Disclosed is a plastic semiconductor material and a preparation method thereof. The semiconductor material comprises an argentite-based compound represented by the following formula (I): Ag.sub.2-X.sub.S.sub.1-Y.sub.(I), in which 0<0.5, 0<0.5, Xis at least one of Cu, Au, Fe, Co, Ni, Zn, Ti, or V, and Y is at least one of N, P, As, Sb, Se, Te, O, Br, Cl, I, or F. The material can withstand certain deformations, similar to organic materials, and has excellent semiconductor properties with adjustable electrical properties, thereby enabling the preparation of high-performance flexible semiconductor devices.

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.

Disclosed is a method for controlling a microstructure of an inorganic material includes providing a structure that has a first region of an inorganic material having a first microstructure and a second region that is thermally responsive to electromagnetic radiation, the second region being adjacent the first region, and indirectly heating the first region by thermally activating the second region, using electromagnetic radiation, to generate heat. The generated heat converts the first microstructure of the inorganic material to a second, different microstructure. The method can be applied to control a microstructure of an inorganic coating on an inorganic fiber.

Provided is a dielectric composition which includes, as a main component, a complex oxide represented by a general formula A.sub.aB.sub.bC.sub.4O.sub.15+ and having a tungsten bronze structure, wherein A includes at least Ba, B includes at least Zr, C includes at least Nb, a is 3.05 or higher, and b is 1.01 or higher. In the dielectric composition, when the total number of atoms occupying M2 sites in the tungsten bronze structure is set to 1, the proportion of B is 0.250 or higher. In addition, in the dielectric composition, an X-ray diffraction peak of a (410) plane of the tungsten bronze structure is splitted into two, and an integrated intensity ratio of an integrated intensity of a high-angle side peak of the X-ray diffraction peak with respect to an integrated intensity of a low-angle side peak of the X-ray diffraction peak is 0.125 or higher.

A Co.sub.2Z hexaferrite composition is provided containing molybdenum and one or both of barium and strontium, having the formula (Ba.sub.2Sr.sub.(3-Z)Co.sub.(2+X))Mo.sub.xFe.sub.(y-2x)O.sub.41 where x=0.01 to 0.20; y=20 to 24; and z=0 to 3. The composition can exhibit high permeabilities and equal or substantially equal values of permeability and permittivity while retaining low magnetic and dielectric loss tangents and loss factors. The composition is suitable for high frequency applications such as ultrahigh frequency and microwave antennas and other devices.

Techniques for supporting USB and video communication over an extension medium are provided. In some embodiments, an upstream facing port device (UFP device) is coupled to legacy connectors of a host device, and a downstream facing port device (DFP device) is coupled to a USB Type-C receptacle of the sink device that may provide both USB and DisplayPort information. The UFP device and DFP device communicate to properly configure the USB Type-C connection for use in the extension environment. In some embodiments, a source device is coupled to the UFP device via a USB Type-C connection, and legacy video and USB devices are coupled to the DFP device. The UFP device and DFP device again communicate to cause the source device to properly configure the USB Type-C connection for use in the extension environment.

Thermoelectric materials based on tetrahedrite structures for thermoelectric devices and methods for producing thermoelectric materials and devices are disclosed.

A corrosion-resistant member may include alumina ceramics containing -alumina and anorthite. The alumina ceramics may contain 0.4% by mass or more of Ca and Si in total in terms of CaO and SiO.sub.2, respectively, and a mass ratio of CaO/SiO.sub.2 may fall within a range of 0.5 to 2. Moreover, a ratio B/A of X-ray diffraction peak intensity B for (004) plane of the anorthite to X-ray diffraction peak intensity A for (104) plane of the -alumina in a surface of the alumina ceramics, may be 0.01 or more.

A dielectric composition including a complex oxide represented by a general formula of A.sub.aB.sub.bC.sub.4O.sub.15+ as a main component, in which A at least includes Ba, B at least includes Zr, C at least includes Nb, a is 3.05 or more, and b is 1.01 or more.

Disclosed is a gas sensing material for methylbenzene detection. Specifically, the gas sensing material includes a nanocomposite of Cr.sub.2O.sub.3 and ZnCr.sub.2O.sub.4. The content of Cr in the nanocomposite is from 67.0 at. % to 90.0 at. %, based on the sum of the contents of Cr and Zn atoms. The gas sensing material is highly selective to methylbenzenes over other gases and is highly sensitive to methylbenzenes. Also disclosed are methods for preparing the gas sensing material. The methods facilitate control over the composition of the gas sensing material and enable rapid synthesis of the gas sensing material at low temperature. Also disclosed is a gas sensor including the gas sensing material.