Laser Cutting Fused Silica Wafers – Fused Silica (CTE 0.55 x 10^-6 /K, 185 nm – 2.5 um); Laser Cutting to +/-0.02 mm contour. No minimum order; DFM review included with every RFQ.
laser cutting fused silica wafers is a materials problem before it is a machining problem. Fused Silica has near-zero thermal expansion and a Knoop hardness of 500 kg/mm2, so the laser cutting recipe – feeds, coolant, tooling – differs from what works on ordinary float glass. The line runs picosecond and CO2 laser stations with vision registration and holds +/-0.02 mm contour.
Key parameters
| Material | Fused Silica (JGS1 (UV), JGS2 (standard), JGS3 (IR)) |
|---|---|
| Thermal expansion (CTE) | 0.55 x 10^-6 /K |
| Service temperature | 1,100 C continuous |
| Transmission range | 185 nm – 2.5 um |
| Density | 2.20 g/cm3 |
| Knoop hardness | 500 kg/mm2 |
| Refractive index | 1.458 @ 587 nm |
| Stock thickness | 0.10 – 50 mm |
| Maximum blank size | 450 x 450 mm |
| Process | Laser Cutting |
| Working tolerance | +/-0.02 mm contour |
| Minimum feature | 0.10 mm hole diameter |
| Surface finish | sealed edge, chip-free |
| Thickness window | 0.03 – 6 mm |
| Edge condition | filamentation edge, optional post-polish |
| Wafer formats | 2", 3", 4", 6", 8" and 12" with SEMI flats or notch |
| TTV | under 3 – 5 um by format |
| RFQ inputs | PDF/DXF/STEP drawing, quantity brackets, surface and edge spec |
Design guidance
Three items decide most of the cost and lead time on this work:
- Material note: its hardness and brittleness demand diamond tooling and controlled feeds.
- Process boundary: aspect ratio in a single pass tops out near 10:1; thicker sections shift to coring or ultrasonic work.
- Over-specification is the quiet budget killer: a 20/10 scratch-dig face costs roughly three times an 80/50 face, so grade each surface individually.
The full rules live in our tolerance design guide and holes and edges design guide.
Manufacturing capability
The core strength of Laser Cutting is chip-free free-form contours and dense hole arrays in thin and ultra-thin glass. The honest limit: aspect ratio in a single pass tops out near 10:1; thicker sections shift to coring or ultrasonic work. Both belong on the drawing before quoting, not after.
One material, many routes: on Fused Silica we also quote edge grinding, drilling, ultrasonic machining, coring, and multi-step drawings are the norm rather than the exception.
Where these parts end up
The recurring buyers of laser cutting fused silica wafers: aerospace optics (sensor windows, star-tracker flats, radiation-tolerant ports); scientific instruments (reference flats, cells, prism mounts, stage inserts); medical diagnostics (flow cells, slides, microplate bottoms, cuvette windows). Background reading on the underlying material science: RP Photonics: fused silica.
Dimensions still moving? Configure this part live in the 3D + 2D builder below, or open the full custom glass machining 3D + 2D builder to start from a blank canvas.
Useful companion pages: fused silica wafer applications, wafer dicing process, custom ITO glass.
Common questions
How does Fused Silica behave under heat?
CTE is 0.55 x 10^-6 /K and continuous service reaches 1,100 C continuous, which is what drives its use where near-zero thermal expansion matters.
What accuracy does laser cutting hold?
+/-0.02 mm contour with minimum features of 0.10 mm hole diameter. Aspect ratio in a single pass tops out near 10:1; thicker sections shift to coring or ultrasonic work.
What equipment runs the laser cutting work?
Picosecond and CO2 laser stations with vision registration.
Is there a minimum order for laser cutting fused silica wafers?
No. Single prototypes are accepted, and pricing steps down at 10, 100 and 1,000 pieces.
Specifications on this page were last reviewed by our engineering team in August 2026.