Abstract: A photoacoustic wave measurement device includes: a thermal light source that irradiates a measurement target with infrared light that is modulated, in conjunction with heat generation corresponding to a modulation pattern; and a measurement unit that receives, in an airtight chamber, a photoacoustic wave emitted from the measurement target irradiated with the infrared light, and measures a pressure change in the airtight chamber by a pressure sensor.

Abstract: A photoacoustic wave measurement device includes a modulated light source that irradiates a measurement target with far-infrared light, which is subjected to intensity modulation; and a measurement unit that measures a photoacoustic wave emitted from the measurement target irradiated with the far-infrared light. The measurement unit includes an airtight chamber that is filled with a gas therein and receives the photoacoustic wave emitted from the measurement target; and a pressure sensor constituting a part of a wall portion that partitions the airtight chamber from the outside.

Abstract: A pin arrangement device includes: a storage portion in which a pin arrangement array body having a plurality of holes is disposed; and a mechanism for inserting pins into the holes of the pin arrangement array body disposed in the storage portion. The mechanism includes a first mechanism that vibrates the storage portion and a second mechanism that applies a magnetic field to the pin arrangement array body, and the first mechanism includes a swing mechanism that swings the storage portion and a vibration mechanism that vibrates the storage portion in a vertical direction or a horizontal direction.

Abstract: Provided is a scanning near-field optical microscope capable of obtaining, in a highly sensitive manner, optical information having a spatial frequency higher than a spatial frequency corresponding to a wavelength of irradiation light. A scanning near-field optical microscope 100 according to the present invention includes: a light irradiating part 102 for emitting illumination light toward a sample 107; a light receiving part 112 for receiving light; a microstructure for generating or selectively transmitting near-field light, the microstructure being disposed on at least one of an emission side of the light irradiating part 102 and an incident side of the light receiving part 112; and an ultrahigh-wavenumber transmitting medium 108 for transmitting near-field light, the ultrahigh-wavenumber transmitting medium exhibiting anisotropy in permittivity or permeability.

Abstract: The present invention provides a hologram recording material which attains high refractive index change, high flexibility, high sensitivity, low scattering, environment resistance, durability, low dimensional change and high multiplicity, and is suitable for volume hologram recording. Also, the present invention provides a hologram recording medium. A hologram recording material comprising: an organometallic compound at least containing at least two kinds of metals, oxygen, and an aromatic group and having an organometallic unit wherein two aromatic groups are bonded directly to one metal; and a photopolymerizable compound. One of the at least two kinds of metals is Si, and the metal(s) other than Si is/are preferably selected from the group consisting of Ti, Zr, Ge, Sn, Al and Zn. The organometallic unit is preferably a unit wherein two aromatic groups are bonded directly to one Si atom. A hologram recording medium (11) has a hologram recording material layer (21).

Abstract: The present invention provides a hologram recording material which is not required to be subjected to pre-exposure treatment at the time of recording, attains high refractive index change, high sensitivity, low scattering, environment resistance, durability, low dimensional change, and high multiplicity, and is suitable for volume hologram recording. Also, the present invention provides a hologram recording medium. A hologram recording material comprising a matrix material having a softening temperature of 50° C. or higher, and a photopolymerizable monomer which is in a liquid phase state at room temperature. The matrix material is preferably contained in an amount of 50% by weight or more and 90% by weight or less of the whole of the hologram recording material. A softening temperature of the hologram recording material is preferably 0° C. or higher.

Abstract: An ultrahigh-wavenumber transmitting element has at least two anisotropic media having slopes of isofrequency curves complementary with each other. The at least two anisotropic media are layered so as to transmit ultrahigh wavenumber.

Abstract: Provided is a scanning near-field optical microscope capable of obtaining in a highly sensitive manner, optical information having a spatial frequency higher than a spatial frequency corresponding to a wavelength of irradiation light. A scanning near-field optical microscope 100 according to the present invention includes: a light irradiating part 102 for emitting illumination light toward a sample 107; a light receiving part 112 for receiving light; a microstructure for generating or selectively transmitting near-field light, the microstructure being disposed on at least one of an emission side of the light irradiating part 102 and an incident side of the light receiving part 112; and an ultrahigh-wavenumber transmitting medium 108 for transmitting near-field light, the ultrahigh-wavenumber transmitting medium exhibiting anisotropy in permittivity or permeability.

Abstract: A holographic recording and reproducing apparatus includes a spatial light modulator, a Fourier transform lens, a reverse Fourier transform lens, a Charge Coupled Device (CCD) image sensor, and a pinhole disposed at a confocal point of the Fourier transform lens and the reverse Fourier transform lens, the holographic recording medium being disposed between the Fourier transform lens and the reverse Fourier transform lens, and the focal length of the Fourier transform lens and focal length of the reverse Fourier transform lens being different from each other, and the pinhole being disposed between the holographic recording medium and the Fourier transform lens or between the holographic recording medium and the reverse Fourier transform lens.

Abstract: An optical recording medium including three or more recording layers is provided. The optical recording medium includes an L0 layer, an L1 layer, an L2 layer, and an L3 layer as the recording layers and first to third light transmitting spacer layers respectively arranged between the recording layers. A refractive index n3 of the third light transmitting spacer layer is set to satisfy n3<n1 with respect to a refractive index n1 of the first and second light transmitting spacer layers. Thus, an effect of crosstalk light during reproduction can be reduced.

Abstract: A holographic multiplex recording method which can keep a recording data rate constant and equalize nonuniformity in recording due to vibrations or the like, and a holographic recording apparatus and a holographic recording medium, which employ the method. In a process of multiplex-recording information, the time of exposure to a laser beam per data page is kept constant, and the laser output power of the laser beam is increased in accordance with a decrease in recording sensitivity of the holographic recording medium.

Abstract: A holographic recording method, a holographic recording apparatus, a holographic recording and reproducing method, a holographic recording and reproducing apparatus, and a holographic recording medium for recording information in an angle multiplex fashion as a hologram in a first format in which either one of signal light and reference light branched out from a laser light source is made to cross the other in a recording layer at a predetermined incidence angle and the incidence angle is changed at a predetermined angular pitch, or in a second format of higher angular selectivity, wherein the incidence angle when recording information in the second format of higher angular selectivity can be adjusted to cover an incidence angle that satisfies the Bragg's condition when recording in the first format, thereby ensuring reproduction compatibility between media of different angular selectivities.

Abstract: An optical recording medium has a plurality of information layers which are placed between a substrate and an optically transparent cover layer with optically transparent spacer layers interposed between the information layers. From among the plurality of information layers, the information layer excluding the information layer arranged closest to the substrate and the information layer adjacent to the information layer closest to the substrate has asymmetrical reflection characteristics in which reflectance on the substrate side when light incident from the substrate side is reflected on the information layer toward the substrate side is lower than the reflectance on the cover layer side when light incident from the cover layer side is reflected on the information layer toward the cover layer side.

Abstract: A holographic recording apparatus 10 realizes multilevel gray-scale recording by: controlling a reflection type spatial light modulator (DMD 18D) via a control unit 24 so that an object beam in an object optical system 18 is reflected in an exposure direction so as to be incident on a holographic recording medium 16 or in a non-exposure direction so as not to be incident thereon selectively pixel by pixel in accordance with a data page to be recorded; and making (N+1) levels of gradation exposure with a single exposure time t1 given by dividing t0 by N, where t0 is an exposure time necessary for rendering a single pixel of the data page as an ON pixel, and N is an integer of not less than 2.

Abstract: A multilayer holographic recording medium that improves recording density and data transfer rates. The multilayer holographic recording medium, from which information is reproduced by a multilayer holographic memory reproducing apparatus, includes a plurality of deposited holographic recording layers. During recording, a reference beam is common to those holographic recording layers and an incident angle of an object beam is modulated for each holographic recording layer. During reproduction, a laser beam for reproduction having the same condition as that of the reference beam used for recording is projected thereonto, so that diffraction beams are simultaneously generated in the respective holographic recording layers to directions that are the same as incident directions of the object beam used for recording.

Abstract: In a personal identification system 10 for identifying a user on the basis of biometric information, a hologram is formed in a holographic recording portion 13 of an optical information recording medium 12. The hologram is provided by the interference between a reference beam subjected to spatial light modulation by record cryptographic identification information based on the biometric information of the user obtained by a biological information sensor 14 and an object beam. At the time of identification, an information processing device 16 makes validation cryptographic identification information from the biometric information directly obtained from the user, and a spatial light modulator 20 modulates a hologram reproduction reference beam by the validation cryptographic identification information. The right or wrong of a reproduced image is detected, and the leakage of the identification information is prevented.

Abstract: Provided is a hologram retrieval method and a holographic recording and reproducing apparatus for preventing an increase in SNR, a decrease in retrieval accuracy, or the retrieval itself from being made impossible, which would otherwise occur because of a small size of data used for retrieval. Digital information is recorded on a holographic recording medium as data pages DP formed of a two-dimensional bit map image with each page being multiplexed. The data page DP is divided into a plurality of equal data blocks DB11 to 13, DB21 to DB23, and DB31 to DB33, and each data block DB is provided with a data image that is encoded by an encoding method for providing a certain number of ON pixels within each data block DB. A spatial light modulator allows the to-be-retrieved data image to be encoded by the encoding method and displayed as block information on a retrieval data block associated with the data block, and a signal beam to be thereby modulated.

Abstract: When recording on a holographic recording medium by using a recording beam, the time required for an asking servo control to recover is reduced to increase the data transfer rate. In the holographic recording apparatus 10, a laser beam from a laser light source 16 is formed into a collimated beam having an expanded beam diameter and then is divided into an object beam and a reference beam. The divided object beam is modulated according to information to be recorded, and these object and reference beams are made incident on the reflective surface of a rotating polygon mirror 18, while maintaining collimated beam shapes and being adjacent to each other, through a condenser lens 24 having a focal point behind the reflective surface of the polygon mirror 18.

Abstract: A holographic recording medium in which a thick holographic recording layer is formed without the use of multilayering and without accompanying thickness unevenness, scattering, and nonuniformity of dynamic range, and a method for manufacturing the same. The holographic recording medium 10 is configured by sandwiching a hybrid material layer 14 and a photopolymer layer 16 between first and second substrates 12 and 18. The hybrid material layer 14 contains an inorganic glass and a photopolymer as main ingredients. The photopolymer layer 16 subjected to heat or ultraviolet curing is provided on the dried hybrid material layer 14 such that the combined thickness of this hybrid material layer 14 and the photopolymer layer 16 is uniform. The second substrate 18 is bonded and fixed to this photopolymer layer 16 serving as a bonding layer.

Abstract: A multilayer optical recording medium comprises four recording layers including an L0 layer, an L1 layer, an L2 layer, and L3 layer laminated between a substrate and an optically transparent cover layer and optically transparent spacer layers each provided between the recording layers. The L2 layer has the negative dependence of the reflectance on the incident angle of a laser light beam for reproduction. Crosstalk can be effectively reduced by the relation between the configuration of the respective recording layers and the crosstalk.