| United States Patent | 5,786,560 |
| Tatah, et. al. | Jul. 28, 1998 |
| Inventors: | Tatah; Abdelkrim (Arlington, MA); Fukumoto; Akira (Winchester, MA). |
| Assignee: | Panasonic Technologies, Inc. (Cambridge, MA). |
| Appl. No.: | 874,775 |
| Filed: | Jun. 13, 1997 |
| Continuation of (including streamline cont.) Ser. No. 414,348, Mar. 31, 1995, abandoned. |
| Intl. Cl. : | B23K 26/06 |
| Current U.S. Cl.: | 219/121.77; 219/121.85 |
| Field of Search: | 219/121.6, 121.61, 121.68, 121.69, 121.73, 121.75, 121.76, 121.77, 121.85; 264/1.77, 400, 482; 365/119, 127, 151; 347/224 |
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| 5,206,496 | Apr., 1993 | Clement et al. | 219/121.6 |
| 5,265,107 | Nov., 1993 | Delfyett, Jr. | |
| 5,268,862 | Dec., 1993 | Rentzepis | 365/151 |
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| 5,365,366 | Nov., 1994 | Kafka et al. | |
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Hecht, J. "The Laser Guidebook", 2nd ed. New York, McGraw-Hill Inc., 1992, pp. 38, 39, 223.
A method of treating a material by generating an ultraviolet wavelength laser beam having femtosecond pulses; splitting the ultraviolet wavelength laser beam into a plurality of separate laser beams having femtosecond pulses; directing the separate laser beams onto a target point within a sample such that the femtosecond pulses of the separate beams overlap to create an intensity sufficient to treat the sample. Apparatus for treating a material that includes an ultraviolet laser for generating an ultraviolet wavelength laser beam having femtosecond pulse and directing that ultraviolet wavelength laser beam onto a beam splitter; a beam splitter for splitting the ultraviolet wave length laser beam into a plurality of separate laser beams having femtosecond pulses; directing the separate laser beams onto a target point within a sample such that the femtosecond pulses of the separate beams overlap to create an intensity sufficient to treat the sample.