A mask blank with phase shift film where changes in transmittance and phase shift to an exposure light of an ArF excimer laser are suppressed. The film transmits light of an ArF excimer laser at a transmittance of 2% or more and less than 10% and generates a phase difference of 150 degrees or more and 190 degrees or less between the exposure light transmitted through the phase shift film and the exposure light transmitted through the air for the same distance as a thickness of the phase shift film. The film has a stacked lower layer and upper layer, the lower layer containing metal and silicon and substantially free of oxygen. The upper layer containing metal, silicon, nitrogen, and oxygen. The lower layer is thinner than the upper layer, and the ratio of metal to metal and silicon of the upper layer is less than the lower layer.

An apparatus includes a cooling plate with a central opening. The central opening within the cooling plate is positioned to be opposite an opening in a workpiece when the cooling plate is positioned at a target location opposite the workpiece. The cooling plate is configured to absorb heat from a gas heated by the workpiece. A diffuser is in the central opening of the cooling plate. The diffuser is configured to receive a gas from a gas input. The diffuser is further configured to slow a flow of the gas and output the gas into the workpiece opening.

A turbine engine, an engine structure, and a method of forming an engine structure are provided herein. In an embodiment, an engine structure includes a metal substrate, a thermal barrier coating layer, and a metal silicate protective layer. The thermal barrier coating layer overlies the metal substrate, and the thermal barrier coating layer has columnar grains with gaps defined between the columnar grains. The metal silicate protective layer is formed over the thermal barrier coating layer, and the metal silicate protective layer covers the columnar grains and the gaps between the columnar grains.

A guiding member, having a body provided with a bore for mounting a mobile element is presented. The body consists of a metallic material. The bore has a surface layer treated against jamming over a diffusion depth of less than or equal to 0.6 mm. The surface layer has a hardness of greater than or equal to 500 Hv1 over a depth of between 5 and 50 ?m.

A method of fabricating an optical coupling device, comprising forming a waveguide mask layer on a substrate platform, wherein the waveguide mask layer comprises an array of openings comprising a first end and a second end opposite to the first end, immersing the substrate platform into a salt melt comprising ions to form an array of waveguides in the substrate platform through an ion diffusion process, and controlling a rate of immersion such that a diffusion depth of the ions varies as a function of a distance in a direction from the first end to the second end, wherein the array of waveguides extends in the direction from the first end to the second end.

A method for manufacturing a liquid crystal device that includes forming an inorganic alignment layer by emitting an alignment film material that is made of an inorganic material in an oblique direction onto a substrate, and forming an organic alignment layer that is a monomolecular film made of an organic material chemically bonded with the inorganic alignment layer on a surface of the inorganic alignment layer by treating the surface of the inorganic alignment layer with a silane coupling agent that has an alkyl group, wherein a pretilt angle of a liquid crystal molecule is set to a desired angle by selecting the silane coupling agent by the number of carbon atoms.

A method of fabricating an optical coupling device, comprising forming a waveguide mask layer on a substrate platform, wherein the waveguide mask layer comprises an array of openings comprising a first end and a second end opposite to the first end, immersing the substrate platform into a salt melt comprising ions to form an array of waveguides in the substrate platform through an ion diffusion process, and controlling a rate of immersion such that a diffusion depth of the ions varies as a function of a distance in a direction from the first end to the second end, wherein the array of waveguides extends in the direction from the first end to the second end.

A method of fabricating an optical coupling device, comprising forming a waveguide mask layer on a substrate platform, wherein the waveguide mask layer comprises an array of openings comprising a first end and a second end opposite to the first end, immersing the substrate platform into a salt melt comprising ions to form an array of waveguides in the substrate platform through an ion diffusion process, and controlling a rate of immersion such that a diffusion depth of the ions varies as a function of a distance in a direction from the first end to the second end, wherein the array of waveguides extends in the direction from the first end to the second end.

A steel sheet is provided. The steel sheet includes a multilayer coating including at least one zinc-based layer being 0.1% to 20% magnesium by weight which is covered by a fine temporary protective layer of 5 to 100 nm. The fine temporary protective layer is composed of metal or metal oxide selected from the group consisting of aluminum, chromium, aluminum oxides AlOx, with x being strictly between 0.01 and 1.5 and chromium oxides CrOy, with y being strictly between 0.01 and 1.5. The at least one zinc-based layer is not alloyed with the temporary protective layer. Manufacturing methods for a sheet and part are also provided.

Process of depositing a metallic pattern on a medium, said process comprising: generating pulsed laser beams from a pulsed laser source, wherein the laser beams have a wavelength for which the medium is substantially transparent, focussing the laser beams onto a target layer comprising inorganic particles, dispersed in a laser light degradable/combustible organic matrix, said target layer producing ejecta in response to an interaction of said laser beams and said target layer, accumulating at least a portion of said ejecta on said medium within the desired pattern, providing the pattern by electroless metal plating. The invention further relates to a transparent medium comprising a metallic pattern wherein the adhesion between the metallic pattern and the medium is at least 5N/cm.