Abstract: A contaminant detector includes a detection object that is inclined relative to a horizontal direction in a drainage unit for accumulation of discharged water and on which a contaminant is to be deposited and a detection unit configured to emit energy toward the detection object to detect a contamination state of the detection object. The detection unit includes a transmission and reception module configured to emit and receive energy, a calculation module configured to calculate an amount of energy received from the detection object by the transmission and reception module, and a determination module configured to determine, based on the amount of energy calculated by the calculation module, the contamination state of the detection object.

Abstract: There is provided a biological substance detection chip having high detection accuracy. The present technology provides a biological substance detection chip which is composed of a plurality of pixels, in which the pixel includes a holding surface on which a biological substance is held, a photoelectric conversion unit that is provided below the holding surface and provided on a semiconductor substrate, and a wiring layer that is provided below the photoelectric conversion unit.

Abstract: An image sensor includes a pixel array unit in which pixels are arranged in a matrix, and multiple vertical signal lines provided in pixel column units. The multiple vertical signal lines provided in pixel column units are arranged in multiple wiring layers laminated on the pixel, and are arranged so that orthogonal projections of the vertical signal lines on the multiple wiring layers overlap. The wiring layer is provided with a connection portion for connecting the vertical signal line corresponding to the pixel to the pixel. A pixel signal is taken out from the vertical signal line through the connection portion.

Abstract: A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device includes the steps of forming a nitrogen-containing oxide film on a substrate for use as a gate insulating film, annealing the gate insulating film in an atmosphere containing oxygen, annealing the gate insulating film in an oxygen-free, inert atmosphere, and forming an electrode film on the twice annealed gate insulating film. The method may further include the steps of forming a gate electrode by patterning of the electrode film, forming LDD, forming side wall insulating films and forming source/drain regions.

Abstract: In the microcomputer with a PLL (1007), a frequency lock signal generation circuit (101) inputs a XINFAST signal (1025) and a PLLFAST signal (1026) of a L level transferred from the PLL (1007) while frequency oscillation of the PLL (1007) is in unstable state, and then outputs a lock signal (110) to indicate refreshing of counting down to a stable detection timer (107).

Abstract: In the process for removing an insulating film formed at the surface where the semiconductor is exposed at the bottom of the contact with the progress of heat treatment for activation annealing of impurity doped to the semiconductor surface which has been executed after a multilayer insulating film is formed on a semiconductor substrate, a contact region is etched to form a contact aperture which reaches the semiconductor substrate and impurity is doped to the semiconductor substrate surface to form a protection film at the side wall of the aperture, it can be prevented that contact aperture is deformed and ohmic contact is no longer formed easily because the side wall of contact is etched ununiformly. Moreover, it can also be prevented that the contact is enlarged in size.