Laser-induced thermochemical etching has been recognized as a new powerful method for processing a variety of materials, including metals, semiconductors, ceramics, insulators and polymers. This study presents characteristics of direct etching for Si substrate using focused argon ion laser beam in aqueous KOH and $CCl_2F_2$ gas. In order to determine process conditions, we first theoretically investigated the temperature characteristics induced by a CW laser beam with a gaussian intensity distribution on a silicon surface. Major process parameters are laser beam power, beam scan speed and reaction material. We have achieved a very high etch rate up to $434.7mum/sec$ and a high aspect ratio of about 6. Potential applications of this laser beam etching include prototyping of micro-structures of MEMS(micro electro mechanical systems), repair of devices, and isolation of opto-electric devices.