Abstract: A recording medium for recording and reproducing information utilizing near field light has a transparent substrate and a data mark arrangement layer disposed over a surface of the transparent substrate. A metal particulate is dispersed only in the data mark arrangement layer so that a surface plasma is generated upon interaction of the data mark arrangement layer with near field light generated by incident light or irradiating light to thereby amplify the intensity of scattered light generated as a result of the interaction between the data mark arrangement layer and the near field light.

Abstract: To provide a gas sensor and a method of sensing the gas concentrations which are capable of a battery drive through low power consumption and highly reliable, the gas sensor in which an electromotive force type gas sensor element is formed on a substrate, wherein the electromotive force type gas sensor element has a heating element formed on the substrate, a layer of solid electrolyte formed with an insulating layer interposed on the heating element and two electrodes formed on the solid electrolyte and is characterized in that the substrate is a heat-resistant glass base substrate.

Abstract: A method of fabricating a near-field light-generating element having a minute scattering body inside an aperture, the scattering body producing plasmons by being illuminated with light, includes a step of forming minute scattering bodies periodically arranged on a substrate, a step of selecting the periodically arranged minute scattering bodies except for only one minute scattering body, and a step of forming the aperture such that the single minute scattering body is placed inside the aperture.

Abstract: An apparatus for producing optical aperture is disclosed. A pressing body has a plane covering a tip and at least a part of stoppers. An opaque film formed on the tip. The pressing body is displaced toward the tip for forming an aperture on a point of the tip. According to the apparatus, the amount of displacement of the plate can be controlled excellently by the stopper and can be made very small. Thus, the aperture having a uniform and small size can be produced on the point of the tip easily.

Abstract: An optical switch of high performance excellent in insertion loss, the reproducibility of return loss and the temperature property and easily mechanically driven is provided by forming the end faces of optical fibers to be small, the optical fibers are mounted in the optical switch used for switching and cutting off optical transmission lines in optical fiber communications. In the optical switch in the invention, the optical fiber is configured in which the outer diameter of an end part continued to a transmission part for transmitting light is smaller than the outer diameter of the transmission part and greater than the diameter of a core.

Abstract: An information recording and reproducing apparatus for at least one of recording and reproducing information on a recording medium utilizing near-field light has a suspension arm and a near-field light head mounted on the suspension arm. The near-field light head has a minute aperture, an optical waveguide for propagating light from a light source, and a reflection film for reflecting the light propagated by the optical waveguide and for irradiating the reflected light to the minute aperture to generate near-field light at the minute aperture for interaction with a recording medium. A light guiding structure guides light from the light source to the optical waveguide of the near-field light head.

Abstract: A near-field optical head comprises a slider body and a cantilever arm extending from the slider body and having a contact pad at an end portion thereof for contacting a surface of a recording medium. The slider body has an air bearing surface which interacts with a film of air moving in a direction adjacent to the surface of the record medium to generate a lift force to fly the slider body over the surface of the record medium and urge the contact pad of the cantilever arm into contact with the surface of the record medium.

Abstract: A recording medium and near-field optical probe utilizing near-field light to achieve high density of information recording and hence enhance resolution in reproducing.

Abstract: The present invention has an object, in a near-field optical probe having a microscopic aperture to generate and/or scatter a near field, to obtain a near-field optical probe easy to be made in an array which increases the intensity of a near field to be generated and/or scattered and is adapted for use as an optical memory head.

Abstract: There is disclosed an optical switch consisting of a support substrate, a movable raw optical fiber, a fixed raw optical fiber, a magnetic member for the movable raw optical fiber, and a leaf spring. The fibers are disposed in a V-shaped groove formed in the substrate. The magnetic member is actuated by an electromagnet disposed above the substrate. The leaf spring pushes the movable raw optical fiber into the V-shaped groove. The structure of the switch is relatively simple. Since the movable raw optical fiber is pushed using the leaf spring, the switch is less affected by the assembly accuracy than conventional. It is easy to make adjustments during assembly. Consequently, high-performance, low-cost, optical switch that can be mass-produced can be offered.

Abstract: A recording medium and near-field optical probe utilizing near-field light to achieve high density of information recording and hence enhance resolution in reproducing. A phase shift arrangement layer is formed arranged alternately with a phase shifter region to cause shift by 180 degrees in incident light and a transmission region transparent for a wavelength of the incident light. Furthermore, a row of data marks are arranged in a position above the phase shifter regions and transmission region. Due to this, cancellation is made between spread of near-field light due to incident light transmitted through the phase shifter region and spread of near-field light due to incident light transmitted through the transmission region, providing sharpness in an intensity distribution of near-field light over the data mark. Also, a phase shifter is provided at a through-hole of the near-field optical probe, enabling to produce more localized near-field light.

Abstract: There is provided an information recording medium and an information reproducing apparatus capable of carrying out information reproduction and tracking control by utilizing near-field light. A data bit 12 of a convex having a section orthogonal to a tracking direction in a triangular shape is formed on an information recording medium 3 as an information unit, by scattering near-field light formed at a reproducing probe 1 at inclined faces of the data bit 12 with directionalities, fluxes of reflected and scattered light thereby are detected by reproduced light detectors 6 and 7 arranged symmetrically in a left and right direction relative to a central axis of the reproducing probe 1 along the tracking direction, a differential signal between the detected signals is outputted by a difference circuit 20 and an actuator 22 is driven by the differential signal via a tracking signal forming circuit 21 and a position of the reproducing probe 1 is controlled to carry out the tracking control.

Abstract: An optical head for optical recording/reading apparatus, which records and reads information with high reliability, by making use of an optical interaction with a medium in a minute area, on a high density medium revolving at high speed. It has a structure, in which an optical waveguide mechanism applies a loading force to a slider 6 receiving a buoyant force, and a system for introducing a light to the slider 6 and a system for applying the loading force are integrated into an identical body. As the result, a stable posture regulation of the slider 6 and an increase of the light intensity of irradiation on the medium can be achieved, and it becomes possible to record and read information with high reliability. Furthermore, by disposing a minute structure in the vicinity of an edge in the surface facing the medium of the slider 6, so that the minute structure can come closer to the medium, further improvement in high density can be made.

Abstract: An information recording medium comprises a double-layer structure comprised of a light transmitting layer for transmitting light and a light reflecting layer for reflecting light, The light transmitting layer has a data mark which comprises a unit of information to be reproduced.

Abstract: When constituting an optical device using an optical fiber having end face slanted with respect to a vertical plane of a core axis, the optical fiber is simply rotation-positioned such that a direction of the end face becomes constant, thereby inexpensively producing the optical device and realizing a miniaturization of the optical device. In the optical fiber having the end face formed at an angle slanted with respect to a plane perpendicular to a core, a plane structure or a concave structure is formed in the optical fiber itself at a predetermined position with respect to a slant direction of the end face, or a holding structure is provided in the optical fiber.

Abstract: A near-field optical probe has a hole penetrating through a substrate and defining a microscopic aperture at an apex thereof for generating or scattering near field light. The probe is simple and inexpensive to produce and may be manufactured in an array form by forming plural holes in the substrate so that it may be used in an optical memory device. A lens is disposed above the microscopic aperture for focusing incident light and a light source is arranged thereover to introduce light to the lens. A focal point of the lens is positioned at the microscopic aperture, so that the light emitted by the light source can be efficiently collected at the microscopic aperture. The structure can be mass produced using known silicon processing techniques, thus being adapted for use as an optical memory head.

Abstract: A method of fabricating a near-field light-generating element having a minute scattering body inside an aperture, the scattering body producing plasmons by being illuminated with light, includes a step of forming minute scattering bodies periodically arranged on a substrate, a step of selecting the periodically arranged minute scattering bodies except for only one minute scattering body, and a step of forming the aperture such that the single minute scattering body is placed inside the aperture.

Abstract: A switch includes a switching mechanism, an operating mechanism with a key which normally causes the switching mechanism to be in a switched-off condition when it is pulled out and to be displaced against a biasing force to be in a switched-on condition when the key is inserted, and a locking mechanism for maintaining the switching mechanism locked in the switched-on condition and releasing it from the locked condition if a load greater than a specified magnitude is applied to the key while the switching mechanism is locked such that the switching mechanism is set back in the switched-off condition. The switching mechanism may be contained in a head case attached to a main case containing the operating mechanism. The main case also includes a forcing mechanism which tends to force the switching mechanism in the switched-off condition.

Abstract: It is an optical information recording and reading apparatus for recording and/or reading information at a high density by using a near-field light-generating device as a near-field optical head. The end surface of the core of a flexible optical waveguide is formed in an intermediate position in the optical waveguide and in a portion fixed to the near-field optical head. Light for recording and reading information is spread within the clad. The spread light flux is reflected toward the near-field optical head by a reflective surface formed on the side of one end of the optical waveguide. The reflected light flux is collected by light-collecting structures and then is made to enter an optical minute aperture formed in the near-field optical head. Near-field light is created near the minute aperture. Light scattered by the surface of the recording medium is received. Thus, information on the recording medium can be recorded and read.

Abstract: In a recording apparatus for reproducing information recorded on a recording medium by utilizing near-field light, the recording apparatus realizes reliable information reproduction with a simple structure. Illumination light 20 is illuminated to the recording medium 10 to create near-field light on a surface of the recording medium 10. The created near-field light is scattered by a microscopic aperture 12 formed in the aperture element 11 so that scattering light (propagation light) thereof is detected to create a reproduced signal. Derived from the created reproduced light a distance control signal representative of a distance between the microscopic aperture 12 and the recording medium 10. Based on the distance control signal, the aperture element 11 is controlled in position. Due to this, the microscopic aperture 12 is brought into proximity to the recording medium 10.