Multiple-blade internal-hole saw for sawing crystalline rods

Claim 1

A multiple blade internal hole saw for sawing a crystalline workpiece into wafers having a wafer thickness in the range of approximately 0.1 mm to 1.0 mm, comprising: means for sawing an elongated workpiece of material, by a sequence of cuts, into a plurality of thin wafers that are connected to one another, said means for sawing including at least two blades for simultaneously making at least two cuts in the workpiece such that the thin wafers formed thereby remain connected together, each blade spaced from an adjacent blade by a distance of at least approximately 10 mm; first means for rotatably controlling said at least two blades to simultaneously make at least two cuts in the workpiece; and second means for controlling one of said workpiece and said at least two blades so that said at least two blades repeatedly and simultaneously make at least two additional cuts at different locations along said workpiece such that the thin wafers formed thereby remain connected together, one of said two additional cuts being between said previous at least two cuts.