Claims
- 1. Apparatus for laser etching of a diamond article comprising a cutting laser maintained in etching relationship to said article and means for contacting said diamond at the point of etching with a gaseous material effective to remove graphite or inhibit its formation.
- 2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said means for contacting is a gas lance.
- 3. Apparatus according to claim 2 which also comprises means for maintaining said article in an inert atmosphere.
- 4. Apparatus according to claim 1 further comprising cooling means for said article.
- 5. Apparatus according to claim 4 wherein said cooling means comprises a cooling element on which said article is mounted, said cooling element being cooled by passage of a coolant through it and being grooved in the direction of laser cutting.
- 6. Apparatus according to claim 5 wherein the cooling element is of copper.
- 7. Apparatus according to claim 6 which also comprises means for maintaining said article in an inert atmosphere.
Parent Case Info
This application is a division of application Ser. No. 08/064,465, filed May 21, 1993, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,334,280.
US Referenced Citations (4)
Non-Patent Literature Citations (2)
Entry |
"Processing of CVD diamond films by YAG laser" Tezuda, Japa Soc. of Precision Eng., vol. 56, No. 12, pp. 2255-2260, Dec. 1990. |
"Excimer-laser etching of diamond and hard carbon films by direct writing and optical projection Rothschild", IEEE vol. 4, No. 1, pp. 310-314, Jan.-Feb. 1986 8 Ref. |
Divisions (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
64465 |
May 1993 |
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