Abstract: The invention provides a lens forming apparatus that can suppress generation of burrs even if gaps between outer walls of an upper die and a lower die and an inner wall of a trunk die is made wide. A lens forming apparatus 11 according to the present invention includes a trunk die 12 having a through-hole 17 therein; first and second dies 13 and 14 that are fitted into the through-hole 17 from both ends thereof, respectively, and have pressing surfaces 20 and 30 for sandwiching and pressing a forming material 24; and induction-heating coils 15 and 16 that heat the first and second dies 13 and 14 to a temperature equal to or higher than a glass transition point, in a state where the trunk die 12 is not heated and the temperature thereof is set to a temperature equal to or lower than the glass transition point.

Abstract: In a composite molded lens, a press-formed lens body is integral with an injection-molded lens frame. The lens body has a lens portion and a flange portion surrounding the lens portion. Eight projections are radially formed on a top surface of the flange portion. The height of the projection increases toward an outer peripheral edge side of the flange portion. A recess is formed on an outer peripheral edge face of the flange portion and located at a position on a line extending from the projection. The recess increases torsional resilience of a joint surface between the lens body and the lens frame and strengthens bonding force there between.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method of manufacturing an optical element capable of increasing surface accuracy of an optical surface of an optical element with a plastic lens portion. A cavity which is formed when a pair of molds are closed has a compression molding space and an annular injection molding space, and the method includes a compression molding step of casting a compression molding material into the compression molding space of the molds and an injection molding step of injecting an injection molding material into the injection molding space in a state where the molds are closed and forming an injection molded portion at the outer circumferential edge of the compression molded compression molding material. In the injection molding step, before the compression molding material reaches a temperature lower than the glass transition temperature, the injection of the injection molding material starts.

Abstract: In order to produce high-quality optical elements stably at all times without the flow of molten resin inside an injection molding cavity being hindered by the protrusion of the outer peripheral edge of a lens after compression molding, a cavity formed when a pair of molds for molding is closed is provided with: an optical-function-part molding cavity (27); an annular connection-part molding cavity (28) connected to the outer peripheral edge of the optical-function-part molding cavity; and an edge-part molding cavity (29) connected to the outer peripheral edge of the connection-part molding cavity. In a compression molding step, a protrusion part is formed by making a portion of a compression molding material bulge out from the connection-part molding cavity into the edge-part molding cavity (29). In an injection molding step, the molds are filled by injecting an injection molding material into the edge-part molding cavity (29).

Abstract: There are provided a lens that is molded with high accuracy and a method of molding the lens. The lens has an optical axis and includes a pair of optical functional surfaces on front and rear surfaces thereof. The lens includes an optical functional portion that includes the pair of optical functional surfaces, an edge portion that is provided at an outer periphery of the optical functional portion, and a connecting portion that is provided between the optical functional portion and the edge portion, connects the optical functional portion with the edge portion, and is thinner than the edge portion in a direction of the optical axis.

Abstract: Long-period roughness in patterned resist is reduced in a manufacturing process of a sample such as a semiconductor device. A method for processing a sample to be processed, with patterned resist, in a sample processing apparatus includes: disposing the sample to be processed, with the patterned resist on the stage in the processing chamber; supplying silicon tetrachloride (SiCl4) or hydrobromide (HBr) into the processing chamber as processing gas; holding the pressure of the processing chamber in the range of 1 Pa to 10 KPa; exciting the processing gas by irradiating the vacuum ultraviolet light having a wavelength of 200 nm or less to the processing gas; reacting an element contained in the excited processing gas with the pattern resist of the sample, and curing the resist.

Abstract: Provided is a stereoscopic endoscope device enabling precise observation based on a 3D-image and observation of a wide field of view range based on a 2D-image and enabling the change of the field of view range according to the situation with a simple structure without increasing the size of an imaging unit or complicating the configuration. An imaging unit 50 disposed in a distal portion of a stereoscopic endoscope includes a pair of left and right imaging units 50L, 50R that capture a parallax image of a subject of a part of interest. The left and the right imaging unit 50L, 50R include a left and a right imaging optical system 60L, 60R, which form a subject image, and reflecting mirrors 302L and 302R located on the rear end sides of the left and the right imaging optical system 60L, 60R, respectively.

Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic component using a Cu-based conductive material that can suppress oxidization even in a heat treatment in an oxidizing atmosphere and that can suppress an increase in an electrical resistance. In an electronic component having an electrode or a wiring, a ternary alloy made from three elements consisting of Cu, Al, and Co is used as a Cu-based wiring material that can prevent oxidization of the electrode or the wiring. Specifically, part or the whole of the electrode or the wiring has a chemical composition in which an Al content is 10 at % to 25 at %, a Co content is 5 at % to 20 at %, and the balance is composed of Cu and unavoidable impurities, and the chemical composition represents a ternary alloy in which two phases of a Cu solid solution formed by Al and Co being dissolved into Cu and a CoAl intermetallic compound coexist together.

Abstract: A method to inexpensively and efficiently produce conductive materials on the surface of which a nano-level fine structure is formed includes surface modification including immersing a stable anode electrode and a workpiece as a cathode electrode, the workpiece including a conductive material with a work surface, in an electrolytic solution, then applying a voltage not less than a first voltage and less than a second voltage between the stable anode electrode and the workpiece as the cathode electrode immersed in the electrolytic solution, thereby modifying the work surface, the first voltage being a voltage corresponding to a current value that is ½ of the sum of a first maximum current value appearing first in a positive voltage region and a first minimum current value appearing first in the positive voltage region with respect to voltage-current characteristics of a surface modification treatment system, the second voltage exhibiting a complete-state plasma.

Abstract: There is provided a semiconductor device manufacturing method for forming a step-shaped structure in a substrate by etching the substrate having thereon a multilayer film and a photoresist film on the multilayer film and serving as an etching mask. The multilayer film is formed by alternately layering a first film having a first permittivity and a second film having a second permittivity different from the first permittivity. The method includes a first process for plasma-etching the first film by using the photoresist film as a mask; a second process for exposing the photoresist film to hydrogen-containing plasma; a third process for trimming the photoresist film; and a fourth process for etching the second film by using the trimmed photoresist film and the plasma-etched first film as a mask. The step-shaped structure is formed in the multilayer film by repeatedly performing the first process to the fourth process in this sequence.

Abstract: There is provided a method for producing a surface-treated metallic material, by use of which a metallic material having a stable and excellent sliding characteristic can be produced with a low environmental load without covering the metallic material surface with an oxide film. The method for producing a surface-treated metallic material includes immersing an anode and a cathode in an electrolyte solution, placing a metallic material used as a material to be treated above the surface of the electrolyte solution, and applying a voltage between the anode and the cathode to treat the metallic material surface, the voltage being equal to or higher than a voltage for causing a complete plasma state.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for subjecting laminated thin films disposed below a photoresist mask pattern to plasma processing, wherein the roughness on the side walls of the formed pattern is reduced, and the LER and LWR are reduced. When etching a material to be processed to form a gate electrode including thin films such as a gate insulating film 205, a conducting layer 204, a mask layer 203 and an antireflection film 202 laminated on a semiconductor substrate 206 and a photoresist mask pattern 201 disposed on the antireflection film, prior to etching the mask pattern 201, plasma is generated from nitrogen gas or a mixed gas including nitrogen gas and deposition gas to subject the mask pattern 201 to a plasma curing process so as to reduce the roughness on the surface and side walls of the mask pattern 201, and then the laminated thin films 202, 203 and 204 disposed below the mask pattern 201 are subjected to a plasma etching process.

Abstract: A method for producing conductor fine particles in which the advantages of conventional vapor phase method and liquid phase method are utilized while eliminating the drawbacks of both methods remarkably. Furthermore, definite guidelines and measure for improvement are given to the greatest problems common to the vapor phase method and liquid phase method, i.e., enhancement in quality of the unit fine particle and a fine particle production method controllably temporarily and regionally. The method for producing conductor fine particles comprises a step for applying a voltage to a pair of electrode consisting of a positive electrode and a negative electrode arranged in conductive liquid and generating plasma in the vicinity of the negative electrode, and a step for producing conductor fine particles by melting the metal material of the negative electrode and then re-solidifying.

Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic component using a Cu-based conductive material that can suppress oxidization even in a heat treatment in an oxidizing atmosphere and that can suppress an increase in an electrical resistance. In an electronic component having an electrode or a wiring, a ternary alloy made from three elements consisting of Cu, Al, and Co is used as a Cu-based wiring material that can prevent oxidization of the electrode or the wiring. Specifically, part or the whole of the electrode or the wiring has a chemical composition in which an Al content is 10 at % to 25 at %, a Co content is 5 at % to 20 at %, and the balance is composed of Cu and unavoidable impurities, and the chemical composition represents a ternary alloy in which two phases of a Cu solid solution formed by Al and Co being dissolved into Cu and a CoAl intermetallic compound coexist together.

Abstract: A monosaccharide production method of producing a monosaccharide from a lignocellulosic raw material comprising: obtaining a saccharified liquid obtained from a lignocellulosic raw material and a saccharification enzyme; recovering the saccharification enzyme from the saccharified liquid by allowing the saccharification enzyme to be adsorbed on the lignocellulosic raw material; and saccharifying the lignocellulosic raw material using the recovered saccharification enzyme.

Abstract: There is provided a VUV light processing apparatus that can apply vacuum ultraviolet light to the entire surface of a wafer in excellent reproducibility and can process the wafer with VUV (vacuum ultraviolet) light in excellent reproducibility. A VUV light processing apparatus includes: a chamber connected with a gas supply apparatus and an evacuation apparatus, the chamber being capable of reducing the pressure inside the chamber; a plasma light source that generates VUV light including a wavelength of 200 nm or less, the plasma light source including a plasma generating unit that generates plasma in the chamber; and a VUV transmission filter provided between a stage on which a sample to be processed is placed and the sample in the chamber, the VUV transmission filter transmitting the VUV light including a wavelength of 200 nm or less and not transmitting electrons, ions, and radicals in plasma, the VUV transmission filter having the outer diameter size larger than that of the sample.

Abstract: There is provided a semiconductor device manufacturing method for forming a step-shaped structure in a substrate by etching the substrate having thereon a multilayer film and a photoresist film on the multilayer film and serving as an etching mask. The multilayer film is formed by alternately layering a first film having a first permittivity and a second film having a second permittivity different from the first permittivity. The method includes a first process for plasma-etching the first film by using the photoresist film as a mask; a second process for exposing the photoresist film to hydrogen-containing plasma; a third process for trimming the photoresist film; and a fourth process for etching the second film by using the trimmed photoresist film and the plasma-etched first film as a mask. The step-shaped structure is formed in the multilayer film by repeatedly performing the first process to the fourth process in this sequence.

Abstract: Provided is an element array in which an error in pitch among elements in the element array is absorbed surely in a step of laminating a plurality of element arrays so that each group of the elements arrayed in the laminating direction can be aligned with high accuracy. The element array has a plurality of elements arrayed one-dimensionally or two-dimensionally, and a flexible support formed out of a material richer in elasticity than a material forming the elements. The elements are coupled with one another through the support.

Abstract: A plasma processing apparatus for subjecting a substrate to be processed to plasma processing includes a processing chamber, a substrate electrode having an electrostatic chuck mechanism, a plasma generator, a high-frequency bias power supply which applies a high-frequency bias voltage to the substrate electrode, a voltage monitor which monitors the high-frequency bias voltage, a current monitor which monitors a high-frequency bias current, a measurement storage unit which stores a resistance component, an induction component and a capacity component of the electrostatic chuck mechanism, which have been calculated beforehand as fitting parameters of an expression V w = V esc - R esc ? I esc - L esc ? ? I esc ? t - 1 C esc ? ? I esc ? ? t + A , ( A ) that is an approximate curve of a correlation among a voltage of the substrate, a computing unit which estimates the voltage of the substrate according to the expression, and a control unit that generates a

Abstract: Provided is a method for manufacturing a two-dimensional pattern by simultaneously forming a plurality of quantum dots on a surface of a solid material and making the quantum dots a periodic structure by a laser irradiation, and a device structure and a device fabricated by the method. The method for fabricating a quantum dot-formed surface including the laser irradiation which irradiate at least one batch of laser onto a surface of a solid material to simultaneously form a plurality of quantum dots on the surface, arranging the plurality of quantum dots into periodic arrays.