JP2010089142A - Apparatus and method of processing workpiece by laser - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To develop an apparatus and method of processing a workpiece by laser, including equipment and process that can deal with even a workpiece having a large area, and also making considerable cost reduction possible. <P>SOLUTION: The apparatus of processing a workpiece by laser includes a roller transporting means having a plurality of rollers for transporting a workpiece and a laser beam machining device for processing the workpiece. The laser beam machining device is provided with a laser oscillator and an auto focus mechanism, wherein the auto focus mechanism is connected to the laser oscillator so that the laser beam from the laser oscillator is emitted to the surface of the workpiece through the auto focus mechanism. The workpiece is processed by this manufacturing apparatus. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a processing apparatus for an object to be processed by a laser and a processing method thereof.

  Conventionally, as a process of performing line-shaped processing on the surface of an object to be processed with a laser beam, for example, in the production of a thin-film solar cell panel, scribing (cutting or scribing) into an ITO film, an amorphous silicon film, etc. to form an electrode film ) Processing process to perform processing, laser annealing process to apply a laser beam to the silicon film in a line to modify amorphous silicon into polysilicon, and chip resistance ceramic substrate to divide into individual chips A scribing process for applying a scribing line is known.

  For example, a thin film solar cell panel is a laminated film formed by forming a transparent electrode film, a silicon film, a metal film, and the like on a glass substrate on which a base layer is formed by a CVD method or a sputtering method. These laminated films respond to light and cause battery action. In the production process of the solar cell panel, a step of scribing each film surface with a laser beam and connecting the cells in series is necessary. The laser used in this process is usually referred to as a laser scriber or laser scribe process. In this scribing process, a laser beam oscillator with a wavelength of about 1 μm or about 0.5 μm is usually used. Although scribing is possible at other wavelengths, in view of the cost of the apparatus, difficulty in acquisition, stability, etc., the laser beam oscillators of the above wavelengths are currently used in many cases. A series of steps regarding such a film forming step and a scribing step are known (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2).

  However, the dimensions of the thin-film solar cell panel are said to exceed 3000 mm square when the substrate size is G11 generation. For this reason, there is a demand for significant cost reduction along with the development of manufacturing equipment (for example, a high-precision large-scale stage) corresponding to such an increase in area and a manufacturing process.

  In recent years, an active matrix type liquid crystal display panel such as a flat panel display has been used. In such a flat panel display, a thin film transistor (TFT) in which an amorphous silicon thin film is formed is used as a pixel unit driving element.

  Since this amorphous silicon thin film has low carrier mobility, after amorphous silicon is formed on a substrate, it is generally crystallized by annealing to improve the film quality (for example, Patent Document 3). reference). In this case as well, significant cost reductions are required along with the development of manufacturing equipment and manufacturing processes corresponding to the increase in area of the substrate.

  By the way, regarding the solar cell panel, 200 or more processing lines are scribed on a substrate having a size of 1400 × 1100 mm in the current G5.5 generation. In this case, since it is extremely difficult to mount a plurality of laser oscillators in consideration of not only cost but also output, dead weight, etc., at present, the substrate position or the laser oscillator is relatively slid by the XY stage. The processing is repeated to process a predetermined number of lines. In the future substrate size G11 generation, as described above, it is said that the area ratio is more than 4 times and exceeds 3000 mm square, and the number of processing is greatly increased. It is extremely difficult to produce a large-scale stage with high accuracy, and the current equipment and techniques require much time for scribing and will increase costs.

In this regard, it is considered that a similar problem occurs with an increase in the size of a liquid crystal display panel such as a flat panel display.
Japanese Patent No. 3815875 (Claims) Japanese Patent No. 3243227 (Claims) JP 2001-296817 A (Claims)

  An object of the present invention is to solve the above-described problems of the prior art, and to be processed by a laser capable of drastically reducing costs along with equipment and processes that are possible even if the object to be processed has a large area. An object of the present invention is to provide a processing apparatus and a processing method for an object.

  In view of the disadvantage that the present method is disadvantageous in terms of cost even if the output of the laser oscillator is increased in the current method, the substrate that is the object to be processed is an alternative to the high-precision large-scale stage. Based on the idea that a roller conveying means may be used to convey a high-precision stage, a high-precision stage becomes unnecessary for a predetermined processing process by using a laser processing apparatus comprising a laser oscillator equipped with an autofocus mechanism. At the same time, it was noticed that some vertical vibration or the like generated during the conveyance of the object to be processed is elastically absorbed, and the intended processing can be performed, and the present invention has been completed.

  An apparatus for processing an object to be processed by a laser according to the present invention comprises a roller conveying means for conveying an object to be processed having a plurality of rollers, and a laser processing apparatus for processing the object to be processed. The apparatus has a laser oscillator and an autofocus mechanism, the autofocus mechanism is connected to the laser oscillator, and a laser beam oscillated from the laser oscillator is passed through the autofocus mechanism to the object to be processed. It is characterized in that it can be processed by irradiating the surface of an object.

  In place of a large stage for placing and driving the object to be processed, a roller conveying means for conveying the object to be processed is provided, and irradiation caused by vertical movement of the object to be processed accompanying slight conveyance shaking By providing an autofocus mechanism that corrects and absorbs laser beam defocus (up-and-down movement of the beam in the optical axis direction), even an object to be processed with a large area is equally satisfied The processing to be performed becomes possible, and the cost can be greatly reduced. Of course, even if the object to be processed is not a large area, there is a similar merit.

  A plurality of the laser oscillators and autofocus mechanisms are provided, and each autofocus mechanism is connected to each laser oscillator.

  The said laser processing apparatus is arrange | positioned between the rollers which comprise a roller conveyance mechanism, It is characterized by the above-mentioned. In this case, as long as the roller is made of a material that allows the laser beam to pass therethrough, there is no limitation on the position where the laser processing apparatus is disposed.

  The said processing apparatus is a laser scribing apparatus which scribes the surface of each film | membrane of the laminated film which comprises the solar cell panel which is a to-be-processed target object. It is possible to cope with an increase in the area of the object to be scribed and to greatly reduce the cost. Of course, even if it is a to-be-processed object like the present solar cell panel which is not large area, there exists the same merit.

  The processing apparatus is an apparatus for polycrystallizing a thin film in a channel region of a thin film transistor in a flat panel display. It is possible to cope with the increase in area of flat panel displays, and the cost can be greatly reduced. Of course, even with the current flat panel display having a large area, there are similar advantages.

  In the method of processing an object to be processed by the laser of the present invention, a laser beam oscillated from a laser oscillator is connected to the laser oscillator while the object to be processed is conveyed by roller conveying means having a plurality of rollers. When irradiating the processing surface of the object to be processed via the autofocus mechanism, even if the processing surface of the object to be processed is out of focus in the optical axis direction, the correction is performed and the object is processed. It is characterized by processing an object.

  When the object to be processed is processed with the laser beam as described above, the object to be processed is conveyed by the roller conveying means, and the object to be processed accompanying the slight conveyance shaking of the object to be processed is conveyed by the autofocus mechanism. The defocus (up and down movement of the beam in the optical axis direction) of the irradiation laser beam caused by the vertical movement of the object to be processed is corrected and absorbed. The processing to be performed becomes possible, and the cost can be greatly reduced.

  In the method for processing an object to be processed by the laser, a laser processing apparatus in which a plurality of laser oscillators and autofocus mechanisms are provided and each autofocus mechanism is connected to each laser oscillator is used.

  In the processing method of an object to be processed by the laser, the object to be processed is a solar cell panel, the processing surface is each film of a laminated film constituting the solar cell panel, and the processing surface is subjected to a scribing process. Features. It is possible to cope with the increase in the area of the solar cell panel, and the cost can be greatly reduced.

  Further, in the processing method of an object to be processed by the laser, the object to be processed is a flat panel display, and the processing surface is a thin film of a channel region of the thin film transistor in the flat panel display. It is characterized by doing. It is possible to cope with the increase in area of flat panel displays, and the cost can be greatly reduced.

  The processing method for an object to be processed according to the present invention also includes a thin film solar cell panel having a laminated film made of a transparent electrode film, a silicon film, and a metal film on a transparent substrate on which an underlayer is formed as the object to be processed. First, a transparent electrode film was formed on the transparent substrate, and the object to be processed having the transparent electrode film was oscillated from a laser oscillator while being conveyed by a roller conveying means having a plurality of rollers. Even when the processing surface of the object to be processed is defocused in the optical axis direction when irradiating the processing surface of the object to be processed through an autofocus mechanism connected to the laser oscillator, Irradiating with correction, and scribing the processed surface to cut a plurality of grooves, and then forming a Si film power generation layer on the transparent electrode film having the grooves cut, and the Si film power generation layer is formed on the roller. While being transported by the transport means, the Si film power generation layer is irradiated with a laser beam in the same manner as in the case of the transparent electrode film to cut a plurality of grooves, and then a metal layer is formed on the grooved Si film power generation layer. In the same manner as in the case of the transparent electrode film, the metal layer is irradiated with a laser beam and a plurality of grooves are cut to process the object to be processed. It is characterized by performing. In this processing method, a laser processing apparatus in which a plurality of laser oscillators and autofocus mechanisms are provided and each autofocus mechanism is connected to each laser oscillator is used.

  According to the present invention, even if an object to be processed has a large area, a large processing stage and a processing method corresponding to the increase in area can be achieved, without providing a high-precision large stage. There is an effect that it is possible to improve accuracy, transportability of the object to be processed, tact time (processing time, etc.) and the like.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  According to the embodiment of the processing apparatus for the object to be processed by the laser according to the present invention, this processing apparatus includes, for example, a plurality of rollers 1 as schematically shown in FIGS. 1 (a) and (b). It comprises a roller transport means for transporting the object 2 to be processed to the right in the drawing, and a laser processing device 3 for processing the object 2 to be processed. The laser processing device 3 includes a plurality of laser oscillators. And a plurality of autofocus mechanisms, a processing beam unit 3a equipped with an autofocus mechanism, which is disposed in a chamber (not shown), and one autofocus mechanism is connected to each laser oscillator. The laser beam oscillated from the oscillator is irradiated on the surface of the object 2 to be processed through a corresponding autofocus mechanism so that the laser beam can be processed. Is and, also, the laser processing apparatus 3 is disposed between the roller 1 and the roller 1 constituting the roller conveyor means. In this case, as long as the roller is made of a material that transmits the laser beam, the position where the laser processing apparatus 3 is disposed is not limited. The laser processing apparatus 3 is fixed to a chamber. The number of laser processing devices may be appropriately selected according to the output of the laser oscillator to be mounted, the area of the processing surface, etc. so that processing can be performed in one direction without performing a plurality of reciprocating processing operations. .

  The processing apparatus is provided with roller transporting means for transporting the object to be processed 2 instead of a large stage for placing and driving and positioning the object to be processed. When the object to be processed 2 passes, it is assumed that the object to be processed is as smooth as possible. However, the focal point of the irradiation laser beam (in the direction of the optical axis of the beam) is caused by the vertical movement of the object to be processed due to slight movement of the object. An autofocus mechanism is provided for correcting and absorbing the vertical movement of the image.

  According to the processing apparatus, even an object to be processed having a large area can be satisfactorily processed equally, and the cost can be greatly reduced. Of course, even if the object to be processed is not a large area, there is a similar merit.

  The autofocus mechanism is not particularly limited as long as it is a known mechanism that can correct the defocus of the irradiation laser beam on the object to be processed. For example, a commercially available focus including the focus adjusting apparatus described in JP 2001-264623 A, JP 2002-162558 A, JP 2004-94230 A, JP 2004-198631 A, and the like. An adjustment device can be used.

  An example of the autofocus mechanism used in the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The laser beam oscillated from the laser oscillator constituting the processing beam unit 3a equipped with the autofocus mechanism of the laser processing apparatus 3 and applied to the surface of the object 21 to be processed returns from the surface of the object 21 to be processed. The beam 22 passes through the condenser lens 23 and is reflected by the mirror 24, and then passes through the cylindrical lens 25 to form three types of patterns on the four-divided sensor surface 26. Therefore, by electrically controlling this information and moving the condensing lens 23 up and down, the defocusing of the irradiated laser beam (due to the vertical movement accompanying the slight movement of the object 21 to be processed) The vertical movement of the beam in the direction of the optical axis can be corrected and the laser beam can be irradiated at a predetermined position, so that the target processing can be performed with high accuracy. Therefore, unevenness in the thickness of the object to be processed, unevenness in the flatness of the surface, and the like can be offset by mounting the autofocus mechanism, and highly accurate processing can be performed.

  According to a more specific embodiment of the processing apparatus according to the present invention, the processing apparatus has a roller conveying means for conveying an object to be processed having a plurality of rollers, and a solar cell panel that is an object to be processed. The laser scribing apparatus includes a plurality of laser oscillators and a plurality of autofocus mechanisms. The laser scribing apparatus is disposed in a chamber (not shown), and one laser scribing apparatus is provided for each laser oscillator. An autofocus mechanism is connected so that the laser beam oscillated from each laser oscillator can be irradiated to the surface of each film of the laminated film constituting the solar cell panel via the corresponding autofocus mechanism so that the scribing process can be performed. This laser scribing device is also composed of roller transport It is disposed between the roller and the roller constituting the structure. In this case, as long as the roller is made of a material that transmits the laser beam, the position where the laser scribing device is disposed is not limited. The laser scribing apparatus is fixed to the chamber.

  According to the embodiment of the processing method of the object to be processed by the laser according to the present invention, in the method of processing the solar cell panel as the object to be processed using the laser beam, the roller conveying means having a plurality of rollers. While transporting the solar cell panel, the laser beam emitted from each of the laser oscillators is irradiated to the surface of each film of the laminated film constituting the solar cell panel via each autofocus mechanism. The scribing process of each film is performed so that irradiation can be performed even if the irradiation surface of each film of the laminated film of the solar cell panel is out of focus in the optical axis direction during conveyance.

  As described above, the solar cell panel is formed by forming a transparent electrode film, a silicon film, a metal film, and the like on a transparent substrate such as a glass substrate on which a base layer is formed by CVD or sputtering. It has a laminated film. In the production process of the solar cell panel, it is necessary to connect the cells in series by scribing each film surface of the laminated film with a laser beam. In this scribing process, a laser beam oscillator with a wavelength of about 1 μm or about 0.5 μm is usually used. A series of steps regarding such a film forming step and a scribing step are known, and are described in, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2 described above.

  An example of a film forming process and a scribing process in the solar cell panel will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 (a) to 3 (c) and FIGS. 4 (a) to 4 (b).

  As shown in the sectional view of FIG. 3A, first, a transparent electrode film (so-called TCO film, for example, an ITO film) 32 is formed on a glass substrate 31 by a sputtering method under a predetermined process condition. A plurality of grooves 32a are cut by irradiating the TCO film 32 with a laser beam having a predetermined wavelength (for example, λ = 0.5 to 1.1 μm) and scribing. Next, an amorphous Si film (a-Si film) power generation layer 33 is formed with a predetermined film thickness under a known process condition on the grooved TCO film 32 by a CVD method. This a-Si film A plurality of grooves 33a are cut by scribing the power generation layer 33 with a laser beam having a predetermined wavelength (for example, λ = 0.5 to 1.1 μm). Thereafter, a metal layer 34 of Al or the like is formed on the a-Si film power generation layer 33 with the groove cut by a sputtering method with a predetermined film thickness under a known process condition. The plurality of grooves 34a are cut by scribing by irradiating a laser beam having a predetermined wavelength (for example, λ = 0.5 to 1.1 μm), and the scribing process is completed.

  The grooves 32a, 33a, and 34a of the TCO film 32, the a-Si film power generation layer 33, and the metal layer 34 are cut at equal intervals, and these grooves are illustrated in FIGS. As shown in c), they are cut so as not to overlap each other. Of course, depending on the case, it is possible to cut all the intervals of the grooves in an uneven manner, and it is also possible to cut them so as to overlap each other.

  FIG. 4A is a top view corresponding to FIG. 3A, and shows that a plurality of grooves 32 a are cut in the TCO film formed on the substrate by a scribing process using the laser processing device 35. FIG. 4B is a top view corresponding to FIG. 3C, and grooves 32a, 33a, and 34a are cut in the respective layers on the substrate by the scribing process. It is shown that. Thus, it is possible to connect the batteries in series by connecting the grooved TCO film 32 and the metal layer 34 (FIG. 5). These grooves may be continuous lines or, depending on the case, may be lines that are intermittent at a predetermined interval.

  According to another more specific embodiment of the processing apparatus according to the present invention, this processing apparatus includes a roller conveying means for conveying an object to be processed having a plurality of rollers, and a flat panel display which is an object to be processed. The thin film in the channel region of the thin film transistor comprises a laser processing device for polycrystallizing the thin film, and this processing device has a plurality of laser oscillators and a plurality of autofocus mechanisms, not shown. One autofocus mechanism is connected to each laser oscillator, and the laser beam oscillated from each laser oscillator is passed through the corresponding autofocus mechanism through a thin film (a-Si) in the channel region of the thin film transistor. It is configured to be able to polycrystallize the thin film by irradiating the surface of the thin film) The processing device is disposed between the roller and the roller constituting the roller conveyor mechanism. In this case, as long as the roller is made of a material that transmits the laser beam, there is no restriction on the position where the processing apparatus is fixedly arranged.

  According to another embodiment of the method for processing an object to be processed by the laser according to the present invention, a thin film (a-Si thin film) in a channel region of a thin film transistor in a flat panel display as an object to be processed using a laser beam In the method of polycrystallizing, the laser beam emitted from a plurality of laser oscillators is polycrystallized through each autofocus mechanism while the flat panel display is conveyed by the roller conveying means having a plurality of rollers. With this autofocus mechanism, even if the irradiation surface of the a-Si thin film that is the processing surface is out of focus in the optical axis direction during transportation, it can be corrected and irradiated. The a-Si thin film is polycrystallized.

  The thin film transistor (TFT) is, for example, provided with a source diffusion region 62, a drain diffusion region 63, and a channel region 64 on a substrate 61 such as a Si substrate or a glass substrate as schematically shown in FIG. In the figure, S represents a source, D represents a drain, and G represents a gate.

  If the a-Si thin film (channel layer) formed in the channel region 64 is polycrystallized according to the present invention, the film quality is improved and the carrier mobility is improved. That is, while the flat panel display is being transported by the roller transporting means, the laser beam oscillated from the plurality of laser oscillators is irradiated to the a-Si thin film surface from above the channel layer through each autofocus mechanism, With the autofocus mechanism, even if the irradiation surface of the a-Si thin film is defocused in the optical axis direction during conveyance, the a-Si thin film is polycrystallized so that it can be corrected and irradiated.

  If the a-Si thin film is processed with a laser beam as described above, the autofocus mechanism causes a defocus (beam) of the irradiated laser beam due to the vertical movement caused by slight transport fluctuation of the flat panel display being transported. (Up and down movement in the optical axis direction) is corrected and absorbed, so that a uniform polycrystallization of the a-Si thin film in the channel region can be performed.

  In the above, an example in which a laser beam oscillated from each laser oscillator constituting the processing beam unit equipped with the autofocus mechanism is directly irradiated onto the processing surface has been described, but the laser oscillated from one laser oscillator is described. The beam is optically multi-branched, and the beam after multi-branching is guided to each auto-focus mechanism of the auto-focus mechanism configured as a unit, and then processed as a processing beam through a condenser lens. An object to be processed may be processed using a beam.

  In this case, the laser beam may be introduced into the autofocus mechanism using a transmission means such as an optical fiber or a transmission means using a lens / mirror. With such a configuration, there is no need to mount a plurality of laser oscillators in the processing apparatus, and there is an advantage that energy necessary for a desired condenser lens can be supplied remotely. In addition, since the laser beam can be turned on and off, it is possible to save power, extend the life of the laser, and is effective for dividing one object to be processed into multiple sheets. is there.

  Examples of the laser that can be used in the present invention include a semiconductor laser (laser diode) in addition to the semiconductor excitation fiber laser and the microchip laser.

  In this example, a solar cell panel was used as an object to be processed, and a scribing process was performed on each film of the laminated film. This scribing process was performed using the processing apparatus shown in FIG.

  First, a glass substrate with a base layer formed by sputtering is used, a transparent electrode film made of ITO is formed on the base layer, and the substrate on which the ITO film is formed is transported using the processing apparatus shown in FIG. Meanwhile, a predetermined number of grooves were cut by scribing the ITO film by irradiating a laser beam. Next, an a-Si film power generation layer is formed on the grooved ITO film, and the substrate on which the a-Si film power generation layer is formed is conveyed using the processing apparatus shown in FIG. A predetermined number of grooves were cut by scribing the membrane power generation layer with a laser beam. Thereafter, a metal film was formed on the substrate on which the grooved a-Si film power generation layer was formed. While the substrate on which the metal film was formed was transported using the processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1, a predetermined number of grooves were cut by scribing the metal film by irradiating it with a laser beam.

  A solar cell panel could be produced by connecting the ITO film obtained by cutting grooves having a uniform width and depth and the metal layer thus obtained.

  A thin film transistor in which a channel region composed of a source diffusion region, a drain diffusion region, and an a-Si thin film is provided on a glass substrate is conveyed to the a-Si thin film in the channel region using the processing apparatus shown in FIG. Then, a polycrystallizing treatment was performed by irradiating a laser beam. As a result, it was confirmed that a-Si was uniformly polycrystallized.

  According to the present invention, even if an object to be processed has a large area, a large processing stage and a processing method corresponding to the increase in area can be achieved, without providing a high-precision large stage. Since accuracy, transportability of the object to be processed, tact time (processing time, etc.) can be improved, the present invention can be used in technical fields such as solar cells and liquid crystal panel displays.

The block diagram which shows typically the example of 1 structure of the processing apparatus by the laser of this invention. The typical block diagram for demonstrating the effect | action of the auto-focus mechanism used by this invention. The board | substrate sectional drawing for demonstrating the film-forming process and scribing process in the solar cell panel processed by this invention. The board | substrate top view for demonstrating the film-forming process and scribing process in the solar cell panel processed by this invention. The schematic diagram which shows the state by which the battery is connected in series. The block diagram which shows typically one structure of the thin-film transistor processed by this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Roller 2 Object to be processed 3 Laser processing apparatus 3a Processing beam unit 21 equipped with autofocus mechanism Object to be processed 22 Return beam 23 Condensing lens 24 Mirror 25 Cylindrical lens 26 Quadrant sensor surface 31 Glass substrate 32 Transparent electrode film (TCO) film)
32a groove 33 a-Si film power generation layer 33a groove 34 metal layer 34a groove 61 substrate 62 source diffusion region 63 drain diffusion region 64 channel region

Claims (11)

It comprises a roller transport means for transporting the object to be processed having a plurality of rollers, and a laser processing apparatus for processing the object to be processed, the laser processing apparatus having a laser oscillator and an autofocus mechanism, The autofocus mechanism is connected to the laser oscillator, and is configured to be able to process the laser beam emitted from the laser oscillator by irradiating the surface of the object to be processed via the autofocus mechanism. An apparatus for processing an object to be processed using a laser. The apparatus for processing an object to be processed with a laser according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of laser oscillators and autofocus mechanisms are provided, and each autofocus mechanism is connected to each laser oscillator. The said laser processing apparatus is arrange | positioned between the rollers which comprise a roller conveyance mechanism, The processing apparatus of the to-be-processed target object by the laser of Claim 1 or 2 characterized by the above-mentioned. The said processing apparatus is a laser scribing apparatus which scribes the surface of each film | membrane of the laminated film which comprises the solar cell panel which is a to-be-processed target object, The any one of Claims 1-3 characterized by the above-mentioned. Laser processing equipment for processing objects. The said processing apparatus is an apparatus which polycrystallizes the thin film of the channel area | region of the thin-film transistor in a flat panel display, The process of the to-be-processed object by the laser of any one of Claims 1-3 characterized by the above-mentioned. apparatus. In a method of processing an object to be processed using a laser beam, a laser beam oscillated from a laser oscillator is connected to the laser oscillator while the object to be processed is conveyed by roller conveying means having a plurality of rollers. When the processing surface of the object to be processed is irradiated through the autofocus mechanism, even if the processing surface of the object to be processed is out of focus in the optical axis direction, the correction is performed and the object is processed. A method for processing an object to be processed with a laser, wherein the object is processed. The laser processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein a plurality of laser oscillators and autofocus mechanisms are provided, and a laser processing apparatus in which each autofocus mechanism is connected to each laser oscillator is used. Processing method. 8. The laser according to claim 6, wherein the object to be processed is a solar cell panel, and a processing surface is each film of a laminated film constituting the solar cell panel, and the processing surface is scribed. Method of processing the object to be processed. 8. The processing object according to claim 6, wherein the object to be processed is a flat panel display, a processing surface is a thin film of a channel region of a thin film transistor in the flat panel display, and the processing surface is polycrystallized. A processing method of an object to be processed by a laser. When manufacturing a thin film solar cell panel having a laminated film composed of a transparent electrode film, a silicon film, and a metal film on a transparent substrate on which an underlayer is formed as an object to be processed, the transparent substrate is first transparent. An autofocus is formed by forming an electrode film and transferring a laser beam oscillated from a laser oscillator while the object to be processed having the transparent electrode film is conveyed by a roller conveying means having a plurality of rollers. When irradiating the processing surface of the object to be processed through the mechanism, even if the processing surface of the object to be processed is out of focus in the optical axis direction, the correction is performed and the processing surface is scribed. Then, a plurality of grooves are cut, and then a Si film power generation layer is formed on the grooved transparent electrode film, and the Si film power generation layer is transported by the roller transport means while the transparent The Si film power generation layer is irradiated with a laser beam in the same manner as in the case of the polar film to cut a plurality of grooves, and then a metal layer is formed on the grooved Si film power generation layer. While being transported by a roller transporting means, the metal layer is irradiated with a laser beam in the same manner as in the case of the transparent electrode film to cut a plurality of grooves to process the object to be processed. Processing method of processing object. The laser processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein a plurality of laser oscillators and autofocus mechanisms are provided, and a laser processing apparatus in which each autofocus mechanism is connected to each laser oscillator is used. Processing method.

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