Patent ID: 8314360

Claim:
An apparatus for processing a substrate having an upper surface that includes a central region and a narrow annular peripheral region therearound, and said substrate has an outer edge perpendicular to the upper surface of the substrate extending downward from the narrow annular peripheral region on the upper surface, said apparatus comprising: a radiation source adapted to emit radiation; an optical system adapted to receive the emitted radiation and create therefrom a beam that forms an image that is incident the upper surface of the substrate at an incident angle greater than 45°; a moveable stage adapted to support the substrate; and a controller operably coupled to the radiation source and the stage, wherein the controller is programmed to provide relative movement between the stage and the beam to scan the image on to, across and off of the substrate surface as necessary in selected scan paths in a manner effective to process the upper surface of the substrate over at least the central region at a substantially uniform temperature without heating the outer edge at and above a critical temperature at which damage occurs to the outer edge.