Abstract: A gate insulating film, a gate electrode, a gate-top protection film, LDD layers and nitride film sidewalls are formed on a semiconductor substrate. Source/drain regions are formed in the semiconductor substrate. After deposition of an interlayer insulating film on the resultant substrate, a hole is formed through the interlayer insulating film and the gate-top protection film to reach the gate electrode, and a gate contact is formed by filling the hole. The gate-top protection film has an opening exposing part of a portion of the area on the top surface of the gate electrode other than the region in contact with the gate contact. This facilitates external diffusion of hydrogen during annealing, or recovery from a fixed level and a damage layer during sintering.

Abstract: There is a terminal block with leaf spring metal terminals that extend downward from a housing on the side opposite the open end of the housing in which a diaphragm is fitted and fixed, and an elastic material functions as a pad that is sandwiched between the surface of a circuit board and the open side of the housing on the side from which the metal terminals project, with the metal terminals pressed against the conduction pattern of the circuit board to make an electrical connection.

Abstract: A set of split bodies for forming a synthetic-resin blower fan through a hollow-article injection molding process, wherein the blower fan integrally includes a circular base, a cover portion having an air inlet opening at the center thereof, and a plurality of blades. The set of split bodies comprise a first split body including the circular base and a plurality of blade members, and a second split body defining the inner surface of the cover portion and having an outer surface on the opposite side of the first split body. The outer surface of the second split body is formed with a plurality of reservoirs each extending radially in alignment with the corresponding blade member of the first split body to define spaces to be filled with molten synthetic resin in a state where the first and second split bodies are assembled together.

Abstract: An analog input signal A1 is held by a sample-hold-amplifier (SHA) 12 to be outputted as a voltage V12. The V12 is converted into a digital signal of 1,5 bits by sub-A/D converters (SADC: comparators 13, 14, and an encoder 15), and the digital signal is further converted into an analog signal by sub-D/A converters (SDAC: switches 16a, 16b, 16c) to be delivered to an SHA 18. The SHA 18 amplifies a difference in voltage between the voltage V12 and the SDAC by a factor of two to thereby output a voltage VA, which is delivered to an analog-to-digital conversion stage 20. By so doing, the range of an input voltage of the respective SHAs is suppressed to ½ of that for the conventional case, thereby enabling high-speed operation to be executed without impairing linearity.

Abstract: A rear body structure comprises a floor tunnel extending in a lengthwise direction from the front to the back of the vehicle body at a middle of a floor panel in a transverse direction, a floor tunnel reinforcement disposed along the floor tunnel so as to form a closed cross section between them, and a generally V-shaped gusset secured between the floor tunnel reinforcement and a package member interconnecting side walls between which a compartment is formed in the rear body.

Abstract: With keeping an atmosphere including oxygen within a chamber and with a wafer kept at a low temperature, plasma generated within the chamber is biased toward the wafer, and the wafer is subjected to the plasma. A semiconductor layer exposed on the wafer is oxidized into an oxide film. Thus, an oxide film can be formed even at room temperature differently from thermal oxidation. This oxidation is applicable to recovery of an implantation protection insulating film having been etched in cleaning a photoresist film, relaxation of a step formed between polysilicon films, relaxation of a step formed within trench and the like. Also, before removing a photoresist film used for forming a gate electrode including a metal, a contamination protection film can be formed by this oxidation with the photoresist film kept.

Abstract: A test wafer for use in wafer temperature prediction is prepared. The test wafer includes: first semiconductor layer formed in a crystalline state; second semiconductor layer formed in an amorphous state on the first semiconductor layer; and light absorption film formed over the second semiconductor layer. Next, the test wafer is loaded into a lamp heating system and then irradiating the test wafer with a light emitted from the lamp, thereby heating the second semiconductor layer through the light absorption film. Thereafter, a recovery rate, at which a part of the second semiconductor layer recovers from the amorphous state to the crystalline state at the interface with the first semiconductor layer, is calculated. Then, a temperature of the test wafer that has been irradiated with the light is measured according to a relationship between the recovery rate and a temperature corresponding to the recovery rate.

Abstract: This invention provides a method and an optical system for sensing and controlling the frequency for a laser with respect to an optical cavity and for sensing and controlling the length difference of interferometer paths in a two beam interferometer. A misalignment is introduced in the incident laser radiation to produce a fundamental mode (TEM00) in the cavity or interferometer and the reflection of a least one higher order mode (TEM01). A split photodetector (10) allows the interference between these two modes to be measured separately by detecting two spatially distinct portions of the single reflected beam. An error signal indicative of the difference between the fundamental mode frequency and the cavity resonant frequency is obtained by substracting the outputs from the two parts of the photodetector.

Abstract: A semiconductor device according to the present invention includes a line structure formed on a semiconductor substrate. The line structure includes: a conductor layer formed on the semiconductor substrate; a dielectric film formed on the conductor layer; and a conductor line formed on the dielectric film. The dielectric film includes: a first dielectric portion, at least part of the first dielectric portion being located between the lower surface of the conductor line and the upper surface of the conductor layer; and second and third dielectric portions laterally arranged to interpose the first dielectric portion therebetween. The dielectric constant of the first dielectric portion is different from at least one of the dielectric constants of the second and third dielectric portions.

Abstract: The nitride semiconductor device includes: a substrate made of a III-V group compound semiconductor containing nitride; and a function region made of a III-V group compound semiconductor layer containing nitride formed on a main surface of the substrate. The main surface of the substrate is tilted from a {0001} surface by an angle in an range of 13° to 90° inclusive.

Abstract: Optical fibers (220) are routed over a substrate (210), and an optical fiber wiring board (200) is thereby constructed. A relative refraction index difference &Dgr; of the optical fiber (220) is increased to be greater than a relative refraction index difference &Dgr;0 of a communication-dedicated single mode optical fiber, and a core diameter thereof is increased to be larger than a core diameter of the communication-dedicated optical fiber. Thereby, a mode field diameter thereof is set to be substantially the same as a mode field diameter of the communication-dedicated optical fiber.

Abstract: In the method for determining a preceding wafer, at least one semiconductor wafer is determined as a preceding wafer among a plurality of semiconductor wafers constituting one lot. The preceding wafer is then subjected to a given process among a plurality of processes for fabrication of a semiconductor device. The determination of the preceding wafer is based on processing results of an upstream process among the plurality of processes performed for the plurality of semiconductor wafers prior to the given process. After examination of processing results of the given process on the preceding wafer, the given process is performed for the plurality of semiconductor wafers other than the preceding wafer.

Abstract: A floor is partitioned into a plurality of areas S1 to S4 by a floor tunnel portion 11, side frames 13, side sills 12, and cross members 7, 8, 15, and 16, and the rigidity of the floor panels of the areas S1 to S3 is adjusted by rigidity adjustment portions 20, 21, 22, 23, and 25. These floor panels are set such that their natural frequency in a 2×1 mode, in which two antinodes are generated in the length direction of the automobile and one antinode is generated in the width direction of the automobile, is 240 to 260 Hz. Thus, a reduction in road noise due to automobile tire cavity resonance is achieved.

Abstract: A slurry feeding apparatus includes closed slurry bottle, piping, wet nitrogen generator, wet nitrogen supply pipe, suction and spray nozzles, temperature regulator, flow rate control valves, slurry delivery pump and controller for controlling the operation and flow rate of the slurry delivery pump. While a wafer is being polished by a CMP polisher, the controller continuously operates the pump. On the other hand, while the polisher is idling, the controller starts and stops the pump intermittently at regular intervals. No stirrer like a propeller is inserted into the slurry bottle, but the slurry is stirred up by spraying the slurry through the spray nozzle.

Abstract: A cold-state emission-reducing strategy wherein a diagnostic apparatus examines for possible malfunctions of a control unit during cold start. The diagnosis judges that the strategy is faulty if the cumulative amount of fuel injection is equal to or smaller than a predeterminable threshold value for a faulty judgement. Thus, the abnormality of the cold-state emission-reducing strategy is accurately and easily detected, by merely calculating the cumulative amount of an injection pulse width for the injector or the cumulative amount of fuel flow during a predeterminable cumulating time period after engine start, and comparing the calculated cumulative amount with the predeterminable judgement threshold.

Abstract: As a power-supply voltage VCC is applied to a second terminal, a latch is reset by a reset signal POR from a power-on reset unit. Subsequently, as the voltage of a signal IN applied to a first terminal is increased to higher than the voltage VCC by a threshold voltage Vth of a PMOS 11, the PMOS 11 turns on, causing a node N1 to become “H.” Thus, a test mode is set in the latch. Subsequently, even if the signal IN is reduced to VCC or lower, the test mode is maintained. A high-voltage test can be conducted by increasing the power-supply voltage at the second terminal, thereby eliminating the need for applying the first terminal with a higher voltage than required to set the test mode. It is therefore possible to prevent a gate oxide film of a buffer from being destroyed.

Abstract: The present invention relates to novel nucleic acid construct comprising (a) an anti-sense gene of a sense gene encoding E. histolytica calcium binding protein or a portion of said anti-sense gene, wherein said sense gene is at least 90% similar to the nucleic sequence of SEQ ID No: 1, and wherein said portion of the anti-sense gene is of a size capable of disrupting translation of said calcium binding protein; and (b) a constitutive promoter and a nopaline synthase (nos) polyadenylation signal sequence both operatively linked to said gene or portion thereof; wherein said construct is useful for increasing the level of chlorophyll in plants, a transgenic plant containing said construct and a novel nucleic acid construct useful for developing stress-tolerant plants, comprising (a) a sense gene encoding E.

Abstract: An internal combustion engine capable of optimizing the amount of oil in the crank chamber with a simplified structure of lubrication system, in which a U-shaped oil reservoir is formed surrounding and adjacent to a crank chamber. At least one small hole is formed on a partition wall which separates the oil reservoir and the crank chamber from each other so that the crank chamber may always communicate with the oil reservoir through the small hole. Due to a flow resistance in the small hole, a pressure Po in the oil reservoir changes following a change of pressure Pc in the crank chamber with some delay, and where the pressure difference between the oil reservoir and the crank chamber caused by a delay in the change of the pressure Po in the oil reservoir, results in the introduction of the oil in the oil reservoir into the crank chamber. It further allows excessive oil in the crank chamber to be circulated back into the oil reservoir.

Abstract: A fluorine-containing organic film is deposited on a semiconductor substrate using a material gas containing fluorocarbon as a main component in a reactor chamber of a plasma processing apparatus. The fluorine-containing organic film is then exposed to plasma of a rare gas in the same reactor chamber to densify the fluorine-containing organic film.

Abstract: When humidifying, almost to water vapor saturation, reformed gas that is supplied to a hydrogen electrode of a solid polymer type fuel cell (1) and air that is supplied to an oxygen electrode of the fuel cell (1), heating for obtaining water vapor to establish such saturation is not required. For the purpose of improving the thermal efficiency of a fuel cell system, water vapor contained in hydrogen electrode exhaust gas exhausted from the hydrogen electrode of the fuel cell (1) is let to penetrate through a water vapor permeable membrane (34), whereas water vapor contained either in air that is introduced into a partial oxidation reformation section (6) or in oxygen electrode exhaust gas exhausted from the oxygen electrode is let to penetrate through the water vapor permeable membrane (34) so that the water vapor is supplied to air that is supplied to the oxygen electrode of the fuel cell (1).