Laser polishing ceramic material

1. A method of at least one of moving or removing a surface defined by a bulk ceramic material of a component, the method comprising:

heating a first region of the surface to a first temperature;

irradiating a second region of the surface, the second region being a contoured region within the first region, using a laser to heat the second region to a second temperature that is at least near a melting temperature of the bulk ceramic material and is greater than the first temperature; and

reflowing the bulk ceramic material defining the surface within the second region to reduce a surface roughness of the surface while maintaining a constant overall geometry of the second region.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein heating the first region comprises:

placing the component within a furnace; and

heating the furnace to heat the first region of the surface of the component to an elevated temperature; and

wherein irradiating the second region occurs before the first region cools below the first temperature.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein:

heating the first region comprises:

irradiating the first region using a first laser-based process to heat the surface of the component to an elevated temperature, which is different from a second laser-based process used to irradiate the second region; and

before the first region cools below the first temperature, the second region is irradiated using the second laser-based process.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein:

the first temperature is less than an annealing temperature of the bulk ceramic material; and

the second temperature is greater than a melting temperature of the bulk ceramic material.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein:

the first temperature is less than 1400 degrees Celsius; and

the second temperature is greater than 1500 degrees Celsius.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein: the bulk ceramic material comprises sapphire; the sapphire has a single-crystal structure; the second region includes a discontinuity in the single-crystal structure; and irradiating the second region realigns the single-crystal structure to repair the discontinuity.

7. A method of at least one of moving or removing a non-planar surface defined by a bulk ceramic material of a component, the method comprising:

heating the non-planar surface to a first temperature;

irradiating a contoured region of the non-planar surface using a laser to a second temperature that is at least near a melting temperature of the bulk ceramic material;

reflowing at least a portion of the bulk ceramic material defining the contoured region of the non-planar surface to produce a polished contoured region on the non-planar surface while maintaining a constant overall geometry of the contoured region; and

polishing a planar surface adjacent to the non-planar surface using an abrasive polishing operation.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the contoured region of the non-planar surface is at least part of a groove defined by the component.

9. The method of claim 7 , wherein the contoured region of the non-planar surface is a side wall of an opening defined by the component.

10. The method of claim 7 , wherein a surface finish of the polished contoured region of the non-planar surface is substantially the same as a surface finish of a flat polished region of the ceramic component.

11. A method of at least one of moving or removing a surface defined by a bulk ceramic material of a component and having a contoured region that is adjacent to a planar region, the method comprising:

polishing the planar region to produce a polished face;

heating the contoured region to a first temperature; and

irradiating the contoured region using a laser to heat the bulk ceramic material defining the contoured region to a second temperature at least near a melting point of the bulk ceramic material, wherein:

heating and irradiating the contoured region reduces a surface roughness of the contoured region without altering a surface finish of the polished face or an overall geometry of the contoured region.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the second temperature is greater than 1700 degrees Celsius.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the planar region is a portion of a cover sheet to be disposed above a display of a portable electronic device.

14. The method of claim 11 , wherein the contoured region includes a recess defined by the component.

15. The method of claim 11 , wherein the contoured region includes an edge of an opening defined by the component.

16. The method of claim 11 , wherein polishing the planar region is performed using one or more of:

a mechanical polishing operation; and

a chemical mechanical polishing operation.

17. A method of at least one of moving or removing a surface defined by a bulk ceramic material of a component, comprising:

irradiating the surface using a laser to remove bulk ceramic material therefrom and form a first ablated region;

irradiating the surface using the laser to remove bulk ceramic material therefrom and form a second ablated region proximate the first ablated region; and

irradiating the surface using the laser to remove bulk ceramic material therefrom and form a third ablated region proximate the second ablated region, wherein the first, second and third ablated regions are part of a polished surface having a decreased roughness as compared to the surface before irradiation using the laser.

18. The method of claim 17 , wherein:

the second ablated region is adjacent to or at least partially overlapping with the first ablated region; and

the third ablated region is adjacent to or at least partially overlapping with the third ablated region.

19. The method of claim 17 , wherein forming the first, second, and third ablated regions removes surface discontinuities in the bulk ceramic material.

20. The method of claim 17 , wherein the polished surface is an edge of an opening defined by the component.

21. The method of claim 1 , wherein the bulk ceramic material comprises sapphire.