Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Panasonic Corporation

Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.

Matsushita Electric Co., Ltd.

Akihiro Odagawa

Nozomu Matsukawa

Masayoshi Hiramoto

Hiroshi Sakakima

Hideaki Adachi

Yasunari Sugita

Kenji Iijima

Mitsuo Satomi

Yoshio Kawashima

Tsutomu Kanno

Nozomu Matukawa

Akihiro Sakai

Kentaro Setsune

Shinzo Koyama

Yoshihisa Nagano

Satoshi Yotsuhashi

Yasunori Morinaga

Tsuyoshi Tanaka

Yutaka Hirose

Kiyoyuki Morita

Masahiro Deguchi

Kiyoshi Ohnaka

Satoshi Okada

Masahiro Sakai

Seiji Yamahira

Shigeru Saitou

Yuta Moriura

Masato Takemoto

Akio Matsushita

Shinobu Masuda

Takuma Katayama

Yui Sawada

Keiji Noine

Kazuya Niki

A distance measurement device includes: a light source configured to emit visible illumination light; an imaging element configured to receive reflected light of the illumination light from an object; and a signal processing circuit configured to reduce the emission of the illumination light in a predetermined period, detect a timing when the reception of the reflected light at the imaging element is reduced due to the reduction of the illumination light, and measure a distance to the object on the basis of the detected timing.

Distance measurement device

A distance measuring device that measures a distance to an object. The distance measuring device includes: a light source that emits pulsed light; a reflector that reflects and radiates, as radiation light, the pulsed light emitted from the light source, and reflects object light that is the radiation light reflected by the object and returning; and an imager that captures the object light reflected by the reflector. The pulsed light emitted from the light source is diffused light. The light source and the imager are located to face the reflector. The reflector radiates, as the radiation light, light in a shape with a long axis and a short axis. The imager performs exposure in synchronization with the pulsed light to image the object light.

Distance measuring device and moving object

A food management system that manages food items in a refrigerator includes: a pressure-sensitive sensor that acquires information including shapes, weights, and positions of the food items; a comparator that performs comparison of the information acquired at different times; and an identifier that identifies at least one of (i) fluctuations in the number of food items or (ii) presence or absence of the food items.

Food management system

A solid-state image sensor capable of detecting a photon and having smaller circuit scale is provided. The solid-state image sensor includes a pixel array including a plurality of pixel cells, a pixel driving circuit configured to drive the plurality of pixel cells, a readout circuit, and a plurality of readout wires corresponding to respective columns of the pixel cell. Each of the plurality of pixel cells includes an avalanche photodiode configured to detect a photon by avalanche multiplication occurring when one photon enters, and a transfer transistor configured to transfer a detection result of the photon to the corresponding readout wire. The readout circuit determines whether a photon is detected or not, and outputs a determination result.

Solid-state image sensor and imaging system

A method for producing a thin oxidized carbon film according to the present disclosure includes: a first step of preparing a thin carbon film and a copper oxide being in contact with the thin carbon film and containing a mixture of CuO and CuO; and a second step of applying a voltage or a current between the thin carbon film and the copper oxide, with an electrical potential of the thin carbon film being positive relative to that of the copper oxide, and thereby oxidizing and converting a contact area of the thin carbon film with the copper oxide into an oxidized portion composed of oxidized carbon so as to form a thin oxidized carbon film having the oxidized portion.

Method for producing thin oxidized carbon film, element having thin oxidized carbon film, and method for producing same

The present disclosure provides a spin device including: a graphene; a first ferromagnetic electrode and a second electrode that are in electrical contact with and sandwich the graphene; a third ferromagnetic electrode and a fourth electrode that sandwich the graphene at a position apart from the first and second electrodes in electrical contact with the graphene; a current applying portion that applies an electric current between the first ferromagnetic electrode and the second electrode; and a voltage-signal detecting portion that detects spin accumulation information as a voltage signal via the third ferromagnetic electrode and the fourth electrode. The spin accumulation information is generated, by application of the electric current, in a part of the graphene that is sandwiched between the third and fourth electrodes. The first and third ferromagnetic electrodes are disposed on the same surface of the graphene, and the second and fourth electrodes are non-magnetic or ferromagnetic electrodes.

Spin device, driving method of the same, and production method of the same

A production method of the present disclosure includes: a first step of preparing a multi-layer graphene, and an iron oxide that is a ferromagnetic material contacting the graphene and containing FeO; and a second step of applying a voltage or a current between the graphene and the iron oxide with an electric potential of the graphene being positive relative to that of the iron oxide, so as to oxidize a part of the graphene or oxidize a part of the graphene and a part of FeO, and thus to form a barrier layer composed of oxidized graphene or of oxidized graphene and FeObetween the graphene and the iron oxide, and thereby forming a spin injection electrode that includes the graphene, the iron oxide, and the barrier layer located at an interface between the graphene and the iron oxide, and that allows spins to be injected into the graphene from the iron oxide via the barrier layer.

Method for producing spin injection electrode

The production method for the oxidized carbon thin film of the present disclosure includes: a first step of preparing a carbon thin film and iron oxide that is in contact with the carbon thin film and contains FeO; and a second step of forming an oxidized carbon thin film having an oxidized portion composed of oxidized carbon by applying a voltage or current between the carbon thin film and the iron oxide with the carbon thin film side being positive and thereby oxidizing a contact portion of the carbon thin film with the iron oxide to change it into the oxidized portion. This production method allows a pattern of nanometer order to be formed on a carbon thin film represented by graphene. The method causes less damage to the formed pattern and has high affinity with a semiconductor process, thereby enabling a wide range of applications as a process technique for producing an electronic device.

Production method for oxidized carbon thin film, and element having oxidized carbon thin film and production method therefor

The magnetic tunnel junction device of the present invention includes a first ferromagnetic layer, a second ferromagnetic layer, an insulating layer formed between the first ferromagnetic layer and the second ferromagnetic layer. The insulating layer is composed of fluorine-added MgO. The fluorine content in the insulating layer is 0.00487 at. % or more and 0.15080 at. % or less. This device, although it includes a MgO insulating layer, exhibits superior magnetoresistance properties to conventional devices including MgO insulating layers. The fluorine content is preferably 0.00487 at. % or more and 0.05256 at. % or less.

Magnetic tunnel junction device

A sound wave generator that exhibits more excellent output properties than conventional ones, based on the combination of a base layer and a heat-insulating layer that cannot be expected from conventional techniques is provided. The sound wave generator includes a base layer; a heat-insulating layer disposed on the base layer; and a heat pulse source that applies heat pulses to the heat-insulating layer. The base layer is composed of graphite or sapphire, and the heat-insulating layer is composed of crystalline fine particles containing silicon or germanium. The heat pulse source, for example, is a heat pulse-generating layer that is disposed on the surface of the heat-insulating layer opposite to the base layer and applies heat pulses to the heat-insulating layer.

Sound wave generator and method for producing the same, and method for generating sound waves using the sound wave generator

An electro-resistance element that has a different configuration from conventional elements and is excellent in both affinity with semiconductor manufacturing processes and heat treatment stability under a hydrogen-containing atmosphere is provided. An electro-resistance element includes an electro-resistance layer that has two or more states in which electric resistance values are different and being switchable from one of the two or more states into another by applying a predetermined voltage or current. The electro-resistance layer includes first and second elements being capable of forming a nitride, and nitrogen.

Electro-resistance element and electro-resistance memory using the same

An electro-resistance element that has a different configuration from conventional elements and is excellent in both affinity with semiconductor manufacturing processes and resistance change characteristics is provided. An electro-resistance element has two or more states in which electric resistance values between a pair of electrodes and is switchable from one of the two or more states into another by applying a predetermined voltage or current between the electrodes. The electro-resistance element includes a substrate and a multilayer structure disposed on the substrate, the multilayer structure includes an upper electrode, a lower electrode and an electro-resistance layer disposed between the electrodes, wherein the electro-resistance layer includes FeO, and FeOcontained in an amount of 0% to 20% of FeOin percent by weight, the lower electrode is made of an iron oxide having a different composition from the electro-resistance layer and containing FeO, and the electro-resistance layer and the lower electrode make contact with each other.

Electro-resistance element, electro-resistance memory using the same and method of manufacturing the same

A method for fabricating a variable-resistance element, the resistance of a material layer being variable in accordance with an electric current or voltage applied across first and second electrodes, the method including: (1) a first electrode production step; (2) a step of forming the material layer on the first electrode, wherein the material layer comprises an oxide semiconductor having a perovskite structure represented by the chemical formula RMCoO, wherein R is a rare-earth element and M is an alkaline-earth element; (3) an oxygen treatment step of heating the material layer in an oxygen atmosphere; (4) a step of forming the second electrode on the material layer that was subjected to the oxygen treatment step; and (5) a hydrogen treatment step of heating the material layer in a reducing atmosphere containing hydrogen.

[object Object]

An electro-resistance element that has a different configuration from conventional elements and shows outstanding resistance change characteristics is provided. An electro-resistance element has two or more states in which electric resistance values are different, and is switchable from one of the two or more states into another by application of a predetermined voltage or current. The electro-resistance element includes: a multilayer structure including an upper electrode, a lower electrode, and an electro-resistance layer sandwiched by the electrodes, the multilayer structure disposed on a substrate; wherein the electro-resistance layer has a spinel structure, and a surface of the lower electrode that faces the electro-resistance layer is oxidized. The electro-resistance element can be manufactured by a manufacturing process at 400&#xb0; C. or lower.

Electro-resistance element and method of manufacturing the same

A thermoelectric conversion device of the present invention includes a first electrode, a second electrode, and a layered oxide arranged between the first electrode and the second electrode. The first electrode, the layered oxide, and the second electrode are arranged in this order so that a multilayer is formed. The layered oxide is formed of electric conductive layers and electric insulating layers being alternately arranged. The C axis of the layered oxide is perpendicular to the interface between the first electrode and the layered oxide. The area of the second electrode is smaller than that of the first electrode.

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Osaka, Japan

Akihiro Odagawa