A method for fabricating a timepiece component made of conductive material includes: making a base from conductive material; coating the base with a first layer of sacrificial metal protection material; etching a recessed decoration mechanically or with a laser; coating the first recessed decoration and the remaining part of the first layer with a second metal and/or coloured decorative treatment layer; and removing each first sacrificial metal protection layer by chemical devices, to obtain a blank including a first decoration formed by the remaining part of the second layer.

A method for coating a thin film in a rolling manner and a thin film coating apparatus are provided. The method includes: floating a thin film material on a liquefied material; rolling a cylindrical substrate after contacting the cylindrical substrate with the thin film material; and coating the thin film material on a surface of the cylindrical substrate by using an attraction force between the surface of the cylindrical substrate and the thin film material.

Disclosed herein is a material that may be useful as a coating for optical slides and medical implants. The material may aid or restrict grown of cells on a coating of the composite material. As such, there is provided a composite material having a substrate on the surface of which a coating layer of an amorphous metal oxide is formed. The metal oxide may be one or more of Ag.sub.2O, ZnO, ZrO.sub.2, TiO.sub.2, CuO, and Y.sub.2O.sub.3 and the coating layer may be from 5 to 100 nm thick and have a root mean square roughness of the coating surface is from 0.1 to 0.7 nm.

A hydrocarbon fluid containment article having a wall with a surface that is wetted by hydrocarbon fluid. The surface includes an anti-coking coating. The anti-coking coating includes a copper salt, a silver salt, or a combination thereof. A gas turbine engine component including a wall having a first surface and an anti-coking coating on the first surface of the wall that is wetted by hydrocarbon fluid. The anti-coking coating including a copper salt, a silver salt, or a combination thereof that prevents the formation of gum or coke on a surface thereon. Methods for reducing the deposition of thermal decomposition products on a wall of an article are also provided.

A gas-sensing element includes a gas-sensing surface of transition metal-doped metal oxide semiconductor of a first metal (particularly tin oxide) over a body of the metal oxide semiconductor. The gas-sensing element includes an auxiliary component of: (1) internally-disposed second metal (particularly copper, gold or silver) disposed in the gas-sensing element between the body and the gas-sensing surface, or (2) a metal chalcogenide (particularly sulfide or sulphide) disposed at the gas-sensing surface or internally disposed in the gas-sensing element between the body and the gas-sensing surface that stabilizes the second metal at the gas-sensing surface.

A method for forming a high purity, copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) sputtering target is disclosed. The method includes sealing precursor materials for forming the bulk material in a reaction vessel. The precursor materials include copper, at least one chalcogen selected from selenium, sulfur, and tellurium, and at least one element from group IIIA of the periodic table, which may be selected from gallium, indium, and aluminum. The sealed reaction vessel is heated to a temperature at which the precursor materials react to form the bulk material. The bulk material is cooled in the vessel to a temperature below the solidification temperature of the bulk material and opened to release the formed bulk material. A sputtering target formed by the method can have an oxygen content of 10 ppm by weight, or less.

A method of producing a separator is provided. The method includes providing a particle membrane including inorganic particles on at least one principal surface of a porous body by a vapor-phase process such that the particle membrane has a porosity that is non-uniform in a thickness direction thereof. A method of producing a microporous membrane is also provided.

A method for fabricating a timepiece component made of conductive material includes: making a base from conductive material; coating the base with a first layer of sacrificial metal protection material; etching a recessed decoration mechanically or with a laser; coating the first recessed decoration and the remaining part of the first layer with a second metal and/or coloured decorative treatment layer; and removing each first sacrificial metal protection layer by chemical devices, to obtain a blank including a first decoration formed by the remaining part of the second layer.

A method for forming a high purity, copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) bulk material is disclosed. The method includes sealing precursor materials for forming the bulk material in a reaction vessel. The precursor materials include copper, at least one chalcogen selected from selenium, sulfur, and tellurium, and at least one element from group IIIA of the periodic table, which may be selected from gallium, indium, and aluminum. The sealed reaction vessel is heated to a temperature at which the precursor materials react to form the bulk material. The bulk material is cooled in the vessel to a temperature below the solidification temperature of the bulk material and opened to release the formed bulk material. A sputtering target formed by the method can have an oxygen content of 10 ppm by weight, or less.

A photonic crystal structure includes a nano structure layer including a plurality of nano particles of various sizes, and a photonic crystal layer on the nano structure layer. The plurality of nano particles are spaced apart from each other. The photonic crystal layer has a non-planar surface, and is configured to reflect light of a particular wavelength.