Abstract: A powder housing unit includes a plate-shaped agitating unit that is horizontally arranged inside of a casing to accommodate a powder, a rotating shaft that causes the agitating unit to slide back and forth, and a powder conveying unit that conveys the powder in a horizontal direction during the sliding. The rotating shaft is supported by a shaft supporting unit in a rotatable manner such that a space is formed between the rotating shaft and the shaft supporting unit.

Abstract: A piezoelectric thin-film resonator includes: a substrate; a lower electrode that is formed on the substrate; a piezoelectric film that is formed on the lower electrode and the substrate; and an upper electrode that is formed on the piezoelectric film, with the piezoelectric film being partially interposed between the lower electrode and the upper electrode facing each other. In this piezoelectric thin-film resonator, at least a part of the outer periphery of the piezoelectric film interposed between the lower electrode and the upper electrode overlaps the outer periphery of the region formed by the upper electrode and the lower electrode facing each other.

Abstract: A piezoelectric thin film resonator of the present has a substrate 1, an intermediate layer 7 disposed on the substrate 1 and is formed of an insulator, a lower electrode 3 disposed on the intermediate layer 7, a piezoelectric film 4 disposed on the lower electrode 3, and an upper electrode 5 disposed on a position facing the lower electrode 3 with the piezoelectric film 4 interposed therebetween, in which, in a resonant region 8 where the lower electrode 3 and the upper electrode 5 face each other, a space 6 is formed in the substrate 1 and the intermediate layer 7 or between the lower electrode 3 and the intermediate layer 7 and the region of the space 6 is included in the resonant region 8. With the structure, the dissipation of the vibrational energy to the substrate from the resonance portion can be suppressed, thereby improving the quality factor.

Abstract: A piezoelectric thin film resonator includes a substrate, a lower electrode provided on the substrate, a piezoelectric film provided on the lower electrode, and an upper electrode provided on the piezoelectric film. At least a portion of the upper electrode and that of the lower electrode oppose each other through the piezoelectric film, and at least a portion of the periphery of the upper electrode is reversely tapered.

Abstract: A filter includes piezoelectric thin-film resonators having a substrate, a lower electrode supported by the substrate, a piezoelectric film provided on the lower electrode, and an upper electrode provided on the piezoelectric film. At least one of the piezoelectric thin-film resonators has a portion in which the upper electrode overlaps the lower electrode across the piezoelectric film. The above portion has a shape different from shapes of corresponding portions of other piezoelectric thin-film resonators, so that a spurious component in the above at least one of the piezoelectric thin-film resonators occur at a frequency different from frequencies of spurious components that occur in the other piezoelectric thin-film resonators.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a carrier unit including an intermediate transfer member, a detachable waste toner container, and a recording-medium directing member provided to the carrier unit. The recording-medium directing member guides a recording medium, and also prevents the waste toner container from contacting the intermediate transfer member when the waste toner container is attached to or detached from the image forming apparatus.

Abstract: A transfer device including an intermediate transfer belt provided to extend in an arranged direction of a plurality of photosensitive drums, and primary transfer rollers each transferring a toner image formed on a corresponding one of the plurality of photosensitive drums to the intermediate transfer belt, each of the primary transfer rollers being moved between a position causing the intermediate transfer belt to be in contact with the photosensitive drums and a position causing the intermediate transfer belt to be separated from the photosensitive drums, each of the primary transfer rollers being rotatably supported by a movable member which includes an abutting portion which regulates a position of the primary transfer roller, the abutting portion abutting on an abutted member whose positional relationship with the photosensitive drum is defined such that the position of the abutted member causes the intermediate transfer belt to be in contact with the photosensitive drum.

Abstract: The filter includes a series arm piezoelectric thin film resonator placed in the series arm and a parallel arm piezoelectric thin film resonator placed in the parallel arm. Each of the series arm piezoelectric thin film resonator and the parallel arm piezoelectric thin film resonator includes a substrate (21), a lower electrode (22) placed on the substrate (21), a piezoelectric film (23) placed on the lower electrode (22) and a upper electrode (24) placed on the piezoelectric film (23). The ratio of the major axis length A to the minor axis length B of the resonant portion (29) in the series arm piezoelectric thin film resonator is larger than that in the parallel arm piezoelectric thin film resonator.

Abstract: A resonator includes a substrate, a lower electrode, a piezoelectric film provided on the lower electrode, and an upper electrode provided on the piezoelectric film. The lower electrode includes a first film provided on the substrate, and a second film that is provided on the first film and has a specific gravity greater than that of the first film. The piezoelectric film is provided on the second film. The upper electrode includes a third film provided on the piezoelectric film, and a fourth film provided on the third film, the third film having a specific gravity greater than that of the fourth film. The third film is thicker than the second film.

Abstract: A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device having a compound semiconductor layer that is provided on a substrate and includes a cladding layer of a first conductivity type, an activation layer, a cladding layer of a second conductivity type that is the opposite of the first conductivity type, includes the steps of: forming a diffusion source layer on the compound semiconductor layer; forming a first diffusion region in the compound semiconductor layer by carrying out a first heat treatment, so that the first diffusion region includes a light emitting facet for emitting light from the activation layer; removing the diffusion source layer; forming a first SiN film having a refractive index of 1.9 or higher on the compound semiconductor layer; and turning the first diffusion region into the second diffusion region by carrying out a second heat treatment.

Abstract: An acoustic wave filter having excellent steepness is provided without adding any exterior components or any new manufacturing steps. A plurality of filters (10-1) each having a first resonator (2a-1) placed in a serial arm and having a resonance frequency frs and an anti-resonance frequency fas, and a second resonator (4a-1) placed in a parallel arm and having a resonator frp and an anti-resonance frequency fap are provided on a same substrate, where the resonance frequency frs of the first resonator is higher than the resonance frequency frp of the second resonator; the anti-resonance frequency fas of the first resonator is higher than the anti-resonance frequency fap of the second resonator; and the filters (10-1) are connected in multiple stages. At least one of the filters (10-1) connected in multiple stages has a third resonator (6-1) having a resonance frequency frp and an anti-resonance frequency fap.

Abstract: A filter has a plurality of piezoelectric thin film resonators formed by sandwiching a piezoelectric film with a lower electrode disposed on a substrate and an upper electrode. Each of the piezoelectric thin film resonators has an electrode region formed with the upper electrode and the lower electrode overlapping each other, whose outline includes a curve. Among the plural piezoelectric thin film resonators, the piezoelectric thin film resonators in the opposing electrode regions of the adjacent piezoelectric thin film resonators are shaped to have outlines complementary to each other. With the filter, influences caused by transverse mode undesired wave of the piezoelectric thin film resonators can be suppressed. Therefore, miniaturization can be achieved without sacrificing the mechanical strength of electrodes having hollow structures.

Abstract: A piezoelectric thin film resonator includes a substrate, a lower electrode formed on the substrate, a piezoelectric film formed on the lower electrode, and an upper electrode formed on the piezoelectric film, the lower electrode and the upper electrode opposing each other through the piezoelectric film to form an opposing region, the opposing region including a space at a boundary of the opposing region. The space extends from an innerside to an outer side of the opposing region and is formed in or on the piezoelectric film.

Abstract: A filter includes: a first filter unit includes: a series resonators connected in series to each other between a first input terminal and a first output terminal; a parallel resonators each having one end connected to one terminal of each of the series resonators; and a common inductance having one end connected to the other ends of the parallel resonators and the other end connected to a ground terminal, and a second filter unit includes: a series resonators connected in series to each other between a second input terminal and a second output terminal; a parallel resonators each having one end connected to one terminal of each of the series resonators; and a common inductance having one end connected to the other ends of the parallel resonators and the other end connected to the ground terminal.

Abstract: An acoustic wave device includes a substrate and a plurality of piezoelectric thin film resonators formed over the substrate. Each of the plurality of the piezoelectric thin film resonators includes lower electrode provided on the substrate, a piezoelectric film provided on the lower electrode, and an upper electrode provided on the piezoelectric film and opposed to the lower electrode through the piezoelectric film. Each of the piezoelectric thin film resonators is partly supported by the substrate and extends above the substrate to form a cavity between the substrate and each lower electrodes. The cavity continuously extending under the plurality of the piezoelectric thin film resonators.

Abstract: A transfer device transfers an image formed on each of image-carrier rotating members onto a transfer belt by applying a bias voltage to the image-carrier rotating members. A rotation axis of one of image-carrier rotating member located the most upstream is positioned closer to the transfer belt than those of the other image-carrier rotating members. Each of the bias-applying rotating members is displaced downstream of the corresponding image-carrier rotating member, and a line on which a rotation axis of the bias-applying rotating member and that of the corresponding image-carrier rotating member fall is orthogonal to a moving direction of the transfer belt.

Abstract: A shutter is rotatably supported by a first powder guiding member. When the first powder guiding member and a second powder guiding member occupy powder guiding positions, the shutter takes an open position. At this moment, a rear end of an upper surface of an open/close plate of the shutter is positioned on an inner side of an upper opening of the second powder guiding member.

Abstract: A dust container includes a container body, an inlet, a dust detector, and a dust-conveying unit. The dust-conveying unit conveys the dust from the inlet to the interior of the container body. The dust-conveying unit includes a plurality of conveying members that are arranged at different positions in the dust conveying unit. A direction in which the dust is conveyed and an amount of the dust conveyed by at least one of the conveying members is different from those of the other conveying members. As the dust accumulates in the container body, the dust detector detects whether the container body is substantially full with the dust.

Abstract: A piezoelectric thin-film resonator includes: a lower electrode that is formed on a substrate; a piezoelectric film that is formed on the lower electrode; and an upper electrode that is formed on the piezoelectric film. In the piezoelectric thin-film resonator, the upper electrode has a greater film thickness than the lower electrode.

Abstract: A piezoelectric thin-film resonator includes a substrate, a lower electrode arranged on the substrate, a piezoelectric film arranged on the lower electrode, and an upper electrode arranged on the piezoelectric film. A region in which the upper electrode overlaps with the lower electrode through the piezoelectric film has an elliptical shape, and a condition such that 1<a/b<1.9 is satisfied where a is a main axis of the elliptical shape, and b is a sub axis thereof.