An Apple patent application has surfaced that details a new method for laser cutting sapphire into cover glass for portable electronic devices such as the iPhone, iPad, iPod, and Apple Watch. The patent is entitled, “SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR LASER CUTTING SAPPHIRE USING MULTIPLE GAS MEDIA.”Apple notes that sapphire is a hard material with a hardness of 9.0 on the Mohs scale, making it an attractive alternative to glass or polycarbonate. However, it’s also very brittle, and susceptible to dramatic strength reductions if there are small defects in the surface or edge.Manufacturing a near defect-free sapphire part may present unique challenges. The strength of a brittle material, such as sapphire, is limited due to flaw population on the surface or edges of the part. An inconsistent or inadequate surface or edge finish can lead to the propagation of micro cracks and result in a weakened part. Traditional translucent materials like silicate glass are able to be chemically strengthened to a significant depth to minimize the effect of these flaws, but on extremely hard materials such as sapphire, a similar process is not readily available. Additionally, sapphire’s hardness makes cutting and polishing the material both difficult and time consuming when conventional processing techniques are implemented. Further, conventional processing tools, such as cutters, experience relatively rapid wear when used on sapphire. This further increases the resource demand when surface finishing sapphire parts. Share Article:Facebook,   Twitter,   LinkedIn,   Google Plus,   Email,   Reddit,   Digg,   Delicious,   StumbleUponFollow iClarified:Facebook,   Twitter,   LinkedIn,   Google Plus,   Newsletter,   App Store,   YouTubeAdvertise Here

Source: iClarified Read More: Apple Patents New Method for Laser Cutting iPhone Sapphire Glass Covers