Abstract: A semiconductor device includes an interlayer insulation film including an air gap between portions of adjacent wiring layers or isolation pattern layers or both that are distanced from each other by thinning a layered structure of each of the wiring layers or the isolation pattern layers or both selectively from a top layer to a substrate so that the portions of the wiring layers or the isolation pattern layers or both are distanced from each other.

Abstract: A first load-receiving member having a cylinder and a screw hole through which a bolt is thread-engaged and a second load-receiving member having a piston and a fastening face that is made in contact with a member to be fastened are attached to a nut, and a number of balls made of steel the surface of which is lubricated by grease are loaded into a pressure chamber that is formed as a compartment by the cylinder and the piston. Since these balls exert fluidity in the pressure chamber, a load applied to the balls is transmitted to the cylinder and the piston through the balls by screwing the input bolt. Thus, the first load-receiving member is moved in the axis direction with respect to the second load-receiving member, thereby applying a tensile force to the bolt.

Abstract: A laser annealing device (10) includes a laser oscillator (12), radiating a pulsed laser light beam of a preset period, and an illuminating optical system (15) for illuminating a pulsed laser light beam to an amorphous silicon film (1). The illuminating optical system (15) manages control for moving a laser spot so that a plural number of light pulses will be illuminated on the same location on the amorphous silicon film (1). The laser oscillator (12) radiates a laser light beam of a pulse generation period shorter than the reference period. The reference period is a time interval as from the radiation timing of illumination of a pulsed laser light beam on the surface of the film (1) until the timing of reversion of the substrate temperature raised due to the illumination of the laser light beam to the original substrate temperature.

Abstract: An optical resonator includes a first substrate and a second substrate which face each other, the first substrate having a flat main surface on which a first reflective mirror is provided and the second substrate having a concave portion on which a second reflective mirror is provided and a flat portion which surrounds the concave portion. The main surface of the first substrate and the flat portion of the second substrate are bondable. In addition, a laser oscillator includes a solid-state laser medium and a substrate, the solid-state laser medium having a main surface on which a first reflective mirror is provided and the substrate having a concave portion on which a second mirror is provided and a flat portion which surrounds the concave portion. The first and the second reflective mirrors serve as a laser resonator.

Abstract: Provided are a medicine case, a medicine case with a blood pressure measuring function, and a medication management system capable of storing blood pressure measurement together with medication record automatically, displaying simultaneously, and entering and issuing, and also supplying clinically useful information. In the medicine case, since the medicine to be taken is indicated at every timing specified by the attending physician, and the medicine can be taken without error or fail, and also the medication information and blood pressure measuring results are stored and displayed simultaneously, and can be observed simultaneously at a glance at a medical institute, and changes in blood pressure information and medication effects are determined easily, so that clinically useful information can be obtained.

Abstract: A laser annealing device (10) includes a laser oscillator (12), radiating a pulsed laser light beam of a preset period, and an illuminating optical system (15) for illuminating a pulsed laser light beam to an amorphous silicon film (1). The illuminating optical system (15) manages control for moving a laser spot so that a plural number of light pulses will be illuminated on the same location on the amorphous silicon film (1). The laser oscillator (12) radiates a laser light beam of a pulse generation period shorter than the reference period. The reference period is a time interval as from the radiation timing of illumination of a pulsed laser light beam on the surface of the film (1) until the timing of reversion of the substrate temperature raised due to the illumination of the laser light beam to the original substrate temperature.

Abstract: A first load-receiving member having a cylinder and a screw hole through which a bolt is thread-engaged and a second load-receiving member having a piston and a fastening face that is made in contact with a member to be fastened are attached to a nut, and a number of balls made of steel the surface of which is lubricated by grease are loaded into a pressure chamber that is formed as a compartment by the cylinder and the piston. Since these balls exert fluidity in the pressure chamber, a load applied to the balls is transmitted to the cylinder and the piston through the balls by screwing the input bolt. Thus, the first load-receiving member is moved in the axis direction with respect to the second load-receiving member, thereby applying a tensile force to the bolt.

Abstract: An image of an inspection target having a concave and convex pattern is picked up in an off-focus state by an image pickup element 4. Further, the image of the inspection target picked up in the off-focus state is taken in by an image processing computer 6. Based on the image, the image processing computer 6 prepares a light intensity profile having a peak corresponding to a boundary portion between a concave portion and a convex portion of the concave and convex pattern of the inspection target. For example, a change of the width of the concave or convex portion of the concave and convex portion can be detected very accurately, by measuring the width of the concave or convex portion of the concave and convex portion on the basis of the intensity profile.

Abstract: The imaging magnification of an imaging optical system 6 is set such that the image resolution of an ultraviolet CCD camera 5 is within a range from 10 nm to 30 nm, on a resist pattern 102 to be inspected. In addition, every time when the ultraviolet CCD camera 5 picks up an image, the resist pattern 102 to be inspected is irradiated at an irradiation light amount within a range from 0.5 mJ/cm2 to an irradiation threshold value at which the resist pattern 102 is not caused to contract or an irradiation threshold value at which an absorption rate of an anti-reflection film provided near the resist pattern is not caused to change.

Abstract: A pattern inspection apparatus 7 is incorporated in a semiconductor production line 1 for lithography. The pattern inspection apparatus 7 measures the line width of both an isolated pattern and that of an L/S pattern, formed on a semiconductor wafer 100 through an exposure process in an exposure apparatus 4, and generates light-amount corrective information intended for use to correct the amount of light in the exposure apparatus 4, focus corrective information intended for use to correct the exposure focus position, etc. based on the result of the measurement. Then, the exposure in the exposure apparatus 4 is corrected correspondingly to these corrective information generated by the pattern inspection apparatus 7. Thus, a resist pattern formed by the exposure apparatus 4 can be inspected speedily to permit a real-time correction of parameters of the exposure apparatus 4 on the basis of the result of inspection and control the parameters of the exposure apparatus 4 with a high accuracy.

Abstract: To inspect a disc-shaped recording medium accurately, promptly and nondestructively, a laser light emitted from a laser generator 4 is irradiated through an optical fiber 8, a rotatable diffusion plate 10 and an objective lens 13 to the surface of a disc 2. A solid-state image sensing device 15 detects a return component of the light, reflected from the surface of the disc 2. A processor 6 processes the output image from the solid-state image sensing device 15 to inspect the configuration of the signal recording surface of the disc 2.

Abstract: To realize the reduction of the coherence of coherent light by an optical fiber bundle including optical fibers provided with the necessary minimum difference in optical path length, the coherence of coherent light is reduced via an optical fiber bundle in which plural multimode optical fibers having a difference in length exceeding the coherence length of an outgoing light beam are bundled or an optical fiber bundle in which plural multimode optical fibers having a difference in length exceeding 60 percent of the coherence length of incident coherent light are bundled.

Abstract: An image of an inspection target having a concave and convex pattern is picked up in an off-focus state by an image pickup element 4. Further, the image of the inspection target picked up in the off-focus state is taken in by an image processing computer 6. Based on the image, the image processing computer 6 prepares a light intensity profile having a peak corresponding to a boundary portion between a concave portion and a convex portion of the concave and convex pattern of the inspection target. For example, a change of the width of the concave or convex portion of the concave and convex portion can be detected very accurately, by measuring the width of the concave or convex portion of the concave and convex portion on the basis of the intensity profile.

Abstract: A laser generating apparatus has a plurality of laser resonators and control loops for generating frequency locking signals independently for the respective laser resonators. A control signal generation circuit is provided so as to be common to the control loops. Control signals generated by the control signal generation circuit by frequency division are supplied to the respective control loops, whereby the phases of the laser resonators are locked to each other.

Abstract: The imaging magnification of an imaging optical system 6 is set such that the image resolution of an ultraviolet CCD camera 5 is within a range from 10 nm to 30 nm, on a resist pattern 102 to be inspected. In addition, every time when the ultraviolet CCD camera 5 picks up an image, the resist pattern 102 to be inspected is irradiated at an irradiation light amount within a range from 0.5 mJ/cm2 to an irradiation threshold value at which the resist pattern 102 is not caused to contract or an irradiation threshold value at which an absorption rate of an anti-reflection film provided near the resist pattern is not caused to change.

Abstract: A bearing has a composite elastic member, which supports a shaft. The composite elastic member comprises an elastic cylinder, which is made of an elastic material such as rubber and is provided at a bearing body section; and a spiral member, which projects from the circumferential surface of the elastic cylinder and is spirally assembled on the elastic cylinder. A lubricant is supplied to a spiral gap, which is divisionally formed between threads of the wire material forming the spiral member. When the shaft rotates, leakage of the lubricant is prevented by pumping operation and leakage of a fluid is prevented.

Abstract: A rotor 16 rotatably installed on a casing 10 is in contact with a container hole 11 of the casing 10, and the rotor 16 is equipped with a rotating shaft 17 which rotates around a rotation center O.sub.2 at a position deviated from a reference axis O.sub.0 of a container chamber by a distance E. An eccentric bearing 25 is rotatably attached to the casing 10, and has a rotation center O.sub.1 at a position deviated from both the rotation center O.sub.2 and the reference axis O.sub.0 by a predetermined distance. The eccentric bearing 25 rotates in accordance with rotation of the rotating shaft 17, and the rotor 16 is thereby brought into contact with the sliding contact portion 11a with a predetermined stress. As a result, it is possible to set large tolerances of processing precision of components of a driving device having a rotating member and a casing containing the rotating member.

Abstract: The laser beam generating apparatus (light source apparatus) comprising a laser oscillator structured as a ring resonator is provided with a plurality of excitation light sources and a plurality of solid state laser active media excited by these excitation light sources respectively, and these solid state laser active media are disposed separately each other on the optical path in the ring resonator. A high power laser beam is obtained stably and efficiently.

Abstract: A DNA fragment containing a caffeine demethylase gene produced by a microorganism belonging to the genus Pseudomonas and capable of assimilating caffeine and a process for producing a 3-methyl-7-alkylxanthine comprising cultivating a novel bacterium strain of the genus Pseudomonas having been transformed with a recombinant DNA having integrated therein the above-mentioned DNA fragment in a nutrient culture medium containing a 1,3-dimethyl-7-alkylxanthine to produce a 3-methyl-7-alkylxanthine in the culture and recovering the produced 3-methyl-7-alkylxanthine from the culture are disclosed, as well as a process for producing 3-methyl-7-propylxanthine, comprising cultivating a microorganism capable of converting 1,3-dimethyl-7-propylxanthine to 3-methyl-7-propylxanthine or a mutant thereof in a nutrient culture medium containing 1,3-dimethyl-7-propylxanthine, to produce 3-methyl-7-propylxanthine in the culture and recovering the produced 3-methyl-7-propylxanthine from the culture.

Abstract: An additive for cholesterol-containing food, containing a rice bran component and/or a derivative thereof as an active ingredient, a method of using same, and food treated thereby; and a process for producing mayonnaise controlled in the rise of a blood cholesterol level, or the absorption of cholesterol. A method of decreasing the effect of cholesterol contained in food on a living organism, for example, controlling the rise of a blood cholesterol level by adding to cholesterol-containing food a food additive capable of forming a complex with cholesterol, such as an extract of a rice bran component, .gamma.-orizanol (.gamma.-OZ) which is a mixture of esters of ferulic acid with various alcohols prepared by refining said extract and/or a derivative of a rice bran component, thereby forming a cholesterol complex of the food additive, whereby the cholesterol contained in food becomes nonabsorbable by a living organism or can be removed therefrom.