Olympus Optical Company, Ltd.

Mitsugu Sakai

Yasuo Sasaki

Koichi Karaki

Yasuhiro Omura

Fumio Uchino

Yuzo Nakamura

Soji Yamamoto

Shoji Yoshikawa

Masahiro Aoki

Kazuyasu Motoyama

Hirofumi Miyamoto

Akihiro Namba

Nobuaki Sakai

Nobuhide Matsubayashi

Shozi Yoshikawa

Akihiko Yoshizawa

Kouichi Karaki

Tsuneo Yanagida

Hitoshi Ichikawa

Mitsumori Hayashida

A scanning probe microscope having a probe for scanning a sample, a piezoelectric unit finely movable in the X, Y and Z directions, and a probe control unit for controlling a fine movement amount of the piezoelectric unit in the Z direction in accordance with a detected interaction between the sample and the probe. A driving unit applies a continuously changing voltage to the piezoelectric unit to drive the piezoelectric unit in one of an X and Y direction to scan along a scan line, a displacement detection unit detects the displacement of the piezoelectric unit along the scan line, and a matching detection unit outputs a coincidence detection signal when the detected displacement of the piezoelectric unit along the scan line coincides with target displacement values corresponding to desired measurement points. A surface data acquiring unit acquires sample surface data based on the Z-directional fine movement amount of the piezoelectric unit each time the matching detection unit outputs a coincidence detection signal.

Scanning probe microscope capable of suppressing probe vibration caused

An ultrasonic microscope comprises an acoustic lens for emitting an ultrasonic beam, a movable shaft for supporting a sample, and a drive circuit for moving the movable shaft and thus the sample relative to the acoustic lens in a z-direction. Two signals for eliminating x-direction and y-direction inclinations of the sample relative to the acoustic lens are supplied to the drive circuit in synchronism with an x-direction drive signal and a y-direction drive signal, so that the sample is moved in the z-direction and scanned with the ultrasonic beam in an x-y direction while the sample inclination sample to the acoustic lens is being eliminated.

Ultrasonic microscope

An ultrasonic microscope includes a container for containing a liquid nitrogen, and an acoustic lens housed in the container to emit an ultrasonic beam onto the view face of a sample. A sleeve is located above the container, which has a gas-tight chamber therein communicated with the container and a sample inserting opening formed in the periphery thereof. The sample inserting opening is selectively closed and opened by a gate valve. A sample rod is provided with a sample on its lower end, and may be freely movable up and down in the gas-tight chamber to a position where the sample in the container is scanned and to another position adjacent to the sample inserting opening where the sample is exchanged with a new one.

A scanning apparatus for scanning which is used in a scanning microscope having an observation apparatus for observing a sample wherein the sample is secured in order to obtain an image of the same. The scanning apparatus includes a moving apparatus for moving at least either the sample or the observation apparatus in order to scan the sample, and a vibration attenuating element structurally provided for the moving apparatus for attenuating relative vibration between the sample and the observation.

Scanning apparatus for a scanning microscope

A supersonic microscope comprises a container for containing a liquid nitrogen, and an acoustic lens housed in the container to emit a supersonic beam onto the view face of a sample. A volume-variable member is provided in the liquid so that its upper part is extended from the top surface of the liquid. When the observing of the sample, the vertical position of the member is changed for moving the top surface of the liquid nitrogen up and down so that the top surface of the liquid contacts the view face of the sample.

An ultrasonic microscope includes a housing for containing a cryogenic liquid. A sample support mechanism is secured to a frame inside the housing, and an acoustic lens located in the housing in the cryogenic liquid applies an ultrasonic beam to the sample supported by the support mechanism. A voice coil device suported by the frame operates to move the sample support mechanism in response to a drive current, and to fix a distance between the acoustic lens and the sample. A control arrangement associated with the voice coil device generates an EMF in response to movement of the support mechanism, and supplies a current caused by the EMF to the drive circuit wherein movement of the support mechanism is controlled by the current to maintain the sample at a desired position with respect to the acoustic lens.

Ultrasonic microscope having a focusing mechanism

An ultrasonic microscope includes a sample rod for supporting a sample and an acoustic lens positioned to face the sample. The lens is moved in two directions in a plane perpendicular to each other to scan the sample. During the scanning operation, the lens is also moved in a vertical direction so that the distance between the sample and acoustic lens is changed, by a piezoelectric actuator for supporting the lens.

An ultrasonic microscope comprises an acoustic lens, a supporting rod for supporting a sample, a supporting plate for supporting the lens and a drive mechanism for two-dimensionally shifting the lens supporting plate, thereby setting a scanning region, and driving the lens supporting plate to scan the sample to obtain an ultrasonic image thereof. The drive mechanism includes magnetic coils and permanent magnets for shifting the supporting plate by generating a magnetic field, a first power source for producing an electric current for designating the scanning region, a second power source for producing an electric current for scanning, and an adder for adding the electric currents from the first and second power sources and delivering the resulting current to the magnetic coils.

This low temperature ultrasonic microscope comprises an adiabatic container having an opening in the upper part and containing a low temperature liquid which is an ultrasonic wave transmitting medium, a sample supporting member supporting a sample to be observed, removably inserted into the adiabatic container through the opening and arranged at the upper end out of the adiabatic container, an ultrasonic wave image observing device which has an acoustic lens arranged within the adiabatic container and projecting an ultrasonic wave beam toward the sample, the above mentioned device detecting sound waves projected from the acoustic lens and disturbed by the sample and obtaining an ultrasonic wave image, a housing part housing the upper end part of the sample supporting member and a connecting member which can connect through a path the housing part and adiabatic container with each other.

Low temperature ultrasonic microscope

An ultrasonic microscope apparatus using cryogenic fluid as an ultarsonic propagating medium including a top loading space, in which specimen can be exchanged as the space kept airtight, and x-, y- and z-direction adjusting devices by means of which the relative position and the distance between the specimen and an acoustic lens can be adjusted under an airtight condition. The ultrasonic microscope apparatus also includes a vapor pressure adjusting device for adjusting the vapor pressure within a heat insulated vessel, in which the cryogenic fluid is contained, to prevent the cryogenic fluid from boiling.

Ultrasonic microscope apparatus

In the present invention, a discriminating means of recording media is formed in a cartridge containing a magneto-optical type recording media and in a cartridge containing other recording media, a sheltering height of a field applying means is changed according to the loading of each cartridge so that said field applying means is held close to the recording media in the case of the magneto-optical type cartridge while said means is sheltered high in the case of other type cartridge, and at the same time a discriminating means for recording media is provided to perform the signal processing corresponding to the recording media loaded.

Magneto-optical recording reproducing device having field applying means

A magneto-optical information system writes and erases information on and from a magneto-optical information recording medium under application of a bias-magnetic-field to the recording medium according to writing and erasing command signals. A differential amplifying circuit differentially processes the writing and erasing command signals to produce a differential output signal, and a constant current power amplifying circuit produces a stable drive current according to the differential output signal. A bias-magnetic-field generating coil is driven by the stable drive current so that a stable bias-magnetic-field is applied to the information recording medium according to the differential output signal.

Bias-magnetic-field generating apparatus in magneto-optical information

A microscope having an optical head and an additional head is disclosed. A slide plate on which the additional head and optical head are arranged in such a manner that they are separated by a predetermined spacing in the Y direction is slidably secured to an arm of the microscope. Under such a construction, an observation by a raster image and an optical observation by a optical image can be performed precisely for the same region of a specimen by moving the additional head and optical head integrally by a distance substantially equal to the spacing by means of the slide plate.

Microscope having an optical head and an additional head

This invention relates to an optical pickup device using a semiconductor light emitting element provided with a light emitting mode change detecting means or the like.

Optical pickup device having a detector for detecting the light emitting

An optical power stabilizing device for use in an optical information recording and reproducing apparatus is disclosed. The device comprises a light source for generating a light output power having a non-linear characteristic to a driving current or voltage thereof, a light detection circuit coupled to the light source for detecting a part of the output light to generate an electric signal, a signal treating circuit connected to the light detection circuit for treating the detected electric signal, a compension circuit connected to the signal treating circuit for compensating the current or voltage to be supplied to the light source in accordance with the temperature variation, and a control circuit connected to the signal treating circuit and the compensation circuit for controlling the current or voltage to be supplied to the light source.

Growing community of inventors

Hachioji, Japan

Mitsugu Sakai