Abstract: Provided are apparatuses and method for the thermal processing of a substrate surface, e.g., controlled laser thermal annealing (LTA) of substrates. The invention typically involves irradiating the substrate surface with first and second images to process regions of the substrate surface at a substantially uniform peak processing temperature along a scan path. A first image may serve to effect spike annealing of the substrates while another may be used to provide auxiliary heat treatment to the substrates before and/or after the spike annealing. Control over the temperature profile of the prespike and/or postspike may also reduce stresses and strains generated in the wafers. Also provided are microelectronic devices formed using the inventive apparatuses and methods.

Abstract: Provided are apparatuses and method for the thermal processing of a substrate surface, e.g., controlled laser thermal annealing (LTA) of substrates. The invention typically involves irradiating the substrate surface with first and second images to process regions of the substrate surface at a substantially uniform peak processing temperature along a scan path. A first image may serve to effect spike annealing of the substrates while another may be used to provide auxiliary heat treatment to the substrates before and/or after the spike annealing. Control over the temperature profile of the prespike and/or postspike may also reduce stresses and strains generated in the wafers. Also provided are microelectronic devices formed using the inventive apparatuses and methods.

Abstract: Apparatuses and methods are provide thermally processing of the central portion of a substrate surface using a scanned photonic beam. Such thermal processing is carried out using a shield to block the beam from illuminating the side wall or peripheral portion of the substrate. The shield has characteristics, e.g., diffractive characteristics, effective to maintain the intensity of any unblocked portion of beam suitable for processing the central portion of the substrate surface.

Abstract: A coherent beam source, e.g., a laser having a cavity that is unstable in at least one direction, is used to produce a coherent beam having an initial intensity profile. The beam is passed through a relay having a Fourier plane containing a spatial filter that serves as a radiation defining mask. The filter has an aperture size and shape effective to modify the beam such that the modified beam forms an image on a substrate. The to image has an intensity profile that more closely approximates a super-Gaussian profile than the initial profile. For example, when the initial intensity profile is Gaussian, the spatial filter may allow passage of only unattenuated the central core of the beam and block completely blocks the wings of the Guassian profile. The modified beam may be more suitable for use in a scanning system used to anneal wafers or other substrates containing integrated circuits.

Abstract: Provided are apparatuses and method for the thermal processing of a substrate surface, e.g., controlled laser thermal annealing (LTA) of substrates. The invention typically involves irradiating the substrate surface with first and second images to process regions of the substrate surface at a substantially uniform peak processing temperature along a scan path. A first image may serve to effect spike annealing of the substrates while another may be used to provide auxiliary heat treatment to the substrates before and/or after the spike annealing. Control over the temperature profile of the prespike and/or postspike may also reduce stresses and strains generated in the wafers. Also provided are microelectronic devices formed using the inventive apparatuses and methods.

Abstract: A line-of-light projecting module is illuminated by a diode-laser bar and includes light-pipe for homogenizing light from the diode-laser bar in the slow-axis. A shaping optics assembly directs the light emitted by the diode-laser bar into the entrance end of the light-pipe as a diverging beam in the slow-axis and as a collimated beam in the fast-axis. The light propagates through the light-pipe unguided in the fast axis. The light is guided by the light-pipe in the slow-axis, and homogenized in the slow-axis by making multiple reflections from walls of the light-pipe. An anamorphic projection optics assembly projects the light from the exit end of the light-pipe and focuses the light to form the line-of-light.

Abstract: A multilayer semiconductor laser includes a substrate on which is formed a semiconductor multilayer heterostructure divided into a plurality of electrically pumped regions and an elongated optically pumped region. The electrically pumped regions generate and deliver optical pump radiation laterally into the elongated optically pumped region. Output radiation is generated and delivered by the optically pumped region.

Abstract: A multimode to low-mode optical fiber is constructed by forming a plurality of multimode optical fibers into a fiber bundle. The bundle is then selectively heated and drawn to form a bi-tapered fiber bundle having a central straight portion in which the multimode fibers are fused into a single length of fiber. During the drawing step, measures are taken to provide an aperture extending through the bi-tapered bundle, including the single straight portion of the bundle. An optical fiber having a low-mode or single-mode core is inserted through the aperture into the straight section of the bi-tapered bundle. The bi-tapered bundle and the low-mode core fiber are heated to a temperature at which cladding of the low-mode core fiber fuses to the straight portion of the bi-tapered bundle. The bi-tapered bundle is then cleaved in the straight portion to provide the multimode to low-mode optical fiber combiner. In one example, the multimode fiber bundle is formed around a metal wire before the drawing operation.

Abstract: Optical apparatus for projecting a line of light includes a diode-laser bar having a plurality of individual emitters, input and output microlens arrays, a lens and other optical elements. The diode-laser bar, the microlens arrays, and the lens are configured and arranged such that the microlens arrays form three or more slow-axis intermediate near-field images of each emitter in a plane immediately adjacent the output microlens array, and in a telecentric arrangement with the lens. The lens and the optical elements project overlapping elongated far-field images of the intermediate near-field images to form the line of light.

Abstract: In apparatus for wavelength stabilizing and spectrally narrowing an output beam of a diode-laser, a cylindrical lens is arranged to collimate the beam in the fast axis of the diode laser without reducing divergence in the slow axis of the diode-laser. A length of optical fiber is arranged to receive the fast-axis collimated beam from the lens. The optical fiber has a core surrounded by a first cladding, the first cladding being surrounded by a second cladding. The core of the optical fiber has an elongated cross section and includes a wavelength selective Bragg grating. The core functions as a low-mode core in the width direction of the cross section. The length direction of the core is aligned with the fast axis of the diode-laser. The fast-axis collimated beam and the low mode width of the core provides that the Bragg grating only reflects light that propagates parallel the longitudinal axis of the fiber.

Abstract: A wide-stripe diode-laser includes a lower cladding region, a lower waveguide region, an active region, an upper waveguide region, and an upper cladding region all comprising semiconductor layers epitaxially grown on a semiconductor substrate. An elongated rectangular electrode on the upper cladding layer defines a stripe or pumped section. Adjacent the electrode is an unpumped section in which at least the quantum-well layer has been treated to cause the active region to be disordered. In this unpumped section, at least one area of the area is etched to a depth equal to or less than the thickness of the cladding region. The etched area provides a diverging lens effect in the waveguide region. The diverging lens effect expands the fundamental mode of the laser in the stripe to a width sufficient to improve single mode performance.

Abstract: Apparatus for projecting a line of light includes a linear array of diode-lasers arranged in a diode-laser bar. The apparatus includes an optical system. Components of the system include a plurality of lenses and array of cylindrical microlenses having the same spacing as diode-lasers in the diode-laser array. The microlens array is spaced at a distance from the diode-laser bar and aligned with the diode-laser bar such that the front focal plane of the microlens array is between the diode-laser bar and the microlens array. The optical system components are configured and arranged to project overlapping elongated images in a predetermined plane. The overlapping images form the line of light. The elongated images are images of cross-sections of beams from the diode-lasers where the beams are intersected by the front focal plane of the microlens array.

Abstract: A method of coupling laser-radiation into an optical fiber includes providing a stack of diode-laser bars and first and second parallel mirrors, the second mirror is selectively reflective only for one polarization plane of the laser-radiation. Each of the diode-laser bars includes at least two spaced-apart diode-laser emitters each emitting a plane-polarized beam of laser-radiation having a fast axis and a slow axis. The laser-radiation beams are collimated in the fast axis by a cylindrical lens located in front of each bar. In one arrangement the polarization orientation of one collimated beam from each diode-laser is rotated by 90 degrees and transmitted through the selectively-reflective mirror. The other collimated beam from each diode-laser bar is reflected onto the selectively-reflective mirror by the first mirror and reflected from the selectively-reflective mirror such that the reflected beam combines with the transmitted beam to form a combined beam.

Abstract: Two parallel sets of groups of beams from diode laser bars are spaced apart by a distance V. The two sets of beam groups are interleaved by a beam combiner to provide on set of beam groups spaced apart by a distance V/2. The beam combiner includes a plurality of reflective strips in a plane inclined to the direction of propagation of the beam groups. One set of beam groups is transmitted through the beam combiner without being intercepted by the reflective strips. The other set of beam groups is interleaved with the transmitted set of beam groups by reflecting the other set of beam groups from the reflective strips.

Abstract: Apparatus for reducing spacing between a plurality of parallel, spaced apart plane-polarized laser-radiation beams delivered by a stack of laser-diode bars includes a ninety degree polarization rotator, and a compound prism including a total reflecting surface an internal polarization-selective surface parallel to each other. The polarization-selective surface is highly transmissive for radiation plane-polarized in one polarization orientation and highly reflective for radiation plane-polarized at ninety degrees to that orientation. The polarization rotator rotates the polarization of a portion of the beams. The beams are transmitted through the compound prism with the portion of polarization-rotated beams following a different path through the prism from that of the beams that are not polarization rotated. The beams exit the prism with spacing therebetween one-half of the spacing between beams entering the prism.

Abstract: A multilayer semiconductor laser includes a substrate on which is formed a semiconductor multilayer heterostructure divided into a plurality of electrically pumped regions and an elongated optically pumped region. The electrically pumped regions generate and delivering optical pump radiation laterally into the elongated optically pumped region. Output radiation is generated and delivered by the optically pumped region.

Abstract: A display system is disclosed that includes a light source, an integrator rod receiving a light beam from the light source and producing an integrated light beam, a beam splitting device splitting the integrated light beam into at least a first cone of light and a second cone of light, the cones of light having complementary intensity distributions, and at least a first spatial light modulator and a second spatial light modulator, wherein the first spatial light modulator is capable of selectively reflecting portions of the first cone of light in an ON direction and the second spatial light modulator is capable of selectively reflecting portions of the second cone of light in an ON direction. The display system further includes a combining device for combining the selectively reflected portions of the cones of light in the ON direction and projection optics for projecting the combined reflected cones of light.

Abstract: Apparatus for reducing spacing between a plurality of parallel, spaced apart plane-polarized laser-radiation beams delivered by a stack of laser-diode bars includes a ninety degree polarization rotator, and a compound prism including a total reflecting surface an internal polarization-selective surface parallel to each other. The polarization-selective surface is highly transmissive for radiation plane-polarized in one polarization orientation and highly reflective for radiation plane-polarized at ninety degrees to that orientation. The polarization rotator rotates the polarization of a portion of the beams. The beams are transmitted through the compound prism with the portion of polarization-rotated beams following a different path through the prism from that of the beams that are not polarization rotated. The beams exit the prism with spacing therebetween one-half of the spacing between beams entering the prism.

Abstract: Two parallel sets of groups of beams from diode laser bars are spaced apart by a distance V. The two sets of beam groups are interleaved by a beam combiner to provide on set of beam groups spaced apart by a distance V/2. The beam combiner includes a plurality of reflective strips in a plane inclined to the direction of propagation of the beam groups. One set of beam groups is transmitted through the beam combiner without being intercepted by the reflective strips. The other set of beam groups is interleaved with the transmitted set of beam groups by reflecting the other set of beam groups from the reflective strips.

Abstract: A method of coupling laser-radiation into an optical fiber includes providing a stack of diode-laser bars and first and second parallel mirrors, the second mirror is selectively reflective only for one polarization plane of the laser-radiation. Each of the diode-laser bars includes at least two spaced-apart diode-laser emitters each emitting a plane-polarized beam of laser-radiation having a fast axis and a slow axis. The laser-radiation beams are collimated in the fast axis by a cylindrical lens located in front of each bar. In one arrangement the polarization orientation of one collimated beam from each diode-laser is rotated by 90 degrees and transmitted through the selectively-reflective mirror. The other collimated beam from each diode-laser bar is reflected onto the selectively-reflective mirror by the first mirror and reflected from the selectively-reflective mirror such that the reflected beam combines with the transmitted beam to form a combined beam.