Abstract: An end-point detector for a plasma etcher, includes a converging lens for receiving strip-like plasma light produced between a pair of opposed electrodes and a spectroscope, having a slit located at a substantial rear-side focal plane of the converging lens, for detecting an etching end time point from a time-based variation of spectrum light intensity of the plasma light which has been converged at the slit and has passed through the slit. The converging lens has a pupil diameter of not greater than ##EQU1## where W is a width of a short side of the strip-like plasma light produced between the electrodes, 1 is a distance between an end of each electrode and a pupil face of the converging lens, NAm is a numerical aperture required by the spectroscope, and h is a width of a short side of the slit of the spectroscope. The converging lens has a numerical aperture of not less than NAm.

Abstract: An optical disc having an aluminum reflective film is disclosed, wherein an oxide of Al in the stable oxidized state is introduced into the Al reflective film to eliminate changes with lapse of time to improve durability of the optical disc. A method for producing a reflective film on an optical disc is also disclosed, wherein a trace amount of oxygen is introduced into atmosphere in the course of formation of the reflective film.

Abstract: An intermediate transfer type thermal transfer recording method comprising the steps of: forming first an image on an intermediate transfer medium by heating a melt-type thermal transfer recording medium with a heating head, and transferring the image formed on the intermediate transfer medium onto an image receptor pressed against the intermediate transfer medium, wherein an image of a heat-meltable colored ink is formed on an image receptor by said intermediate transfer type thermal transfer recording method and a transparent heat-meltable ink is then transferred on the image receptor to cover a region thereof including the image of the colored ink by said intermediate transfer type thermal transfer recording method. The method provides a lustrous image on a paper sheet and an image with high light transmittance on an OHP sheet.

Abstract: A semiconductor photonic integrated circuit and a manufacturing method thereof involving a selective-area growth technique using a set of insulating film patterning masks formed on a semiconductor substrate. The mask width and the mask-to-mask open space width are variable but numerically limited. A single crystal growth process is carried out to form on the same substrate a plurality of contiguous bulk semiconductor layers or quantum well layers differing from one another in terms of growth layer thickness or composition. The differences in energy level between these layers are utilized so that semiconductor photonic integrated devices of different functions are formed on the substrate.

Abstract: An optical disc having an aluminum reflective film is disclosed, wherein an oxide of Al in the stable oxidized state is introduced into the Al reflective film to eliminate changes with lapse of time to improve durability of the optical disc. A method for producing a reflective film on an optical disc is also disclosed, wherein a trace amount of oxygen is introduced into atmosphere in the course of formation of the reflective film.

Abstract: A semiconductor optical device fabricating method for easily fabricating on a single substrate a plurality of distributed feedback lasers or distributed Bragg reflector lasers with uniform static and dynamic properties and individually different oscillation wavelengths. A plurality of pairs of stripe type insulating thin film masks are formed over that region of the semiconductor substrate which has optical waveguides formed therein for the lasers. Each pair of stripe type masks has a constant gap therebetween. With the masks in place, optical waveguide layers for the lasers are grown in crystallized fashion through metal organic vapor epitaxy. The stripe type masks in pairs differ dimensionally from one another.

Abstract: After a shadow mask that is separate from a semiconductor substrate is used and is arranged over the semiconductor substrate via a wafer holder installed in a reaction chamber of a vapor-phase epitaxial system so that a predetermined space d can be secured, a semiconductor thin film crystal including a core layer and a cladding layer is grown by organometallic vapor-phase epitaxy. A core layer wherein the thickness of a grown film in an area which is opposite to a masking part of the shadow mask on the semiconductor substrate is reduced in the tapered shape can be readily obtained by introducing this process for growth in a normal process for fabricating a semiconductor guided-wave optical device. A semiconductor guided-wave optical device and a method of fabricating thereof wherein the thickness of a film which is to be a waveguide is tapered and the width of the waveguide is tapered without deteriorating crystallinity by a new crystal growing method using this shadow mask are obtained.

Abstract: A semiconductor optical device is provided which includes a semiconductor substrate, a first core layer disposed on the substrate with a second core layer being interposed between the substrate and the first core layer. The second core layer has a lower refractive index than that of the first core layer. A ridge-shaped optical waveguide region is formed in a top surface of the first core layer. The width of the ridge-shaped optical waveguide is modulated along a direction which coincides with an optical axis of the semiconductor optical device. Further, the width of a bottom surface of the ridge-shaped optical waveguide is selected not to be greater than 4 .mu.m over a whole length thereof.

Abstract: A waveguide device includes an indium phosphide substrate, an active layer formed on the indium phosphide substrate, and a cladding layer formed on the active layer, the cladding layer having a ridge structure the side wall of which is configured into a reversed mesa form.

Abstract: The semiconductor device has a semiconductor structure directly bonded onto another semiconductor structure of a different kind from the former. These two semiconductor structures are arranged in such a way that their crystal structures in a cross section perpendicular to the bonded interface of the two semiconductor structures are different from each other or that their lattice orders are not equivalent. This can be applied to direct bonding of any combination of semiconductor structures in any crystallographic orientation relation. This also allows bonding of three or more kinds of semiconductor structures.

Abstract: Disclosed is a semiconductor optical integrated device and method of fabricating the device, the device having a plurality of quantum well structures, formed on a single substrate, acting as optical waveguides, the plurality of quantum well structures respectively having different lattice mismatches with the substrate and/or different strains (e.g., respectively compressive strain and tensile strain). The method includes selectively depositing the quantum well structures by, e.g., organometallic vapor phase epitaxy on growth regions of the substrate, the growth regions being defined by insulating layer patterning masks, with a width of the growth regions and/or a width of the patterning mask being different for the different quantum well structures.

Abstract: A waveguide device includes an indium phosphide substrate, an active layer formed on the indium phosphide substrate, and a cladding layer formed on the active layer, the cladding layer having a ridge structure the side wall of which is configured into a reversed mesa form.

Abstract: A semiconductor optical device fabricating method for easily fabricating on a single substrate a plurality of distributed feedback lasers or distributed Bragg reflector lasers with uniform static and dynamic properties and individually different oscillation wavelengths. A plurality of pairs of stripe type insulating thin film masks are formed over that region of the semiconductor substrate which has optical waveguides formed therein for the lasers. Each pair of stripe type masks has a constant gap therebetween. With the masks in place, optical waveguide layers for the lasers are grown in crystallized fashion through metal organic vapor epitaxy. The stripe type masks in pairs differ dimensionally from one another.

Abstract: An evaporative fuel discharge-preventing device for an engine which comprises a surge tank for leveling out fluctuations in the amount of evaporated fuel so as to provide a stabilized engine rotational speed, and to prevent the impairment of drivability. The surge tank has outlet and inlet side pipes arranged at a height position to avoid storing the evaporated fuel in a liquid state within the surge tank. The surge tank, having a predetermined volumetric capacity, is disposed midway of an air communication passage between an intake manifold and a purge valve, and is located at a height position greater than the intake manifold.

Abstract: A semiconductor photonic integrated circuit and a manufacturing method thereof involving a selective-area growth technique using a set of insulating film patterning masks formed on a semiconductor substrate. The mask width and the mask-to-mask open space width are variable but numerically limited. A single crystal growth process is carried out to form on the same substrate a plurality of contiguous bulk semiconductor layers or quantum well layers differing from one another in terms of growth layer thickness or composition. The differences in energy level between these layers are utilized so that semiconductor photonic integrated devices of different functions are formed on the substrate.

Abstract: An aqueous dispersed resin composition comprising (A) an aqueous dispersion of carbonyl-containing resin particles having an inner layer and an outermost layer, which is obtained by emulsion polymerization of a monomer mixture comprising (a) not less than 0.5% by weight of a carbonyl-containing monomer containing at least one aldo group or keto group and one polymerizable unsaturated double bond in the molecule thereof, (b) not less than 0.5% by weight of an ethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acid, (c) not more than 99% by weight of a monomer having a water-solubility of not more than 8 g/100 ml at 20.degree. C.

Abstract: An aqueous dispersed resin composition is disclosed, comprising (A) an aqueous dispersion of carbonyl-containing resin particles having an inner layer and an outermost layer, which is obtained by emulsion polymerization of a monomer mixture comprising (a) not less than 0.5% by weight of a carbonyl-containing monomer containing at least one aldo group or keto group and one polymerizable unsaturated double bond in the molecule thereof, (b) not less than 0.5% by weight of an ethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acid, (c) not more than 99% by weight of a monomer having a water-solubility of not more than 8 g/100 ml at 20.degree. C.

Abstract: An aqueous crosslinking resin composition comprising (I) an aqueous resin dispersion obtained by emulsion polymerization of a monomer mixture consisting of (a) 2 to 50% by weight of an unsaturated carboxylic acid monomer, (b) 0.

Abstract: A measuring apparatus using an ultrasonic wave according to the invention transmits an ultrasonic wave pulse into a specimen, receives the echo reflected by the specimen and converts it into an electric signal. The components of the electric signal that represent the wave reflected by the specimen and contain data on the state of the specimen are extracted by a gate circuit. The components obtained by the gate circuit are converted into a power spectrum by a circuit for performing a Fourier transformation. The thickness of the specimen and/or the flaking state of the specimen can be determined from this power spectrum.

Abstract: A crosslinking aqueous pigment dispersion is disclosed, comprising (A) an aqueous resin dispersion, (B) a pigment, (C) a carbonyl-containing copolymer resin having an aldo group or a keto group, and (D) a hydrazine derivative having at least two hydrazino groups (--NHNH.sub.