Abstract: An amount of a semiconductor substrate cut due to etching in the bottom of a contact hole formed by the SAC technique is reduced. Silicon oxide films are dry etched under the conditions of increasing the etching selective ratio of the silicon oxide films to an insulating film. Then, the conditions are changed to those increasing the etching selective ratio of the insulating film to the silicon oxide films and the insulating film is etched by a predetermined amount.

Abstract: A method for manufacturing a semiconductor integrated circuit device includes the steps of forming an isolation trench in an isolation region of a semiconductor substrate, filling the isolation trench up to predetermined middle position in its depth direction with a first insulating film deposited by a coating method, filling a remaining depth portion of the isolation trench into which the first insulating film is filled with a second insulating film, then forming a plurality of patterns on the semiconductor substrate, filling a trench forming between the plurality of patterns up to predetermined middle position in a trench depth direction with a third insulating film deposited by a coating method, and filling a remaining portion of the trench into which the third insulating film is filled with a fourth insulating film that is more difficult to etch than the third insulating film.

Abstract: The copper interconnect formed by the use of a damascene technique is improved in dielectric breakdown strength (reliability). During post-CMP cleaning, alkali cleaning, a deoxidizing process due to hydrogen annealing or the like, and acid cleaning are carried out in this order. After the post-CMP cleaning and before forming an insulation film for a cap film, hydrogen plasma and ammonia plasma processes are carried out on the semiconductor substrate. In this way, a copper-based buried interconnect is formed in an interlayer insulation film structured of an insulation material having a low dielectric constant.

Abstract: The invention concerns an improvement of a drive system of a color image forming apparatus. The color image-forming apparatus includes a plurality of image-forming elements; a plurality of first driving motors, each of which corresponds to each of the image-forming elements, to drive the plurality of image-forming elements; an intermediate transfer element that is disposed opposite the plurality of image-forming elements; a second driving motor to drive the intermediate transfer element; and a controlling section to control the plurality of first driving motors and the second driving motor. In the color image-forming apparatus, the controlling section controls the plurality of first driving motors and the second driving motor independently of each other, so that a first peripheral speed of each of the image-forming elements coincides with a second peripheral speed of the intermediate transfer element.

Abstract: There is described a method of controlling the rotational peripheral speed of the rotating photoreceptor drum to make it constant. The method includes the steps of: detecting angular velocity signals by means of angular velocity detecting device disposed on an axis of the photoreceptor drum; finding deviations from a reference angular velocity, based on the angular velocity signals; storing a profile of the deviations within a one-revolution of the photoreceptor drum in a storage section, while revising the profile in real-time base; applying an arithmetic processing to an angular velocity signal detected at a current rotational-position of the photoreceptor drum by referring data included in the profile obtained in a preceding one-revolution of the photoreceptor drum; and controlling the motor, based on results of the arithmetic processing for the angular velocity signals, so as to compress the deviations from the reference angular velocity as small as possible.

Abstract: In an apparatus having a plurality of objects to be cooled, cooling temperature adjustment is efficiently performed for the objects. A plurality of cooling temperature adjustment units (40, 50, 60) are provided to perform cooling temperature adjustment for a plurality of objects to be cooled (8, 14 (17), 15), respectively. Each of cooling temperature adjustment systems constituted by the plurality of cooling temperature adjustment units (40, 50, 60) includes the first cooling temperature adjustment system which uses any one coolant selected from the group consisting of pure water, a fluorine-based inert solution, a gas, and an antifreeze, and a second cooling temperature adjustment system which uses any one coolant which is selected from the group and is different from that used by the first cooling temperature adjustment system.

Abstract: The invention provides an image reading apparatus and method capable of performing skew error correction at high speed. In an image reading apparatus that conveys a stacked medium along a conveyance path, reads an image of the medium being conveyed, and discharges the medium after reading the image, the apparatus comprises calculation means for calculating the amount of skew of the medium while being conveyed, and correction means for correcting the amount of skew of the medium in accordance with the amount of skew calculated by the calculation means. The correction means comprise determination means for determining whether correction for the amount of skew should be performed or not, and control means for correcting the amount of skew of the medium. The calculation means comprise medium detection means for detecting the state of the medium conveyed along the conveyance path, and calculate the amount of skew from the detected result of the state of the medium.

Abstract: In order to fill in an isolation trench formed on a semiconductor substrate, the isolation trench is filled up to a predetermined middle position with a coating film first, and then an insulating film formed by a CVD method is deposited thereon. Additionally, the insulating film is polished by a CMP method, for example, so as to be ground. Thus, the isolation trench is filled with stacked films of the coating film and the insulating film. Further, an electrode pattern and a dummy pattern are formed on the semiconductor substrate, and the trench formed between these patterns is filled up to a predetermined middle position in its depth direction with the coating film. Then, a remaining depth portion of the trench is filled with the insulating film formed by a CVD method.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus comprises: a photosensitive member; an intermediate transferring member to which an image formed on the photosensitive member is transferred; a press/release operation controlling section for controlling a pressing of the intermediate transferring member to the photosensitive member and for controlling a release of the pressing; a rotational actuation controlling section for controlling a rotational actuation of the photosensitive member; a judging section for judging a finish of a pressing operation carried out by the press/release operation controlling section; and a start timing controlling section for starting a control for the rotational actuation of the photosensitive member when the judging section judges the finish of the pressing operation by the rotational actuation controlling section.

Abstract: In an image forming apparatus for forming a color image by superposing component color images, a control device obtains position data representing a forming position of each of plural registration mark images for the component color images with respect to a positional reference value arbitrarily determined, divides the position data into each of a unit reference range representing a range in which one mark image is formed, converts the position data divided for each unit reference range into those based on respective reference values representing the front edge of the unit reference ranges, extracts the position data representing ranges common to the mutually overlapping ranges each of which is represented by a couple of position data corresponding to the rising and falling edges of a passage timing pulse as read position data of the mark image of the component color, and calculates the amounts of positional deviations of the component color images from one another on the basis of the position data extracted.

Abstract: There is described a duplex image-forming apparatus having a function of forming images onto both sides of a transfer material. The apparatus includes an image-forming section to respectively form an obverse-side image and a reverse-side image on a photoreceptor element by scanning a light beam, modulated with image signals based on pixel-clock signals and reflected from a polygon mirror rotating at an operating velocity based on polygon-clock signals; a transferring section to transfer said obverse-side image and said reverse-side image onto both surfaces of said recording sheet; a fixing section to fix the images onto both surfaces of said recording sheet; and a clock-frequency changing section to change a pixel-clock frequency, and a polygon-clock frequency, corresponding to a degree of shrinkage of said recording sheet caused by a fixing operation performed in said fixing section, at a transition time of an image-forming operation from one side to another side.

Abstract: An information processing device which enables a user to intuitively operate basic operations of even a jog dial-unsupportable application is provided. When a jog dial-unsupportable application program is started, a jog dial server refers to a jog script and first displays, in a jog dial window, items related to basic operations of the jog dial-unsupportable application program that can be associated with operations based on a jog dial.

Abstract: There is described a method of controlling the rotational peripheral speed of the rotating photoreceptor drum to make it constant. The method includes the steps of: detecting angular velocity signals by means of angular velocity detecting device disposed on an axis of the photoreceptor drum; finding deviations from a reference angular velocity, based on the angular velocity signals; storing a profile of the deviations within a one-revolution of the photoreceptor drum in a storage section, while revising the profile in real-time base; applying an arithmetic processing to an angular velocity signal detected at a current rotational-position of the photoreceptor drum by referring data included in the profile obtained in a preceding one-revolution of the photoreceptor drum; and controlling the motor, based on results of the arithmetic processing for the angular velocity signals, so as to compress the deviations from the reference angular velocity as small as possible.

Abstract: An SOG film 16 obtained by heat-treating a polysilazan type SOG film at high temperature of about 800° C. is used as a planarized insulating film to be formed on the gate electrode 9 of a MISFET (Qs, Qn, Qp) A polysilazan SOG film 57 not subjected to such a heat treatment is used as interlayer insulating film arranged among upper wiring layers (54, 55, 56, 63).

Abstract: An information processing apparatus having a simplified switching function of a user is disclosed that can reduce the processing burden upon a CPU and eliminate an action that is not intended by its user. If an application, which implements a function of a device or the like that is not supported as a standard device by an OS and is started up for each user, has been started up by a first user who is not active at present, that is, a user in a logon state whose desktop has been switched to that of a second user, then part of the processing of the application is temporarily stopped. Then, if it is detected that the first user is rendered operative, that is, when the desktop is switched to that of the first user, the processing of the application of the first user is re-started.

Abstract: An amount of a semiconductor substrate cut due to etching in the bottom of a contact hole formed by the SAC technique is reduced. Silicon oxide films are dry etched under the conditions of increasing the etching selective ratio of the silicon oxide films to an insulating film. Then, the conditions are changed to those increasing the etching selective ratio of the insulating film to the silicon oxide films and the insulating film is etched by a predetermined amount.

Abstract: The invention provides an image reading apparatus and method capable of performing skew error correction at high speed. In an image reading apparatus that conveys a stacked medium along a conveyance path, reads an image of the medium being conveyed, and discharges the medium after reading the image, the apparatus comprises calculation means for calculating the amount of skew of the medium while being conveyed, and correction means for correcting the amount of skew of the medium in accordance with the amount of skew calculated by the calculation means. The correction means comprise determination means for determining whether correction for the amount of skew should be performed or not, and control means for correcting the amount of skew of the medium. The calculation means comprise medium detection means for detecting the state of the medium conveyed along the conveyance path, and calculate the amount of skew from the detected result of the state of the medium.

Abstract: An SOG film 16 obtained by heat-treating a polysilazan type SOG film at high temperature of about 800° C. is used as a planarized insulating film to be formed on the gate electrode 9 of a MISFET (Qs, Qn, Qp). A polysilazan SOG film 57 not subjected to such a heat treatment is used as interlayer insulating film arranged among upper wiring layers (54, 55, 56, 62, 63).

Abstract: A method for manufacturing an electrostatic actuator comprises a vibrating plate, an electrode plate facing the vibrating plate, and a vibrating chamber formed between the electrode plate and the vibrating plate, wherein the vibrating plate is displaced by electrostatic force, by applying voltage between the vibrating plate and the electrode plate, the method comprises: a process for forming a pressure compensating chamber communicating with the vibrating chamber; a process for forming a displacement plate at a portion of the pressure compensating chamber, displaceable according to external atmospheric pressure, into a warped form curved so as to protrude in a direction away from the facing inner wall of the pressure compensating chamber; and a process for shutting off and sealing the pressure compensating chamber from the external atmosphere, along with the vibrating chamber.

Abstract: An amount of a semiconductor substrate cut due to etching in the bottom of a contact hole formed by the SAC technique is reduced. Silicon oxide films are dry etched under the conditions of increasing the etching selective ratio of the silicon oxide films to an insulating film. Then, the conditions are changed to those increasing the etching selective ratio of the insulating film to the silicon oxide films and the insulating film is etched by a predetermined amount.