Laser dicing · Micromachining · Custom wafer geometries
Laser wafer dicing and micromachining for thick, bonded and non-standard substrates
When a dicing blade chips it, can't reach it, or can't cut the shape at all, we cut it with a water-guided laser. We dice thick silicon and III-V substrates up to 5mm, cut through bonded stacks and parts with topography, drill holes and slots, and cut wafers into squares, coupons and custom outlines from your drawing.
- Through-cuts to 5mm
- Holes & slots
- Squares from 450mm
- Single pieces welcome
- ITAR registered
Thick semiconductor and III-V laser dicing, 1mm to 5mm
Thick substrates are where blade dicing breaks down. The blade loads up, wanders off line and chips the edge, and on III-V material a chipped part is usually a scrapped part. Our Synova Laser MicroJet cuts straight through the full thickness of GaAs, InP, InAs, InSb, GaSb, silicon and germanium with a parallel kerf and a minimal heat-affected zone.
We've cut completely through 5mm of bulk GaAs, with the kerf compensated in the program so finished dimensions held. Thicker than 5mm is possible: send the material and we'll run a feasibility cut and report the results before you commit a lot.
Bonded stacks and substrates with 3D topography
A dicing saw's blade and mounting flange have to clear every raised feature on the part. The Laser MicroJet's beam travels inside a water jet with roughly 40mm of working length, so it reaches the cut line without anything touching wire bonds, stacked die, lids or posts. There's no spinning blade, so the laser cuts through dissimilar bonded layers without the mechanical stress that delaminates interfaces.
Laser hole drilling, slots and cutouts
The same process cuts any closed contour from a CAD file: round and rectangular through-holes, slots, windows and multi-feature patterns, on full wafers up to 450mm. Recent work includes rectangular through-holes in 300mm silicon wafers and multi-slot outline parts cut in metal. Send a DXF or DWG with the feature locations, and tell us which dimensions are critical.
Custom wafer geometries
When a standard diameter doesn't fit your tool, chamber or experiment, we cut to your specification. We keep silicon wafer inventory in house, so many silicon geometry jobs need no material lead time.
Equipment manufacturers
310mm square substrates cut from 450mm wafers, qualification coupons, and non-standard rounds for next-generation tool development.
R&D and pilot lines
Rectangular test pieces, diced arrays, multi-die layouts and application-specific outlines cut from your CAD file.
Research groups
Fixtures, sample holders, test structures and odd shapes for experiments. Single pieces are a normal order.
Materials
- Semiconductors: silicon (25.4mm to 450mm, stocked in house), SOI, SiGe, germanium, GaAs / AlGaAs, InP, InAs, InSb, GaSb, GaN-on-Si, CdTe / CdZnTe, HgCdTe, graphite, diamond-coated silicon, patterned CMOS
- Metals and hard materials: stainless steel, copper, molybdenum, tungsten, titanium, nickel alloys including Permalloy (Ni–Fe) and Kovar, tungsten carbide, PCD / PCBN, Cu-diamond composites
- Bonded stacks: customer-supplied; send the layer stack and thicknesses
Sapphire, glass, fused silica, quartz and SiC are transparent at 1064nm, so the laser can't cut them. We core those on our CNC coring process; for dicing or drilling them, send a drawing and we'll advise.
Specifications
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Process | Synova Laser MicroJet, water-guided 1064nm laser |
| Kerf width | 200µm ±25µm (150µm nozzle); compensated in the cutting program |
| Part size | Pieces from wafers 25.4mm – 450mm |
| Thickness | 200µm – 5mm; thicker case by case |
| Alignment | Vision-aligned to features on patterned wafers |
| Input | DXF, DWG or PDF drawing with critical dimensions marked |
| Quantities | Single pieces to production lots |
| Lead time | Standard ~2 weeks · Priority ~1 week · Hot Lot 48 hours |
Frequently asked questions
Can you dice wafers thicker than 1mm?
Yes. We laser-dice semiconductor and III-V substrates from 1mm to 5mm thick, and evaluate thicker material case by case with a feasibility cut.
Why use laser dicing instead of a dicing saw?
On thick, brittle, bonded or topographic parts a blade loads, wanders, chips the edge or can't clear raised features. The water-guided laser has no contact force, cuts any contour, and keeps a parallel kerf through the full thickness.
Can you drill holes in silicon wafers?
Yes. We cut round and rectangular through-holes, slots and windows from a CAD file, on full wafers up to 450mm.
What file format do you need?
A DXF or DWG is best. A dimensioned PDF also works. Mark the critical dimensions and tell us which side of the line is the part.
Do you cut sapphire, glass or SiC?
Not on the laser, which needs material that absorbs at 1064nm. We core those materials on our CNC process and can advise on dicing or drilling them.
Is there a minimum order?
No. Single pieces are a normal order, and we also run production lots.
Tell us your material, thickness, geometry and quantity. We'll confirm feasibility and quote, usually within one business day.
Request a quote → Email Info@dynamicprocessgroup.com · Call or text (408) 258-5000