Abstract: A method of forming laser-patterned conductive elements on a thin film of semiconductor material in a semiconductor device by fabricating a thin film of metal on the semiconductor material and scribing the semiconductor film along a desired pattern with a laser operated at a power density sufficient to ablate the semiconductor material along the desired pattern. The ablation of the semiconductor material produces gases that structurally weaken and burst through the metal film along the desired pattern to form gaps separating the metal film into a plurality of conductive elements, for example, back electrodes on a thin-film photovoltaic module.