Verfahren und Vorrichtung zum Schneiden eines sproeden Koerpers mit Laserstrahlung

The invention relates to a process and a device for cutting a brittle body using laser radiation. The cutting of brittle bodies, in particular hollow bodies or plates, for example made of glass or ceramics, is widespread in technology. With previously known laser cutting processes, a mechanically complex movement of the laser beam relative to the body is required. In the process described here, the surface of the body to be cut is heated along the cutting line by the effect of the laser beam in such a way that a thermo-mechanical stress builds up leading to rupture of the body to be cut along the cutting line. According to the invention, the laser beam is projected onto the surface of the body by means of a special imaging optics so that the body is radiated simultaneously along the entire cutting line. The rupture is induced by temporal modulation of the beamed laser intensity. When an annular mirror arrangement is used, the process described, for example for cutting the press edge of drinking glasses, can be used