A process for laser processing an article which comprises: heating the
intended article to be doped with an impurity to a temperature not higher
than the melting point thereof, said article being made from a material
selected from a semiconductor, a metal, an insulator, and a combination
thereof; and irradiating a laser beam to the article in a reactive gas
atmosphere containing said impurity, thereby allowing the impurity to
physically or chemically diffuse into, combine with, or intrude into said
article. The present invention also provides an apparatus for use in a
laser processing process, characterized by that it is provided with an
internal sample holder and a device which functions as a heating means of
the sample, a window made of a material sufficiently transparent to
transmit a laser beam, a chamber comprising a vacuum evacuation device
and a device for introducing a reactive gas containing an impurity
element, a laser apparatus operating in a pulsed mode to irradiate a
laser beam to said chamber, and a means to move said chamber
synchronously with the laser irradiation.