Abstract: There is disclosed a fluorine-containing polymer compound comprising a repeating unit (a) of the following general formula (2) and having a weight-average molecular weight of 1000 to 1000000 where R1 represents a polymerizable double bond-containing group; R2 represents a fluorine atom or a fluorine-containing alkyl group; R3 represents a hydrogen atom, an acid labile group, a cross-linking site or the other monovalent organic group; and W1 represents a linking moiety. When the fluorine-containing polymer compound is used in a resist compound for pattern formation by high energy radiation of 300 nm or less wavelength or electron beam radiation, it is possible to form a resist pattern with a good rectangular profile.

Abstract: A photoacid generating polymer (PAG polymer) comprises i) a first repeat unit of capable of reacting with a photogenerated acid to form a carboxylic acid containing repeat unit, ii) a second repeat unit of capable of forming the photogenerated acid, and iii) a third repeat unit comprising a norbornyl ester, wherein a norbornyl ring of the norbornyl ester comprises a monovalent substituent having the formula *-L?-C(CF3)2(OH). L? is a divalent linking group comprising at least one carbon and the starred bond of L? is linked to the norbornyl ring. The first repeat unit, second repeat unit, and the third repeat unit are covalently bound repeat units of the PAG polymer.

Abstract: A polymer containing a repeating unit represented by the following general formula (1) and a repeating unit having an acid-releasable group.

Abstract: In the image evaluation apparatus, a clothing recognition unit 106 performs, for each person appearing in each of images included in an image group generated by an image group generation unit 102, recognition of clothing that the person is wearing. An image event evaluation unit 107, according to types of clothing recognized by the clothing recognition unit 106 and a frequency of appearance of each type of clothing in the images in the image group, collectively evaluates the images included in the image group.

Abstract: A sulfonic acid onium salt represented by the following formula (1) can be used as a superior radiosensitive acid generator for resist compositions. It is possible to form a good pattern by using a resist composition containing this sulfonic acid onium salt. In formula (1), R1 represents a monovalent organic group, and Q+ represents a sulfonium cation or iodonium cation.

Abstract: An image management device clusters acquired images (S201) and generates blocks by grouping the images (S202). Next, the image management device calculates an intra-block importance degree of each cluster in each generated block (S204), calculates cluster importance degrees by accumulating the calculated intra-block importance degrees of each cluster (S205), and calculates an image importance degree based on the calculated cluster importance degrees (S206).

Abstract: Disclosed is a fluorinated sulfonic acid salt or fluorinated sulfonic acid group-containing compound having a structure represented by the following general formula (A). In the formula, n indicates an integer of 1 to 10; R indicates a substituted or unsubstituted C1-C20 linear, branched or cyclic alkyl group, a substituted or unsubstituted C1-C20 linear, branched or cyclic alkenyl group, a substituted or unsubstituted C6-C15 aryl group, or a C4-C15 heteroaryl group; and a indicates 1 or 0. A photoacid generator containing the above fluorinated sulfonic acid salt or fluorinated sulfonic acid group-containing compound shows high sensitivity to an ArF excimer laser or the like, presents no concerns about human body accumulation, can generate an acid (photoacid) of sufficiently high acidity, and exhibits high solubility in a resist solvent and good compatibility with a resist resin.

Abstract: An image management device includes an image priority calculation unit calculating image priority, an image selection unit selecting a high-priority image and a low-priority image, a feature correction unit correcting low-priority image features using the object features of objects included in the high-priority image and in the low-priority image, an image similarity calculation unit calculating image similarity using the object features of the high-priority image and the object features corrected by the feature correction unit, and an image priority correction unit correcting the priority of the low-priority image according to the calculated image similarity.

Abstract: A method for forming a protective film of a fluorine-containing polymer composition excellent in smoothness and adhesiveness on a photoresist. Moreover, there is provided a means for removing the protective film without impairing the underlying photoresist. A polymer coating composition obtainable by dissolving a fluorine-containing polymer compound in a solvent comprising a fluorinated acetal having a specific structure is applied on a photoresist and dried to form a protective film. A fluorinated acetal having the specific structure is suitable as a solvent for being brought into contact with a fluorine-containing polymer film, peeling the film, and forming a photoresist or a lithographic pattern.

Abstract: A fluorine-containing polymer of the present invention contains a repeating unit (a) of the general formula (2) and has a mass-average molecular weight of 1,000 to 1,000,000. This polymer is suitably used in a resist composition for pattern formation by high energy ray radiation of 300 nm or less wavelength or electron beam radiation or a top coat composition for liquid immersion lithography and is characterized as having high water repellency, notably high receding contact angle. In the formula, R1 represents a polymerizable double bond-containing group; R2 represents a fluorine atom or a fluorine-containing alkyl group; R8 represents a substituted or unsubstituted alkyl group or the like; and W1 represents a single bond, a substituted or unsubstituted methylene group or the like.

Abstract: Disclosed is a water repellent additive for an immersion resist, which is composed of a fluorine-containing polymer that has a repeating unit represented by general formula (1). By adding the water repellent additive to a resist composition, the resist composition can be controlled to have high water repellency during exposure and to exhibit improved solubility in a developing solution during development. [In the formula, R1 represents a hydrogen atom, a fluorine atom, a methyl group or a trifluoromethyl group; R2 represents a heat-labile protecting group; R3 represents a fluorine atom or a fluorine-containing alkyl group; and W represents a divalent linking group.

Abstract: Disclosed is a top coating composition formed on a resist film, for protecting the resist film, the top coating composition being a top coating composition for photoresist, characterized by containing a fluorine-containing polymer having a repeating unit represented by the following general formula (1). This composition is capable of controlling developing solution solubility and has a high water repellency. [In the formula, R1 represents a hydrogen atom, fluorine atom, methyl group or trifluoromethyl group, R2 represents a heat-labile protecting group, R3 represents a fluorine atom or fluorine-containing alkyl group, and W is a bivalent linking group.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a fluorine-containing cyclic compound of formula (5): wherein R2-R4 and R9-R15 are independently a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, or a C1-C25 straight-chain, branched or cyclic alkyl group, and may contain fluorine atom, oxygen atom, sulfur atom, or nitrogen atom. R10 and R11, R12 and R13, or R14 and R15 may be bonded together to form a ring. In such a case, it is a C1-C25 alkylene group that may contain a hetero atom such as oxygen, sulfur and nitrogen, “a” is 0 or 1, “b” is an integer of 0-2 and “c” is an integer of 0-2.

Abstract: An image management device acquires an image group with an image acquisition unit, extracts objects and feature amounts from each image in the image group with an object detection unit, and sorts the objects into relevant clusters with an object sorting unit. Next, a similarity calculation unit calculates a similarity between the feature amounts of each object and each relevant cluster, a co-occurrence information generation unit finds co-occurrence information for each cluster, and then an accuracy calculation unit and an evaluation value calculation unit find an evaluation value for each object with respect to each cluster from the similarity and co-occurrence information. An object priority evaluation unit evaluates the object priority of each object with the evaluation value, and an image priority evaluation unit evaluates the priority of each image from the object priority.

Abstract: There is disclosed a fluorine-containing polymer compound comprising a repeating unit (a) of the following general formula (2) and having a weight-average molecular weight of 1000 to 1000000 where R1 represents a polymerizable double bond-containing group; R2 represents a fluorine atom or a fluorine-containing alkyl group; R3 represents a hydrogen atom, an acid labile group, a cross-linking site or the other monovalent organic group; and W1 represents a linking moiety. When the fluorine-containing polymer compound is used in a resist compound for pattern formation by high energy radiation of 300 nm or less wavelength or electron beam radiation, it is possible to form a resist pattern with a good rectangular profile.

Abstract: Provided is an image evaluation apparatus for evaluating each of a plurality of images, the images including objects that each belong to a cluster. The image evaluation apparatus calculates (i) a first value pertaining to an object appearing in an image (for instance, the first value indicates a frequency at which the object appears in the plurality of images) according to a cluster that the object belongs to and (ii) a second value pertaining to the object (for instance, the second value indicates an occupation degree of the object in the image) according to an appearance characteristic that the object exhibits in the image. The image evaluation apparatus further calculates, according to the first value and second value, an importance degree of the object and an importance degree of the image.

Abstract: A cleaning agent for a silicon wafer (a first cleaning agent) contains at least a water-based cleaning liquid and a water-repellent cleaning liquid for providing at least a recessed portion of an uneven pattern with water repellency during a cleaning process. The water-based cleaning liquid is a liquid in which a water-repellent compound having a reactive moiety chemically bondable to Si element in the silicon wafer and a hydrophobic group, and an organic solvent including at least an alcoholic solvent are mixed and contained. With this cleaning agent, the cleaning process which tends to induce a pattern collapse can be improved.

Abstract: A protective casing structure of an electronic apparatus capable of keeping the apparatus compact and light is provided. A display-side block includes a display module and a display casing. The display casing is provided with frame edges at a periphery thereof, with projections formed on the frame edges. Grooves engaging with the projections are formed in a system casing. When the display-side block is closed, the projections engage with the grooves to increase rigidity against pressing from the outside in the closed state. The casing structure thereby increases the protective capability of the display module while keeping the apparatus compact and light.

Abstract: A fluorine-containing compound represented by the formula 1, where R1 is a methyl group or trifluoromethyl group, each of R2 and R3 is independently a hydrogen atom or a group containing (a) a hydrocarbon group having a straight-chain, branched or ring form and having a carbon atom number of 1-25 or (b) an aromatic hydrocarbon group, the group optionally containing at least one of a fluorine atom, an oxygen atom and a carbonyl bond, l is an integer of from 0 to 2, each of m and n is independently an integer of 1-5 to satisfy an expression of m+n?6, and when at least one of R1, R2 and R3 is in a plural number, the at least one of R1, R2 and R3 may be identical with or different from each other.

Abstract: According to the present invention, there is provided a polymerizable fluorine-containing sulfonic acid onium salt of the following general formula (2) and a resin obtained by polymerization thereof. It is possible by the use of this sulfonate resin of the present invention to provide a resist composition with high resolution, board depth of focus tolerance (DOF), small line edge roughness (LER) and high sensitivity. In the formula, Z represents a substituted or unsubstituted C1-C6 straight or branched alkylene group, or a divalent moiety in which substituted or unsubstituted C1-C6 straight or branched alkylene groups are bonded in series to a divalent group obtained by elimination of two hydrogen atoms from an alicyclic or aromatic hydrocarbon; R represents a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, or a C1-C3 alkyl or fluorine-containing alkyl group; and Q+ represents a sulfonium cation or an iodonium cation.