Laser absorption wave deposition process and apparatus

Claim 3

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 1 wherein step (b) includes: (b1) focusing the pulse of energy into the first gas at a location spaced from the substrate material to form the at least first plasma into a laser absorption wave that travels back toward the laser to absorb the pulse of energy and to allow the at least first plasma between the laser absorption wave and the substrate to cool to atomic elements and radicals in step (c).

Claim 4

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 2 wherein the substrate material is carbon and is formed into a substrate positioned opposite the focus from the laser, and wherein the first gas is an H 2 and hydrocarbon mixture, the method including: (e) heating the substrate to form a second plasma of ionized substrate material; and (f) combining the first plasma and second plasma behind the laser absorption wave so that carbon radicals in the presence of atomic hydrogen coat the substrate with diamond.

Claim 5

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 2 wherein the substrate material is carbon and is formed into a substrate positioned opposite the focus from the laser, and wherein the first gas is an H 2 and CH 4 mixture, the method including: (e) heating the substrate to form a second plasma of ionized substrate material; (f) combining the first plasma and second plasma behind the laser absorption wave so that atomic hydrogen and carbon radicals combine to coat the substrate with carbon in crystalline form; and (g) controlling the amount of carbon to the amount of hydrogen present to thereby control the crystalline form of the carbon coating the substrate through a range of forms from disordered graphite to mixtures of disordered graphite and diamond to diamond.

Claim 6

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 2 wherein the substrate material is hexagonal boron nitride and is formed into a substrate positioned opposite the focus from the laser, and wherein the first gas is N 2 so that the first plasma includes ionized nitrogen, the method including: (e) heating the substrate to form a second plasma that includes ionized boron; (f) combining the first plasma and second plasma behind the laser absorption wave so that atomic nitrogen, and atomic boron combine to coat the substrate with boron nitride having a cubic form; and (g) controlling the amount of boron to the amount of nitrogen present to control the crystalline form of the boron nitride coated on the substrate to the cubic form.

Claim 7

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 2 wherein the substrate material is metallic and is formed into a substrate positioned opposite the focus from the laser, and wherein the first gas is an H 2 and CH 4 mixture, the method further including: (e) heating the substrate to form a second plasma of ionized substrate material and particles of substrate material; (f) combining the first plasma and second plasma behind the laser absorption wave so that carbon radicals in the presence of atomic hydrogen operate to coat the particles of substrate material with diamond; and (g) transporting the coated particles of substrate material to the substrate to form a metallic diamond composite.

Claim 8

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 2 wherein the substrate material is formed into a substrate, further comprising: (e) focusing the pulse of energy at a portion of the substrate to cause substrate material to separate from the portion of the substrate and mix with the first gas, the substrate material absorbing energy of the pulse to produce the at least first plasma comprised of constituents of the first gas and the substrate material.

Claim 9

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 2 wherein the substrate material is formed into a substrate with a reflective surface, further comprising: (e) directing the pulse of energy at the reflective surface so that the pulse of energy forms a focus after reflecting off the reflective surface to cause substrate material to heat and separate from the substrate and mix with the first gas at least between the focus of the pulse of energy and the surface of the substrate, the substrate material absorbing energy of the pulse to produce the at least first plasma comprised of constituents of the first gas and the substrate material.

Claim 10

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 2 wherein the substrate material is metallic and is formed into a substrate positioned opposite the focus from the laser, and wherein the first gas is an H 2 and CH 4 mixture, the method further including: (e) heating the substrate to form a second plasma of ionized substrate material and particles of substrate material; (f) combining the first plasma and second plasma behind the laser absorption wave so that carbon radicals in the presence of atomic hydrogen operate to coat the particles of substrate material with diamond; and (g) capturing the coated particles of substrate material after they have cooled, whereby diamond microspheres are collected.

Claim 11

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 1 wherein the first gas is a mixture comprised of hydrogen gas and hydrocarbon molecules and the layer resulting therefrom is comprised of diamond.

Claim 12

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 1 wherein the first gas is comprised of O 2 , the substrate material is comprised of Si, and the layer resulting therefrom is comprised of SiO 2 .

Claim 13

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 1 wherein the first gas is comprised of N 2 , the substrate material is comprised of Si, and the layer resulting therefrom is comprised of silicon nitrides.

Claim 14

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 1 wherein the first gas is a mixture comprised of carbon vapor and H 2 , the substrate material is comprised of graphite, and the layer resulting therefrom is comprised of amorphic carbon.

Claim 15

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 1 wherein the first gas is comprised of N 2 , the substrate material is comprised of hexagonal boron nitride, and the layer resulting therefrom is comprised of cubic boron nitride.

Claim 16

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 1 wherein the laser pulse is divided and a portion of the laser pulse is directed onto the substrate to heat the substrate so that a plasma in not formed in the first gas thereby.

Claim 17

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 1 wherein the substrate material is in the form of a substrate having a substrate surface, the irradiating of (b) is performed with an unfocused laser beam pulse of sufficient intensity to transiently heat the substrate surface to a temperature sufficient to heat the adjacent first gas into a plasma.

Claim 18

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 1 wherein the substrate material is in the form of a substrate having a substrate surface, including the simultaneous step with (b) of: (e) providing a spray of laser energy absorbing material adjacent the substrate surface, the irradiating of (b) is performed with an unfocused laser beam pulse of sufficient intensity to heat the substrate surface to a temperature sufficient to heat the adjacent first gas into a plasma.

Claim 19

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 1 wherein the first gas includes N 2 , the substrate material includes carbon, and the layer is that results is comprised of C 3 N 4 .

Claim 20

The method of coating a substrate material as recited in claim 1 wherein step (b) includes: (b1) varying the energy in the pulse of energy from the laser to control the morphology of the coating.

Claim 23

The method as recited in claim 20 wherein step (b) includes: (b1) focusing the pulse of energy into the hydrogen gas at a location spaced from the substrate material to form the at least first plasma into a laser absorption wave that travels back toward the laser to absorb the pulse of energy and to allow the ionized hydrogen and carbon between the laser absorption wave and the substrate to cool to atomic elements and radicals in step (c).

Claim 24

The method as recited in claim 20 21 including the additional steps of: (e) heating the substrate material to form a second plasma of ionized substrate material; and (f) combining the first plasma and second plasma behind the laser absorption wave so that carbon radicals combine in the presence of atomic hydrogen to coat the substrate with diamond.

Claim 27

The method of creating a diamond layer as recited in claim 23 wherein the non-carbon gas is chosen from the group consisting of: hydrogen; and nitrogen.

Claim 28

The method of creating a diamond layer as recited in claim 23 wherein step (b) includes: irradiating the non-carbon gas with focused pulses of energy from a laser to create laser absorption waves that move toward the laser and react therefrom toward the substrate.

Claim 29

The method of creating a diamond layer as recited in claim 23 wherein step (b) includes: irradiating the non-carbon gas with focused pulses of energy from a laser to create laser absorption waves that move toward the substrate and react therefrom toward the laser.