical properties or different optical properties; or
(iv) two or more different insulators having at least one of the following: different electrical properties or different optical properties;
at least two electronic elements selected from a conductor, semiconductor and an insulator, said process being performed under one of the following environmental conditions: vacuum of less 100 torr, air or under a fluid blanket other than air, then repeating, one or more times said pattern illumination-based annealing on said at least one material using one or more of the following:
(i) the same device but at least one of the following: a different intensity or time;
(ii) a different environmental condition from the previous environmental condition, said different environmental condition select from the same group of environmental conditions; or
(iii) a lamp if the previous pattern illumination-based annealing was laser pattern illumination-based annealing or a laser if the previous pattern illumination-based annealing was lamp pattern illumination-based annealing
said pattern illumination-based annealing resulting in at least one of a chemical change or structural change, and optionally the removal of material, in at least one of said at least one material's optical or electrical properties.

2 . The process of claim 1 wherein for process 1b) said at least one material comprises two or more regions that are amorphous, nanocrystalline, microcrystalline or crystalline with the proviso that at least two of said regions are not identical with respect being amorphous, nanocrystalline, microcrystalline or crystalline, at least two of said regions being pattern illumination-based annealed via different pattern illumination-based annealing processes.

3 . The process of claim 1 wherein said transition metal is selected from the group consisting of molybdenum, tungsten, niobium, tantalum, vanadium, titanium, chromium, iron, rhodium, hafnium, rhenium and mixtures thereof.

4 . The process of claim 1 wherein said process is performed under a fluid blanket other than air.

5 . The process of claim 1 wherein said fluid blanket comprises:
a) an element selected from the group consisting of krypton, xenon, radon, argon, neon, helium, hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, sulfur, selenium, phosphorous and mixtures thereof;
b) based on total fluid volume greater than 0% to about 19% or from 21% to 100% oxygen; and/or
c) greater than 0% to about 78% or from 80% to 100% nitrogen.

6 . A process according to claim 1 wherein said material comprises at least one region that is amorphous or nanocrystalline.

7 . The process of claim 1 wherein, said material comprises one or more chemical coatings, said one or more chemical coatings each independently comprising one or more transition metal dichalcogenides selected from the group consisting of MoS 2 , WS 2 , MoSe 2 , WSe 2 and mixtures thereof.

8 . The process of claim 1 wherein, said material comprises a substrate having a first side and a second side and one or more chemical coatings one or more chemical coatings disposed on said substrate's first side and optionally disposed on said substrate's second side, said one or more chemical coatings each independently comprising a transition metal and an element selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, sulfur, selenium, phosphorous and mixtures thereof, said substrate of said coated substrate being selected from glass, polymer and mixtures thereof.

9 . A process according to claim 1 wherein said pattern illumination-based annealing is achieved by using one or more lasers, said one or more lasers each being independently selected from a laser that is a pulsed laser, a continuous laser or a pulsed/continuous laser.

10 . A process according to claim 1 wherein said pattern illumination-based annealing is achieved by using a continuous wave laser to subject at least a portion of said material, for a time of about 0.01 milliseconds to 60 seconds to said continuous laser, said continuous laser having power of from about 1 microwatt to about 1 megawatt over the time period said at least a portion of said chemical coating is subjected to said continuous laser, said portion of said material being a portion of the material comprising one or more chemical coatings, said one or more chemical coatings each independently comprises a transition metal and an element selected from the group consisting of oxygen, sulfur, selenium and mixtures thereof, said one or more chemical coatings each independently comprising at least one of an amorphous, nanocrystalline, microcrystalline or crystalline region.

11 . A process according to claim 1 wherein said pattern illumination-based annealing is achieved using a lamp to subject at least a portion of said material for a time of about 10 microseconds to about 500,000 microseconds to said lamp, said lamp having power of from about 0.01 J/cm 2 to about 1,000 J/cm 2 , said portion of said material being a portion of the material comprising one or more chemical coatings, said one or more chemical coa

Assignees

• Us Gov Air Force

Inventors

• Glavin Nicholas R
• Buskohl Philip R
• Gliebe Kimberly A
• Muratore Christopher
• Austin Drake

Classifications

• H10P95/90

  Thermal treatments, e.g. annealing or sintering · CPC title

• H10P14/3808

  using laser beams · CPC title

• H10P95/60

  Mechanical treatments, e.g. by ultrasounds · CPC title

• H10P54/00

  Cutting or separating of wafers, substrates or parts of devices · CPC title

• H10P52/00

  Grinding, lapping or polishing of wafers, substrates or parts of devices · CPC title