A composite nanomaterial of ZnO impregnated by, e.g., a green copper phthalocyanine compound (CuPc) can be an efficient solar light photocatalyst for water remediation. The composite may include hollow shell microspheres and hollow nanospheres of CuPc-ZnO. CuPc may function as a templating and/or structure modifying agent, e.g., for forming hollow microspheres and/or nanospheres of ZnO particles. The composite can photocatalyze the degradation of organic pollutants such as crystal violet (CV) and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid as well as microbes in water under solar light irradiation. The ZnO—CuPc composite can be stable and recyclable under solar irradiation.

A composite nanomaterial of ZnO impregnated by, e.g., a green copper phthalocyanine compound (CuPc) can be an efficient solar light photocatalyst for water remediation. The composite may include hollow shell microspheres and hollow nanospheres of CuPc-ZnO. CuPc may function as a templating and/or structure modifying agent, e.g., for forming hollow microspheres and/or nanospheres of ZnO particles. The composite can photocatalyze the degradation of organic pollutants such as crystal violet (CV) and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid as well as microbes in water under solar light irradiation. The ZnO—CuPc composite can be stable and recyclable under solar irradiation.

The present invention provides a silver paste containing at least a silver powder, a binder resin, and an organic solvent, wherein the silver powder contains a first silver powder having a D50 of 3.50 to 7.50 μm and a second silver powder having a D50 of 0.80 to 2.00 μm, where D50 represents a 50% value of a volume-based cumulative fraction obtained by laser diffraction particle size distribution measurement; a copper content of the whole silver powder is 10 to 5000 ppm by mass; a copper content of the second silver powder is 80 ppm by mass or more; and the first silver powder contains substantially no copper. The present invention provides a silver paste containing a powder in a high concentration and excellent in printability, and provides a silver conductor film that has a high filling factor, a high film density, high electrical conductivity, and excellent migration resistance.

The present invention is a method for manufacturing silver nanowires, including using a growth control agent and a halide salt in a polyol to obtain silver nanowires from a silver salt, and further using an α-hydroxycarbonyl compound (a) represented by formula (1) below: (in general formula (1), R indicates any of a hydrogen atom and a hydrocarbon group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms). ##STR00001##

There are provided a silver powder, which is able to form an electrically conductive film having a low resistance value even if the period of time for firing an electrically conductive paste is shorter than that for firing conventional electrically conductive pastes when the silver powder is used as the material of the electrically conductive paste, and a method for producing the same. A large-diameter silver powder, which has a crystalline size of 50 nm or less and which has a particle diameter (D.sub.50) of 1 μm or more and 4 μm or less, the particle diameter (D.sub.50) of the large-diameter silver powder being a particle diameter corresponding to 50% of accumulation in a particle size distribution of the large-diameter silver powder, is mixed with a small-diameter silver powder, which has a crystalline size of 50 nm or less and which has a particle diameter (D.sub.50) of 0.3 μm or more and less than 1 μm, the particle diameter (D.sub.50) of the small-diameter silver powder being a particle diameter corresponding to 50% of accumulation in a particle size distribution of the small-diameter silver powder, to produce a silver powder, which has a crystalline size of 50 nm or less and which has a pressed density of 6.3 g/cm.sup.3 or more.

An oxide sintered body containing indium, hafnium, tantalum, and oxygen as constituent elements, in which when indium, hafnium, and tantalum are designated as In, Hf, and Ta, respectively, the atomic ratio of Hf/(In+Hf+Ta) is equal to 0.002 to 0.030, and the atomic ratio of Ta/(In+Hf+Ta) is equal to 0.0002 to 0.013.

An oxide sintered body containing indium, hafnium, tantalum, and oxygen as constituent elements, in which when indium, hafnium, and tantalum are designated as In, Hf, and Ta, respectively, the atomic ratio of Hf/(In+Hf+Ta) is equal to 0.002 to 0.030, and the atomic ratio of Ta/(In+Hf+Ta) is equal to 0.0002 to 0.013.

An object of the present invention is to provide an electroconductive adhesive composition which has excellent thermal conductivity and which, even when repeatedly undergoing fluctuations in temperature, is less apt to cause adherend separation. The present invention relates to an electroconductive adhesive composition which contains: an electroconductive filler (A) containing metal particles (a1) having an average particle diameter of 0.5-10 μm and silver particles (a2) having an average particle diameter of 10-200 nm; and particles (B) of a thermoplastic resin which is solid at 25° C.

Provided is a resin particle that can be uniformly brought into contact with an adherend, can effectively enhance adhesion to a conductive portion and impact resistance when electrodes are electrically connected to each other using a conductive particle having the conductive portion formed on a surface thereof, and further can effectively reduce connection resistance. In the resin particle according to the present invention, an exothermic peak is observed when differential scanning calorimetry is performed by heating the resin particle at a temperature rising rate of 5° C./min from 100° C. to 350° C. in an air atmosphere.

A connection structure, a method of manufacturing the connection structure, a connection material, and a coated conductive particle capable of reducing and stabilizing a conduction resistance value. The connection structure includes: a first electronic component having a first terminal; a second electronic component having a second terminal, and a cured film provided between the first electronic component and the second electronic component and formed by curing the connection material, wherein, with regard to the coated conductive particles between the first terminal and the second terminal, metal atoms of the conductive layer diffuse into the metal of the metal fine particles, and metal atoms of the first terminal and the metal atoms of the second terminal diffuse into the metal of the metal fine particles.