Patents by Inventor Sunao Kurimura

Sunao Kurimura has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 9140958
    Abstract: According to one embodiment, an optical element is provided with a paraelectric crystal, first and second pressers between which the paraelectric crystal is sandwiched, and fasteners. The paraelectric crystal has a periodic structure in which polarities are periodically inverted along a polarity period direction. The fasteners fix the first and second pressers to each other so that a predetermined pressure is applied in a direction intersecting with the polarity period direction, to the paraelectric crystal through the first and second pressers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 22, 2015
    Assignees: NIKON CORPORATION, NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR MATERIALS SCIENCE
    Inventors: Masaki Harada, Kenichi Muramatsu, Sunao Kurimura
  • Patent number: 8669121
    Abstract: A method for forming a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal in a desired region of a ferroelectric substrate includes the steps of forming, for the desired region of the surface of the ferroelectric substrate, an electrode pattern or a mask pattern composed of aggregates of micropatterns, and then applying a given voltage into the desired region. The configuration of the micropatterns can be a stripe-shaped pattern, an ellipse-shaped pattern, a hexagon-shaped pattern, a network pattern, or a double cross shaped pattern. The method can further include the steps of generating many nucleuses by using the electrode pattern or the mask pattern composed of the aggregates of micropatterns, forming another electrode pattern or another mask pattern corresponding to the desired region, and then applying a given voltage into the desired region to generate a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal around the nucleuses.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 22, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 11, 2014
    Assignees: Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co., Ltd., National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Futoshi Yamamoto, Junichiro Ichikawa, Satoshi Oikawa, Sunao Kurimura, Kenji Kitamura
  • Patent number: 8524509
    Abstract: A method for forming a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal, including the steps of forming a concave portion on a top face of a ferroelectric substrate or a bottom face of a ferroelectric substrate, and applying an electric field into the substrate, wherein a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal is formed at least in one portion of a region of the substrate with the concave portion, and wherein the shape of the concave portion is configured such that the width of the concave portion gets narrower gradually toward the inside of the substrate. The method may further include the steps of, after the reversal, making into almost a flat-plane the top or bottom face having the concave portion, and then, forming a new concave portion in another region and applying an electric field to form another reversal in one portion of the region of the substrate having the new concave portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 22, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2013
    Assignees: Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co., Ltd., National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Futoshi Yamamoto, Junichiro Ichikawa, Satoshi Oikawa, Sunao Kurimura, Kenji Kitamura
  • Patent number: 8422120
    Abstract: A wavelength conversion element is provided as one including a monocrystalline nonlinear optical crystal. The nonlinear optical crystal has: a plurality of first regions having a polarity direction along a predetermined direction; a plurality of second regions having a polarity direction opposite to the predetermined direction; an entrance face into which a fundamental incident wave having a wavelength ? and a frequency ? is incident in a direction substantially perpendicular to the predetermined direction; and an exit face from which a second harmonic with a frequency 2? generated in the crystal emerges. The plurality of first and second regions are formed as alternately arranged in a period substantially equal to d expressed by a predetermined expression, between the entrance face and the exit face.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 10, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2013
    Assignees: Nikon Corporation, National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Kenichi Muramatsu, Sunao Kurimura
  • Publication number: 20120307350
    Abstract: A wavelength conversion element is provided as one including a monocrystalline nonlinear optical crystal. The nonlinear optical crystal has: a plurality of first regions having a polarity direction along a predetermined direction; a plurality of second regions having a polarity direction opposite to the predetermined direction; an entrance face into which a fundamental incident wave having a wavelength ? and a frequency ? is incident in a direction substantially perpendicular to the predetermined direction; and an exit face from which a second harmonic with a frequency 2? generated in the crystal emerges. The plurality of first and second regions are formed as alternately arranged in a period substantially equal to d expressed by a predetermined expression, between the entrance face and the exit face.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 10, 2012
    Publication date: December 6, 2012
    Applicants: NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR MATERIALS SCIENCE, NIKON CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kenichi MURAMATSU, Sunao Kurimura
  • Patent number: 8293543
    Abstract: A method for forming a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal includes the steps of forming a convexo-concave structure on a top face of a ferroelectric substrate firstly, and then forming a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization region on the substrate including one portion of a convex portion, with a concave portion being formed on the bottom face of the substrate within a region where a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal is to be formed and the convex portion is formed, and then applying an electric field into the substrate. The depth of the concave portion on the bottom face of the substrate may be greater than the height of the convex portion on the top face of the substrate. The width of the concave portion on the bottom face of the substrate may be wider than width of said convex portion on the top face of the substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 22, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2012
    Assignees: Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co., Ltd., National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Futoshi Yamamoto, Junichiro Ichikawa, Satoshi Oikawa, Sunao Kurimura, Kenji Kitamura
  • Patent number: 8264766
    Abstract: A wavelength conversion element is provided as one including a monocrystalline nonlinear optical crystal. The nonlinear optical crystal has: a plurality of first regions having a polarity direction along a predetermined direction; a plurality of second regions having a polarity direction opposite to the predetermined direction; an entrance face into which a fundamental incident wave having a wavelength ? and a frequency ? is incident in a direction substantially perpendicular to the predetermined direction; and an exit face from which a second harmonic with a frequency 2? generated in the crystal emerges. The plurality of first and second regions are formed as alternately arranged in a period substantially equal to d expressed by a predetermined expression, between the entrance face and the exit face.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 11, 2012
    Assignees: Nikon Corporation, National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Kenichi Muramatsu, Sunao Kurimura
  • Patent number: 8193004
    Abstract: A method for forming a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal in a desired region of a ferroelectric substrate, wherein thickness of the ferroelectric substrate in the desired region A of the ferroelectric substrate is thinner than in a region B outside the desired region of the substrate, comprising the step of applying a given voltage into the ferroelectric substrate by a liquid electrode method to thereby form a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal in the desired region of the ferroelectric substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2005
    Date of Patent: June 5, 2012
    Assignees: Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co., Ltd., National Institute For Materials Science
    Inventors: Futoshi Yamamoto, Junichiro Ichikawa, Satoshi Oikawa, Sunao Kurimura, Kenji Kitamura
  • Publication number: 20110206860
    Abstract: A method for forming a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal includes the steps of forming a convexo-concave structure on a top face of a ferroelectric substrate firstly, and then forming a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization region on the substrate including one portion of a convex portion, with a concave portion being formed on the bottom face of the substrate within a region where a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal is to be formed and the convex portion is formed, and then applying an electric field into the substrate. The depth of the concave portion on the bottom face of the substrate may be greater than the height of the convex portion on the top face of the substrate. The width of the concave portion on the bottom face of the substrate may be wider than width of said convex portion on the top face of the substrate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 22, 2011
    Publication date: August 25, 2011
    Applicants: Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co., Ltd., National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Futoshi Yamamoto, Junichiro Ichikawa, Satoshi Oikawa, Sunao Kurimura, Kenji Kitamura
  • Publication number: 20110197432
    Abstract: A method for forming a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal in a desired region of a ferroelectric substrate includes the steps of forming, for the desired region of the surface of the ferroelectric substrate, an electrode pattern or a mask pattern composed of aggregates of micropatterns, and then applying a given voltage into the desired region. The configuration of the micropatterns can be a stripe-shaped pattern, an ellipse-shaped pattern, a hexagon-shaped pattern, a network pattern, or a double cross shaped pattern. The method can further include the steps of generating many nucleuses by using the electrode pattern or the mask pattern composed of the aggregates of micropatterns, forming another electrode pattern or another mask pattern corresponding to the desired region, and then applying a given voltage into the desired region to generate a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal around the nucleuses.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 22, 2011
    Publication date: August 18, 2011
    Applicants: Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co., Ltd., National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Futoshi Yamamoto, Junichiro Ichikawa, Satoshi Oikawa, Sunao Kurimura, Kenji Kitamura
  • Publication number: 20110201133
    Abstract: A method for forming a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal, including the steps of forming a concave portion on a top face of a ferroelectric substrate or a bottom face of a ferroelectric substrate, and applying an electric field into the substrate, wherein a ferroelectric spontaneous polarization reversal is formed at least in one portion of a region of the substrate with the concave portion, and wherein the shape of the concave portion is configured such that the width of the concave portion gets narrower gradually toward the inside of the substrate. The method may further include the steps of, after the reversal, making into almost a flat-plane the top or bottom face having the concave portion, and then, forming a new concave portion in another region and applying an electric field to form another reversal in one portion of the region of the substrate having the new concave portion.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 22, 2011
    Publication date: August 18, 2011
    Applicants: Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co., Ltd., National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Futoshi Yamamoto, Junichiro Ichikawa, Satoshi Oikawa, Sunao Kurimura, Kenji Kitamura
  • Patent number: 7985294
    Abstract: An optical device and a method of manufacturing the optical device, with the method including the steps of forming a dopant layer on a stoichiometric lithium niobate single crystal substrate with Li to Nb mole composition ratio of 49.5% to 50.5%, and diffusing a dopant in the dopant layer into at least a portion of the stoichiometric lithium niobate single crystal substrate. The stoichiometric lithium niobate single crystal substrate includes 0.5 to 5 mol % of Mg. In the diffusing step, a heat treatment is performed at a diffusion temperature of 1000° C. to 1200° C. for a diffusion time of 3 hours to 24 hours in a dry atmosphere of at least one of O2, N2, Ar and He gas having a dew-point temperature of ?35° C. or less.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2011
    Assignees: Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co., Ltd., National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Futoshi Yamamoto, Katsutoshi Kondou, Junichiro Ichikawa, Masaru Nakamura, Sunao Kurimura, Shunji Takekawa, Kenji Kitamura
  • Patent number: 7878205
    Abstract: A manufacturing method for quasi phase matching (QPM) wavelength converter elements using crystal quartz as a base material in which twins are periodically induced, comprises a step of periodically inducing the twins by applying a stress onto a crystal quartz substrate as the base material so that an angle ? of a direction in which the stress is applied relative to a Z axis of the crystal quartz is 60°<?<90°.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 1, 2011
    Assignees: National Institute for Materials Science, Nidek Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Sunao Kurimura, Tsuyoshi Yamada
  • Publication number: 20100110534
    Abstract: A wavelength conversion element is provided as one including a monocrystalline nonlinear optical crystal. The nonlinear optical crystal has: a plurality of first regions having a polarity direction along a predetermined direction; a plurality of second regions having a polarity direction opposite to the predetermined direction; an entrance face into which a fundamental incident wave having a wavelength ? and a frequency ? is incident in a direction substantially perpendicular to the predetermined direction; and an exit face from which a second harmonic with a frequency 2? generated in the crystal emerges. The plurality of first and second regions are formed as alternately arranged in a period substantially equal to d expressed by a predetermined expression, between the entrance face and the exit face.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 16, 2009
    Publication date: May 6, 2010
    Applicants: Nikon Corporation, National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Kenichi Muramatsu, Sunao Kurimura
  • Patent number: 7689067
    Abstract: A nested modulator is provided where the circuit arrangement of modifying electrodes including signal electrodes is simplified, and at the same time, the drive voltage can be lowered.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 30, 2010
    Assignees: Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co., Ltd., National Institute for Materials Science, National Institute of Information and Communications Technology
    Inventors: Junichiro Ichikawa, Kaoru Higuma, Futoshi Yamamoto, Satoshi Oikawa, Shingo Mori, Sunao Kurimura, Kenji Kitamura, Tetsuya Kawanishi, Masahiro Tsuchiya, Masayuki Izutsu
  • Patent number: 7446930
    Abstract: A problem to be solved is to provide a method of forming domain inverted regions of short period in a ferroelectric single crystal in a controllable time period of application of voltage and an optical wavelength conversion element using the same. A solving means of it solves the problem by forming (i) a control layer having a larger defect density Dcont1 than the defect density Dferro of a ferroelectric single crystal (Dferro<Dcont1) or forming (ii) a control layer having a lower degree of order of lattice points than the degree of order of lattice points of the ferroelectric single crystal on a face perpendicular to the direction of polarization of the ferroelectric single crystal in the ferroelectric single crystal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2008
    Assignee: National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Kenji Kitamura, Sunao Kurimura, Masaru Nakamura, Shunji Takekawa, Kazuya Terabe, Shunichi Hishida, Tamaki Shimura
  • Publication number: 20080212915
    Abstract: A nested modulator is provided where the circuit arrangement of modifying electrodes including signal electrodes is simplified, and at the same time, the drive voltage can be lowered.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 7, 2007
    Publication date: September 4, 2008
    Applicants: Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co., Ltd., National Institute for Materials Science, National Institute of Information and Communications Technology
    Inventors: Junichiro Ichikawa, Kaoru Higuma, Futoshi Yamamoto, Satoshi Oikawa, Shingo Mori, Sunao Kurimura, Kenji Kitamura, Tetsuya Kawanishi, Masahiro Tsuchiya, Masayuki Izutsu
  • Patent number: 7413430
    Abstract: The upper block 12 contacts the bearing block 20, and the bearing block 20 is coupled to the upper plate 21. The upper block 12 has a protruding part 22 on the upper surface that is worked into a convex surface with a radius of R1, and the bearing block 20 has a recessed part 23 in the undersurface that is worked into a concave surface with a radius of R2 (R2>R1). As a result of such a construction being used, the pressing surface of the upper pressing plate 15 always conforms to the surface of the quartz crystal substrate 11 during pressing, so that a uniform load is applied to the quartz crystal substrate 11. As a result, the surface of the quartz crystal can be uniformly pressed in the hot pressing method.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 18, 2003
    Date of Patent: August 19, 2008
    Assignee: National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Sunao Kurimura, Masaki Harada
  • Patent number: 7403327
    Abstract: A wavelength conversion element having multi-gratings free from damage propagation and a light generating apparatus using it, and a wavelength conversion element having multi-gratings to make a thermal distribution centrosymmetric, and being free from damage propagation, are provided. The wavelength conversion element is realized by comprising a holder and plural prismatic ferroelectric single crystals disposed in the holder, wherein plural prismatic ferroelectric single crystals have at least five planes; the aspect ratios of planes perpendicular to respective longitudinal directions of the plural prismatic ferroelectric single crystals are virtually unity; and each of the plural prismatic ferroelectric single crystals has a domain inversion structure with a predetermined period in the direction perpendicular to the polarization direction thereof, and is arranged in a way that said direction perpendicular to the polarization direction is the same as those of the other crystals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 19, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2008
    Assignee: National Institute for Materials Science
    Inventors: Kenji Kitamura, Sunao Kurimura, Masaru Nakamura, Shunji Takekawa
  • Publication number: 20080046043
    Abstract: A manufacturing method for quasi phase matching (QPM) wavelength converter elements using crystal quartz as a base material in which twins are periodically induced, comprises a step of periodically inducing the twins by applying a stress onto a crystal quartz substrate as the base material so that an angle ? of a direction in which the stress is applied relative to a Z axis of the crystal quartz is 60°<?<90°.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 5, 2007
    Publication date: February 21, 2008
    Applicants: NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR MATERIALS SCIENCE, NIDEK CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Sunao Kurimura, Tsuyoshi Yamada