Tohoku Techno Arch Co., Ltd. List of Products and Services

Thermoelectric (TE) materials, which have the ability to convert heat into electricity, play a significant role in the utilization and management of thermal energy. Mg2Sn is a potential thermoelectric (TE) material that exhibits environmental compatibility since it is not-toxic and .not contains rare materials. However, as existing Mg2Sn materials have low electric conductivity and high thermal conductivity, it results in low zT value. 　This invention is related to Mg2Sn material contains Sb and B as doping materials, and Mg vacancies with high Power Factor and low thermal conductivity, which contribute to improve zT value. zT > 0.8 are achieved by our materials mentioned above.

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Conventional neutron beam detector has several issues such as the detection unit size is large, the power source is necessary, the device is complicated so the design becomes costly, the noise is included in the signal current, an expensive gas is required, and lastly the detector is expensive due to the design & manufacturing cost. 　This invention is about a low cost high accurate compact neutron beam detector that doesn’t require power source, and has a simple structure by using a commercially available ■■. Since the highly radiation-resistant semiconductor has been used as an element, it is expected to be used in high neutron flux environment such as neutron flux measurement, for example the boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) which is a next generation cancer treatment.

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As represented by smartphone, PC, etc., the number of devices equipped with lithium-ion battery is increasing day by day. This is supported by the battery high capacity, but the use of metallic lithium is required to have even higher capacity, so research & development are underway. Up to now, one of the factors that prevented the practical use of metallic lithium was the formation of dendrite by metallic lithium due to the diffusion control during charge/discharge, which led to a decrease in battery performance. 　This invention is about an electrolyte that solves the above issues. It has demonstrated that the smooth surface is maintained even after many charge/discharge cycles by controlling the rate-determining process. The same effect has been confirmed for sodium-ion battery, so the applicability of this invention is not limited to lithium-ion battery.

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Dielectric materials are used in various electronic devices. Due to the recent miniaturization of electronic devices, dielectric materials used in electronic devices tend to become smaller. Therefore, it is desirable to develop a technology that can accurately measure the permittivity of a fine capacitor structure. In addition, even in cases where the capacitor structure is not fine, it may be difficult to determine the permittivity through impedance measurement of a capacitor structure composed of a conventional electrode pair (e.g., a diameter of 100 μm or more) due to the existence of a region of locally high conductivity, called a leak path, in some dielectrics. 　As one method to enable measurement of the permittivity even for dielectrics having such a leak path, it may be considered that the electrode size is extremely small (For example, 1 μm or less) and capacitance measurement is performed while avoiding the existence of the leak path. However, when the capacitor structure becomes small, the influence of parasitic capacitance becomes relatively large, and it becomes difficult to accurately measure the capacitance of the dielectric, so that it becomes difficult to accurately measure the permittivity. The present invention is made in view of the above problems, and relates to a method for measuring the permittivity which can accurately measure the permittivity of a small region.

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In order to prevent hydrogen embrittlement in which hydrogen penetrates into a material and degrades its mechanical property such as strength, it is effective to visualize distribution of hydrogen penetrated into the material. Silver decoration method and hydrogen microprint technique are known as conventional hydrogen observation methods, but these methods are not able to detect the time variation of the hydrogen distribution in real-time. In the past, Tohoku University made the real-time detection possible by using metallic oxide, but the sensitivity was low and could not detect the small amount of hydrogen atoms that migrate into the material due to corrosion. 　This system is able to detect the hydrogen in real time with high sensitivity and high spatial resolution in an actual environment. This technology is effective for example to visually judge hydrogen permeation into plant equipment.

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When multiple vision sensors are used to acquire images of a scene from multiple points of view to achieve, for example, cooperative tracking, wide area monitoring or 3D motion measurement, the image sequences given by the sensors should be synchronized. 　Many of industrial vision sensors are equipped with dedicated electrical inputs/outputs, or wireless network for synchronization trigger signals. But the problem of the former is physical limitation and the latter is network delay is critical for high speed use cases. 　In this invention, Incident light to a vision sensor from an intensity-modulated illumination source serves as the reference signal for synchronization. It enables concise set up compare to existing technologies.

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Conventional method of producing hydrogen gas from organic matters such as biomass or plastics, is composed of mixing calcium hydroxide and nickel hydroxide, applying mechanochemical processing (grinding), and then heating. However, since the pulverization process requires energy and equipment, technology development with further cost reduction was expected.　 　This invention is about a method of producing hydrogen gas from organic materials such as biomass and plastics at low cost without requiring a grinding process. 　Organic materials such as biomass and plastics are pyrolyzed in a lumpy state to generate pyrolysis gas, and then this gas is heated with an aqueous solution containing nickel to generate hydrogen gas. In addition, the nickel added during heating can be recovered and reused.

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Practical titanium dioxide photocatalysts often use powder as a raw material, and immobilization and adhesion to substrates have been problems for industrial use. Moreover, although titanium dioxide is active in ultraviolet light, its lack of activity in natural light such as sunlight has been a long-standing 　The present invention relates to a technique for producing a rutile-type titanium dioxide thin film using an anodization method, which enables the creation of a thin film with high adhesion ability that combines photocatalytic performance and superhydrophilicity at a relatively low cost (right table). The thin film exhibits photocatalytic activity not only in ultraviolet light but also in visible light (Figure 1). In addition, water droplets are completely wetted and spread on the surface of the thin film after 0.005 seconds under visible light as well as ultraviolet irradiation, confirming the high speed wettability equivalent to that of "ink jet printer paper with excellent permeability" (Figure 2).

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Plasma actuator is an element that generates airflow using the electric current force generated by the electrical discharge. It is attracting attention as the next generation of airflow control device because it can actively control the flow with a simple configuration that does not use moving parts.　 　However, the conventional plasma actuator needs a large quantity of high-voltage power supply because it requires a drive voltage of over 10000V. The development of multi-electrode plasma actuator with multiple elements lined up for low-voltage drive has been done, but it has not yet been put to a real practical use due to a number of issues, such as arc discharge between multiple electrodes and interference between electrodes that causes electric current force in the opposite direction of the main flow, which reduces performance. 　This invention is about a multi-electrode plasma actuator that can prevent arc discharge between electrodes and that do not generate backflow. Unlike conventional method, it is possible to reduce the driving voltage of the plasma actuator to a few hundred volts in principle because the performance is improved by increasing the number of electrodes.

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In backscatter communication such as radar or radio frequency identifier (RFID) system, the received power decreases with the communication distance. To extend the communication range, it is necessary to increase the radar cross section of the target in the case of radar, and to increase the tag antenna gain in the case of RFID system. However, in both cases, it is not easy to reflect radio wave toward the arrival direction because the target to reflect radar signal and the arrival direction of the signal to reflect are not known.　 　This invention is able to reflect radio wave in the direction in which the incident radio wave arrives by using a small radio wave reflector. This invention has an antenna element, a reflective circuit and a butler matrix circuit. When the reflection circuit receives an incident radio wave input from the antenna element via the butler matrix circuit, it sends out a reflected radio wave in the direction in which the incident radio wave arrived via the butler matrix circuit and antenna element. This small radio wave reflector allows radio wave to reflect in the direction in which the incident radio wave arrived.

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Calcium phosphate, which has long been used as a vector to transfer genes into cells, is easy to prepare and has a good shelf life, but has a problem of low gene transfer efficiency. On the other hand, it has recently been reported that gene transfer efficiency is improved by modifying oligoarginine in the vector. In the gene transfer using calcium phosphate vector modified with oligoarginine, we found that the gene transfer efficiency was improved by pre-treating target cells with a potassium-sparing diuretic. ・The present invention is cheaper and simpler than gene transfer methods such as lipofection, electroporation, microinjection, and viral vectors. ・It is less cytotoxic than non-viral gene transfer agents. ・Treatment of target cells with potassium-sparing diuretics improved gene transfer efficiency up to 10 fold.

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Carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) are used in many fields because of its light weight, high strength and corrosion resistance. However, CFRP is known to have low electrical conductivity. So when it is used in aircraft fuselage as example, there is a risk of damage due to lightning strike. Therefore, increase conductivity by forming a metallic film on the CFRP surface (metallization) is expected as a method to solve this issue.　 　The cold spray method, which can be applied at low temperature with only little damage to CFRP, is attracting attention as a metallization method. Preliminary study has examined a method of forming metallic coating consisting of tin [1][2]. However, tin/CFRP interface has low adhesion strength. The methods to improve adhesion strength have been developed, such as the use of additive or surface treatment of CFRP, but they are not industrially ideal due to cost. 　This invention is about metal-coated CFRP with improved adhesion strength by using a simple method that does not require pre-treatment or post-treatment, and its manufacturing method.

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CNS degenerative disorders, including AD and PD, are increasingly believed to be caused due to mitochondrial disability leading to neuronal death. This inventor recently identified a novel intracellular regulatory factor XXX in the CNS neurons that contributes to mitochondrial homeostasis, and the inventor further developed a method for screening beneficial ability of chemicals to enhance mitochondrial function due to elevation of the XXX level.

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Soluble Aβ oligomers are known to cause Alzheimer's disease (AD). Soluble Aβ oligomers suppress CRE-dependent transcriptional activity essential for memory formation in the hippocampus, resulting in early AD symptoms such as forgetfulness. Neprilysin (NEP) and somatostatin (SST) neurons cooperate to degrade soluble Aβ oligomers. Therefore, if the function of this Aβ oligomer degradation system can be restored and strengthened, it may lead to the prevention of AD.　 Previously, it was known that royal jelly (RJ) promotes CRE-dependent transcriptional activity, but the effect of RJ on the degradation system in vivo and which fraction of RJ is effective were not known. The inventors demonstrated the following in an in vivo study. ・RJ reverses the decreased expression of NEP and SST that occurs with brain aging and enhances the function of the soluble Aβ oligomer degradation system ・Establish a method for extracting high concentrations of components from RJ that contribute to the enhancement of the defense system against this Aβ oligomer

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Extracellular polysaccharides (EPS) produced by some of the dominant bifidobacteria in the infant intestine are expected to improve intestinal immune resistance and protect against infection. However, mass cultivation of bifidobacteria, which are obligate anaerobes, is expensive, and it is difficult to extract only the useful EPS in large quantities. 　The present invention relates to a method for promoting the EPS production of a specific bifidobacterium by the addition of L-fucose, which is abundant in marine algae and the like. Bifidobacterium breve strain AT-APC-FucE1, which was selected and isolated from infant feces on the basis of L-fucose utilization, exhibits a characteristic that the EPS production is stimulated inducibly when L-fucose is added compared with normal culture conditions (right panel). 　Examples of applications of the present invention include the use as a research tool for the analysis of the EPS production mechanism of bifidobacteria in addition to the development of functional fermented foods, intestinal control agents, and supplements that promote the intestinal EPS production.

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Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is one of functional gastroenteropathy without organic changes that affects approximately 15% of young adults. However, there is a problem that many untreated cases cannot be diagnosed by imaging or blood tests. There is also a problem that IBS symptoms can be mild or exacerbated, but it is difficult to determine whether the exacerbation is caused by IBS or other factors. Ryutaro Arita, an assistant professor in the Department of Kampo Medicine at Tohoku University Hospital, and colleagues analyzed the gut microbiota of healthy volunteers and IBS patients during mild or acute period of IBS, and found that increases or decreases in specific bacteria L/R/F were associated with the progression of IBS. The present invention relates to a method for detecting IBS patients and exacerbations caused by IBS by analyzing the fecal microboota of a subject. According to the present invention, the risk of IBS can be predicted by examining the intestinal microbiota. Another application of the present invention is for screening of effective drugs or healthy foods for IBS. Therefore, it is expected to be applied to the fields of medicine and/or health foods. Bacterial L：Lachnosp iraceae Blautia Bacterial R：Ruminococcaceae Oscillospira Bacterial F：Faecal ibacterium prausnitzii

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Recently, amyloid fibrils, which relate to various diseases (Alzheimer’s diseases, ALS, etc.), is considered to generate in liquid-like droplets of amyloid precursor proteins (APP).　 　The quantitative and high-throughput analysis of the amyloid nucleation from the droplets is important for finding inhibitors of amyloid formation. However, there was only qualitative discussion on nucleation process from droplets so far. 　This invention provides the method of calculating the quantitative nucleation rate J in a short time by a fluorescence dye and statistical image analysis. The thermodynamic parameter J makes it possible to evaluate amyloid nucleation inhibition capacity of drug candidates regardless of the experimental system, so, this indicator is superior to conventional indicator (lag time).

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　Rheumatoid arthritis and periodontal disease are known to cause bone resorption due to inflammation. Although various drugs have been administered, it is desirable to inhibit and prevent bone resorption through food intake, which is easier and more convenient.　 　In this invention, we found that two-step fermented rice bran (FRB) inhibits the formation of osteoclasts caused by inflammation and suppresses bone resorption. Furthermore, the mechanism of the suppression was confirmed, and the route to directly and indirectly suppress the formation of osteoclasts was elucidated.

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Current development efforts focus on a cord-like device, able to vary its rigidity to any given shape. These cord-like structures are specifically designed to operate effectively in biological, natural, and artificial environments where access can be challenging due to their narrow or obstacle-filled nature. They are frequently used in tools such as medical endoscopes and industrial videoscopes.　 　Conventional cord-like bodies include structures in which wires are threaded through beads, jamming mechanisms, mechanical methods, or structures that control rigidity by pressurizing a tube. However, none of these methods could fulfill all the required performance characteristics such as holding force, restoring force, a continuous structure, lightweight and thin design, and capability for long-distance deployment. 　This invention addresses all these requirements by introducing a novel type of cord-like continuum body. Specifically, it employs an innovative combination of wire and rubber materials, thereby creating a structure capable of achieving a high level of holding strength through air pressure.

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　In line with the introduction and promotion of renewable energy, the use of agricultural land for solar power generation projects is permitted, but there is a requirement that the simple yield of agricultural land below which solar panels are installed must be at least 80% of the average in the same region in the same year. In order to achieve this, it is necessary to secure the amount of light to plants by spacing the panels, but there is a problem that the amount of electricity generated by these panels decreases. On the other hand, the installation of the panels reduces the amount of light to plants, which adversely affects the yield.　 　To solve these problems, the present invention provides a method for complementing the amount of light with an LED irradiator installed on the back side of the panels. The inventors completed and patented the present invention by obtaining detailed data on grass (Orchard glass, perennial ryegrass) growth and the amount of LED light. With the present invention, it is possible to secure the yield of agricultural products while contributing to the spread of solar power generation. 　On the other hand, in recent years, mountainous areas have been rapidly cleared and the installation of solar panels has been progressing, which is considered to be one of the causes of frequent natural disasters. By using the present invention, it is possible to install solar power generation facilities while maintaining farmland, which can contribute to the prevention of natural disasters.

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RDB (Relational Data Base) and KVS (Key‐Value Store) are commonly known database technologies, but they are inconvenient to use across multiple systems.　 　To provide a name collecting system capable of performing robust data management without requiring complicated table design and management, and performing efficient operation even for unrelated data managed by multiple systems.

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Currently, robots are being introduced in many industrial fields to solve the problem of the working population decrease. In order for robots to perform the same tasks as human in the future, it is important for them to have sensors for senses other than vision (force, pressure, temperature, cold, etc.). For this reason, the development of compact and high-sensitivity sensor using microelectromechanical system technology is underway as sensor for force measurement acting on object. However, the current technology is unable to adequately detect the applied force depending on the direction of the external force. 　 This invention is able to provide a sensor unit and a sensor which detect externally applied force from various directions. It can also provide sensor unit that can obtain a variety of information with a single element. This invention uses a continuous magneto strictive film with many convex 3D shape sensors projecting in the 1st direction relative to the reference plane, which enable the force detection from various directions applied from the exterior.

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　Dinitrogen monoxide (N2O) is an intense greenhouse gas having about 300 times greater effect than carbon dioxide (CO2). It is said that 59% of anthropogenic emission comes from agriculture.　　 　In particular, chemical fertilizer overuse in large scale agriculture is a cause of N2O emission from the soil since more chemical fertilizers are applied than the absorption by plant. A certain rhizobia (Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens USDA110) is known to reduce N2O to harmless nitrogen (N2), but the bacteria are not effective enough to solve the problem. In the context that non GMO rhizobia usage with high N2O reductase activity is expected from the viewpoint of global warming control and soil ecosystem, this invention proposes a natural rhizobia (Bradyrhizobium ottawaense SG09, etc.) with stronger N2O reductase activity than the conventional rhizobia, and its application.

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This technology is a method that uses probabilistic computation to perform operations on data while it remains in an encrypted state. Traditionally, techniques such as Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE) have been used to process data in an encrypted state, but these methods have faced challenges such as significantly increased computation time. This technology allows for the unlimited use of addition and multiplication using probabilistic computation methods, making it possible to reduce computation time compared to existing methods.

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During sarcolemma repair process, dysferlin protein accumulates at injury part. Dysferlin gene mutation is found in dysferlinopathy, which is a type of muscular dystrophy. Inventors have shown that AMPK, which regulates energy metabolism, binds membrane repair protein dysferlin. Administration of metformin, one of the AMPK activator, improves cell membrane repair in dysferlinopathy.　 　This invention proposes to use metformin, well known therapeutic drug for diabete, as an activator of sarcolemma repair, and to use it as a therapeutic drug for muscular disease such as muscular dystrophy and various diseases that present cell membrane fragility. Features・Outstandings

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Synchrotron radiation analysis (X-ray CT) using a single X-ray beam is a nondestructive analysis used in many fields such as food, medicine and chemical industry. In the food industry, it is used to improve taste and texture, as well as to develop preservation and transportation methods that maintain quality.　 　This invention is about a method to analyze (evaluate) a sample based on the proof that the contrast of image appearing in X-ray CT image is due to the distribution and migration of medium element such as Na and Cl, which are contained in the sample and can easily affect the food product quality. 　The right figure shows an example of proving that the contrast on the X-ray CT image of a frozen and thawed pollock surimi gel (kamaboko) is due to the migration of the middle element by analyzing the linear absorption coefficient of each element. This invention and the CT image taken at the next-generation synchrotron radiation facility "NanoTerasu" which is scheduled to be operational in 2024 are expected to accelerate the development of processing, preservation and transportation technologies in the food industry, as well as the material analysis other than food product that contain medium element (mineral).

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Hydraulic fracturing method is widely used in underground resource development to create fractures in the rock by injecting high pressure fluid into a borehole. The direction of fractures created by hydraulic fracturing method is limited to the direction of the maximum principal stress of the formation, so it may not create fractures in the desired resource storage area direction. In this case, several boreholes need to be drilled, but drilling requires high cost. The underground resource storage area is nonuniformly distributed, and the possibility of connecting to the resource storage area by hydraulic fracturing method is not necessarily high.　 　One of the conventional hydraulic fracturing method is to use a low viscosity fluid to create reticulated microfractures. However, its permeability is significantly small. 　This invention is about a hydraulic fracturing method that creates several fractures in the rock, and it is able to create fractures in directions other than the direction of the maximum principal stress of the rock. This invention can considerably improve the probability of creating fractures which reach the resource storage area. In addition, in carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS), it is expected to increase the amount of carbon dioxide stored.

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　In recent years, the research field to decode the biological characteristics of lesion (radiomics) by analyzing in global a large number of images extracted from medical image database has attracted attention. One potential application of radiomics is to predict the patient prognosis with tumor disease. However, it is difficult to represent phenotypic information of tumor and local information inside tumor with accuracy, so further progress of this research is required.　 　In this invention, inventors have developed a new radiomic feature based on graph theory. Medical image processed by graph theory feature, and tumor image with relatively good prognosis have a smaller line density than those with poor prognosis. Moreover, the rad score calculated by graph theory feature can clearly indicate the tumor status change compared to the value calculated by conventional feature. Therefore, this invention is able to predict the cancer treatment prognosis with higher accuracy than conventional method.

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　Silicon (Si) has been attracting attention as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries and as an electrode material for next-generation batteries because its weight capacity density is more than 10 times that of graphite. However, there are problems such as the volume expansion of about four times during charging, which causes the electrode to break down and prevents excellent cycle performance, and this is an obstacle to its practical use as an anode material. 　In all-solid-state batteries, thin-film amorphous silicon is used as an anode material, and although excellent cycle characteristics have been reported, it is fabricated by vacuum evaporation or vapor-phase growth methods, which poses a problem for mass production. 　The present invention solves the above problem and relates to a method for mass production of amorphous silicon having a porous structure.

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Conventionally, drive mechanism such as conical gear has been developed for robot arm joint to enable driving in multiple directions with a single joint. The joint of the robot arm can be made smaller and more sophisticated by using such driving device. However, since the gear is used to convert the rotation direction, backlash is generated and causes output error. Moreover, the smaller the size, the more difficult it becomes to transmit a large amount of torque.　　 　This invention is able to reduce backlash and increase output precision, and to provide a 2 directional driving device that can transmit a relatively large amount of torque even when downsized. This invention is composed of a support, a rotating support, and a plurality of protruding parts, wherein the extremity of each protruding part is configured to rotate the inner rotating body by the sliding movement. This structure reduces backlash, improves output precision, and provides a 2 directional driving device that can transmit a relatively large amount of torque even when downsized.

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For non destructive inspection of defect such as inner surface of piping, etc., conventional percussion method has the disadvantage of being week to noise and having low spatial resolution (difficult to determine exact location). The magnetic leakage flux testing method being also a conventional method, overcomes the previous disadvantage, but it is not suitable for underground piping due to its difficulty to detect small defect, cost & time required to magnetize inspection object, and the large unit size that incorporates a permanent magnet. 　The percussion testing method proposed in this invention uses a TMR sensor to measure and analyze the natural frequency of a structure made of magnetic material from micro vibration to diagnose deterioration. The advantage of this method is "high spatial resolution and noise immunity because the magnetic field is measured at a short distance (2-3 cm) instead of acquiring sound wave at a long distance“, "suitable for underground piping because it targets demagnetized magnetic material" and "low sensor and calculation cost". In addition, facility that is constantly undergoing micro vibration may be able to perform the magnetic hammer testing without applying an external force.

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In conventional magnetic AC susceptibility measurement to measure magnetic material property, the susceptibility is detected by AC frequency. This disable to measure small amount of sample such as thin film and nanoparticle at low frequency (< 1 kHz) due to crowding of unbalanced voltage and detected voltage. Therefore, it is not possible to apply it to biomagnetic sensing.　 　DC / AC susceptibility is measured by different methods, and although measuring equipment with both measurement modes exists, simultaneous measurement is not possible. 　This invention combines magnetic AC susceptibility measurement and new analysis method based on Vibrating Sample Magnetometry (VSM), a method to measure DC susceptibility. 　This enables AC susceptibility detection in sideband frequency, improving detection sensitivity and enabling AC susceptibility measurement of small amount of sample that could not be measured so far. Moreover, simultaneous measurement of DC and AC susceptibility is also possible. Another major advantage is that it could be simply producedd by combining analysis method with conventional measurement equipment.

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So far, the laser doppler vibrometer or the accelerometer using microelectromechanical system is known to be the most high sensitive vibrometer with actual technology. However, many vibrometers can’t be used in one object due to its high cost. On the other hand, the strain gauge is known to be cheap but the sensitivity is not enough high in order to detect abnormal vibration. 　This invention has focus on bending a magnetic material can generate a high sensitive permeability variation where it can be detected as HF impedance variation, and the shape of cantilever. This invention can provide high-sensitivity vibration sensor at low cost.

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Chemically strengthened glass has become very popular as the cover glass for smartphones. This glass is made by immersing the glass in the potassium nitrate melt and exchanging ions between the sodium ions in the glass and the potassium ions in the potassium nitrate melt. Conventional methods to evaluate the chemically strengthened glass strength are the bending method and the optical waveguide method. However, these methods are not suitable for measuring locally the residual stress, and there is a limit in the glass samples that can be measured.　 　This invention is able to evaluate the residual stresses of the chemically strengthened glass in a non-contact, non-destructive and position-selective manner. In this invention, the residual stress is calculated from the volume variation ratio which increases with ion exchange, obtained by the microscopic Raman scattering spectrum.

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Particles with a uniform size of few 10 to 100 ㎛ are expected to be used as raw material for additive manufacturing (3D printer). The Pulsated Orifice Ejection Method (POEM) and the freeze-dry POEM (FD-POEM) developed by the inventor are used for their production. From the point of view of composition control and spheronization by surface tension, the raw material is preferable to be in slurry form. However, the precipitation in a short time and consequently high particle concentration cannot be achieved.　 　This invention makes possible to disperse particle for a relatively long time at a high concentration and to produce small & dense spherical particle than the conventional one using FD-POEM. Moreover, this invention can be applied to particle production of MoSiBTiC alloy, which is an ultra-high temperature material.

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Recently, III-nitride semiconductors (GaN and InGaN) have been attracting attention as semiconductor materials for light-emitting devices such as LED and lasers. This nitride semiconductor has a bandgap energy with wide range wavelengths from infrared to ultraviolet light, and it is a promising material for blue & green LED and semiconductor lasers with UV to infrared region emission wavelengths. However, in the case of nitride semiconductors, the equilibrium vapor pressure between the gas and solid phases of nitrogen is much higher than the conventional III-V materials, so it is not possible to fabricate GaN single crystal substrates at low cost. Another option is to use freestanding GaN substrates, but the current fabrication techniques are costly. 　This invention is able to fabricate nitride semiconductor freestanding substrates with low threading dislocation density at a low cost. This invention comprises a total of seven steps, from the process of forming a buffer layer having a nitride semiconductor on the growing substrate main surface, to the process of fabricating a plurality of nitride semiconductor freestanding substrates.

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The combinatorial optimization problem has been attracting attention in recent years as a method for solving different social problems. The quantum annealing method (QA) is expected to be a promising way to find solutions to these problems at high speed. However, the current QA is not suitable for solving large scale problem due to the implementation scale limitation and the necessity to prepare a dedicated system. The stochastic simulated annealing method (SC-SA) currently under research, which is a computing method based on probabilistic information, has no restriction due to its computation on a classical system, and it is power-saving. However, the speed is slow and it has difficulty for installation as the scale becomes larger.　　 　Therefore, this technology has been developed to solve optimization problem at high speed with low power consumption for less than two orders of magnitude compared to QA, with less implementation scale limitation and lower cost by using Quantum Monte Carlo (SC-QMC), a new annealing method based on stochastic operation.

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λ-Ti3O5 is the unique oxide material that shows a photo-induced phase transition by visible-light irradiation. It is expected for application for optical recording media such as CD, DVD, and BD because of its low environmental impact compared to conventional chalcogenide materials. However, the crystal size of λ-Ti3O5 is limited to nanometer scale because of its metastable nature. This invention enables λ-Ti3O5 thin films with large surface area (over 5x5mm) using pulsed-laser deposition (PLD) method with TiO2 as a raw material. 　In a conventional method, λ-Ti3O5 could not be fabricated directly on substrates and an intermediate seed layer was required so that the seed layer component diffuses into λ-Ti3O5, which hindered the phase transition. On the other hand, this invention can synthesize λ-Ti3O5 thin films directly on a substrate without the seed layer, and thus the λ-Ti3O5 thin films show a stable phase transition.

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Co-based Heusler alloy such as Co2MnGa or Co2MnAl has attracted attention as candidate materials for high-sensitivity sensor and high-efficiency thermoelectric conversion element thanks to their large anomalous Nernst and Hall effects. In order to realize these excellent properties, it is thought that a single crystalline bulk material or a thin film grown on a single crystalline substrate is necessary. Thus, such single crystalline samples have been produced. Considering that those materials are applied to actual devices, it is necessary that a polycrystalline film, which does not use a single crystalline substrate, shows the property equivalent to those of single crystalline material. 　This invention is able to provide a “polycrystalline Heusler alloy thin film" that does not require a single crystalline substrate, while showing the properties of anomalous Hall angle (θAH~7.5%) and anomalous Nernst coefficient (SANE~5μV/K) comparable to a single crystalline thin film. It can promote the control of crystal orientation and the improvement of crystallinity by sandwiching the polycrystalline layer with an insulating AlN layer.

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An inductor is known as an element that uses the induced electromotive force generated in a coil to stabilize the current in circuits. Circuit elements used in small electronic devices require miniaturization, but there is a fundamental limit for conventional inductors due to a physical restriction. This invention uses the principle of induction in spintronics physics, as the inventors have shown, that inductance emerges in uniform magnetic materials as a result of spin-orbit interaction, where any “twists” are not required like conventional coils or magnetic structures. This technology offers various inductor elements that are low-cost, stable against temperature variation, and capable of miniaturizing.

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“Black bodies” are substances that can completely absorb all kinds of light, and carbon nanotube (CNT) black bodies are known as substances that can almost completely absorb light. CNT black bodies can absorb more than 98% of light (electromagnetic waves) in a wide wavelength range of 200 nm-200μm from “ultraviolet” to “visible” to “far-infrared” light. CNT black bodies can be used for shielding cameras and optical equipment, infrared absorbers, thermal infrared sensors, and cooling electronic equipment. However, CNT black bodies are fine powders, and there have been some problems such as difficulties in manufacturing and handling them. This invention provides a nano-micro metal “black body” capable of absorbing light over a wide wavelength range from “ultraviolet” to “visible” to “infrared” light, and capable of selectively adjusting the absorption direction of light.

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　For CO2 fixation and usage, there are many systems that involve mass transfer, reaction and absorption between gas / liquid; for example the reaction of an amine absorption solution or calcium solution with a dilute CO2containing gas. The conventional spray, bubble, packed and wetted wall columns are increasing in size in order to increase the reaction interfacial area and detention time.　 　For the concentration, crystallization and drying in the salt manufacturing process in Japan, the conventional shaft kiln method has the same issue of the equipment size increase. The high energy consumption is also an issue since the bubbles are generated by boiling the liquid phase. 　This invention achieves the equipment downsizing by increasing the gas-liquid reaction field area by using the phenomenon that the gas phase introduced into the heat exchange mechanism using a rotary double tube is refined and retained in the solvent by the agitation and shearing force of the rotating cylinder. The heat transfer rate is improved and the energy saving is possible thanks to the removal of precipitate and boundary film on the rotating cylinder.

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【Fuel cell】 In order to construct a fuel cell system with high efficiency, high durability and low cost, it is necessary to clarify the transport phenomena of proton, oxygen, and water in the cell. By analyzing nano and micro scale flow phenomena and clarifying the correlation between the structural characteristics and the transport mechanism of each component, PEFC performance is expected to be improved. 【Secondary battery】 Due to increasing energy demand and environmental problems, secondary batteries that can be charged and discharged without emitting CO2 or nitrogen oxides are attracting attention. We have a track record of analyzing nano and micro scale flow phenomena such as ion flow in the electrolyte inside liquid and all-solid-state lithium-ion batteries. 【Semiconductor】 For advanced semiconductor devices, controls on the atomic layer level with a thickness error of ±0.5 Å on the wafer is required for the deposition process. In the past, it was necessary to optimize a large amount of experimental data in order to form a precise thin film. At Tokumasu Laboratory, we will elucidate the mechanism through numerical simulation and search for the optimum deposition mechanism.

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　In recent years, with the development of internet-based business, personal and confidential information are transmitted through optical communication network. It is becoming important to ensure the information security as the optical communication network increases in speed and capacity. Quantum Noise Stream Cipher (QNSC), which uses the quantum noise in light, is known as a physical layer optical cryptography with a high transmission speed. However, since it uses strong optical signal, it cannot achieve the perfect masking effect by quantum noise, so there is a possibility that some information in the random number sequence used for encryption is leaked to an eavesdropper. 　This invention is able to provide an optical secure communication system and device that are more secure and capable of high-speed transmission than the conventional QNSC by spreading the QNSC signal on the time axis. In the present invention, the QNSC signal is spread over time using a common key at the transmitter, and the timing of the received QNSC signal is corrected by using the common key shared in advance at the receiver. It is thus possible to achieve the optical secure communication with higher security and higher speed by also encrypting the random number sequence used for encryption.

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So far, a thin deformable mechanism that can be operated at hand has been developed to deform a thin plate into a curved shape. The stiffness of an object depends on the second moment of area and the Young's modulus of the material. So in a curving deformable mechanism, the second moment of area depends on the cross-sectional shape of the initial state. In other words, even if a metal plate with a high Young's modulus is used, the stiffness is low against bending. In addition, increasing the plate thickness in the bending direction increases the amount of plate elongation during bending, resulting in a smaller bendable range.　 　This invention is able to provide a deformable mechanism and gripper that can increase stiffness while keeping its thinness. This invention has an elongated plate shape, an elastic property to flex in the thickness direction and to twist around an axis along the length direction, and a pair of deformable bodies rotatably connected to an operating support. Each deformable body is characterized by the surfaces being configured to tilt in inward direction toward each other. This provides a deformable mechanism and gripper that can increase rigidity while remaining thin.

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