Patent ID: 8183500

Claim:
An apparatus for processing edges of a substrate, comprising: a laser for emitting a laser beam of optical radiation; a vacuum chuck for supporting and a substrate, the substrate having top edge, apex edge, and bottom edge; a multi-path optical assembly receiving said laser beam and directing the laser beam along a respective one of three beam paths, with a first beam path directing optical radiation to the top edge of the substrate; a second beam path directing optical radiation to the apex edge of the substrate; a third beam path directing optical radiation to the bottom edge of the substrate; wherein the multi-path optical assembly further: selectively enables the first, second and third beam paths to carry the laser beam to the top, apex and bottom edge of the substrate in a defined order; includes a multi-mirror sub-assembly for selecting which one of the three optical paths receives the laser beam at a given time; and selectively directs the laser beam along a fourth optical path to a metrology camera used to record and analyze a profile of the laser beam; and the apparatus thereby removing or transforming films, particles, or residues on each of the top edge, apex edge, and bottom edge of the substrate by application of the optical radiation and in a single substrate processing step without removing the substrate from the vacuum chuck.