The present invention relates to a process for synthesizing carbon nanotubes by continuous chemical vapor deposition at the surface of reinforcements, said reinforcements constituting a mixture A (i) of particles and/or fibers of a material comprising at least one oxygen atom and (ii) of particles and/or fibers of a material chosen from carbides and/or of a material comprising at least one silicon atom, said process comprising the following steps, carried out under a stream of inert gas(es) optionally as a mixture with hydrogen: (i) heating of said mixture of reinforcements A in a reaction chamber at a temperature ranging from 400° C. to 900° C.; (ii) introducing into said chamber a source of carbon consisting of acetylene and/or xylene, and a catalyst comprising ferrocene; (iii) exposing said heated mixture A to the source of carbon and to the catalyst comprising ferrocene for a sufficient time to obtain carbon nanotubes at the surface of the reinforcements constituting said mixture A; (iv) recovering a mixture B at the end of step (iii), optionally after a cooling step, said mixture B consisting of the mixture (A) of reinforcements comprising carbon nanotubes at their surface; (v) optionally, separation (a) of the particles and/or fibers of a material comprising at least one oxygen atom, (b) of the particles and/or fibers of a material chosen from carbides and/or of a material comprising at least one silicon atom.

A dielectric thin film containing MgO as a main component, wherein the dielectric thin film is composed of a columnar structure group containing at least one columnar structure A constructed by single crystal and at least one columnar structure B constructed by polycrystal, respectively, and in the cross section of the direction perpendicular to the dielectric thin film, when the area occupied by the columnar structure A is set as C.sub.A and the area occupied by the columnar structure B is set as C.sub.B, the relationship between C.sub.A and C.sub.B satisfies 0.4≦C.sub.B/C.sub.A≦1.1.

Both single phase lead-free cubic pyrochlore bismuth zinc niobate (BZN)-based dielectric materials with a chemical composition of Bi.sub.1.5Zn.sub.(0.5+y)Nb.sub.(1.5−x)Ta.sub.(x)O.sub.(6.5+y), with 0≦x<0.23 and 0≦y<0.9 and films with these average compositions with Bi.sub.2O.sub.3 particles in an amorphous matrix and a process of manufacture thereof. The crystalline BZNT-based dielectric material has a relative permittivity of at least 120, a maximum applied electric field of at least 4.0 MV/cm at 10 kHz, a maximum energy storage at 25° C. and 10 kHz of at least 50 J/cm.sup.3 and a maximum energy storage at 200° C. and 10 kHz of at least 22 J/cm.sup.3. The process is a wet chemical process that produces thin films of Bi.sub.1.5Zn.sub.(0.5+y)Nb.sub.(1.5−x)Ta.sub.(x)O.sub.(6.5+y) without the use of 2-methoxyethanol and pyridine.

Both single phase lead-free cubic pyrochlore bismuth zinc niobate (BZN)-based dielectric materials with a chemical composition of Bi.sub.1.5Zn.sub.(0.5+y)Nb.sub.(1.5−x)Ta.sub.(x)O.sub.(6.5+y), with 0≦x<0.23 and 0≦y<0.9 and films with these average compositions with Bi.sub.2O.sub.3 particles in an amorphous matrix and a process of manufacture thereof. The crystalline BZNT-based dielectric material has a relative permittivity of at least 120, a maximum applied electric field of at least 4.0 MV/cm at 10 kHz, a maximum energy storage at 25° C. and 10 kHz of at least 50 J/cm.sup.3 and a maximum energy storage at 200° C. and 10 kHz of at least 22 J/cm.sup.3. The process is a wet chemical process that produces thin films of Bi.sub.1.5Zn.sub.(0.5+y)Nb.sub.(1.5−x)Ta.sub.(x)O.sub.(6.5+y) without the use of 2-methoxyethanol and pyridine.

A dielectric composition containing a complex oxide represented by the formula of xAO-yBO-zC.sub.2O.sub.5 as the main component, wherein A represents at least one element selected from the group including Ba, Ca and Sr, B represents Mg, and C represents at least one element selected from the group including Nb and Ta, and x, y and z meet the following conditions, x+y+z=1.000, 0.198≦x≦0.375, 0.389≦y≦0.625, and x/3≦z≦x/3+1/9.

A dielectric composition containing a complex oxide represented by the formula of xAO-yBO-zC.sub.2O.sub.5 as the main component, wherein A represents at least one element selected from the group including Ba, Ca and Sr, B represents Mg, and C represents at least one element selected from the group including Nb and Ta, and x, y and z meet the following conditions, x+y+z=1.000, 0.198≦x≦0.375, 0.389≦y≦0.625, and x/3≦z≦x/3+1/9.

A dielectric composition containing a complex oxide represented by the formula of xAO-yBO-zC.sub.2O.sub.5 as the main component, wherein A represents at least one element selected from the group including Ba, Ca and Sr, B represents Mg, and C represents at least one element selected from the group including Nb and Ta, and x, y and z meet the following conditions, x+y+z=1.000, 0.000<x≦0.281, 0.625≦y<1.000, and 0.000<z≦0.375.

A dielectric composition containing a complex oxide represented by the formula of xAO-yBO-zC.sub.2O.sub.5 as the main component, wherein A represents at least one element selected from the group including Ba, Ca and Sr, B represents Mg, and C represents at least one element selected from the group including Nb and Ta, and x, y and z meet the following conditions, x+y+z=1.000, 0.000<x≦0.281, 0.625≦y<1.000, and 0.000<z≦0.375.

The aim of the present invention lies in providing a dielectric composition which has a relatively high dielectric constant of 800 or greater, and which has relatively low dielectric loss of 4% or less when a DC bias of at least 8 V/ym is applied, and also in providing a dielectric element employing said dielectric composition, an electronic component, and a laminated electronic component. A dielectric composition having a main component represented by (Bi.sub.aNa.sub.bSr.sub.cBa.sub.d) (α.sub.xTi.sub.1-x) O.sub.3, characterized in that a is at least one selected from Zr and Sn; and a, b, c, d and x satisfy the following: 0.140≦a≦0.390, 0.140≦b≦0.390, 0.200≦c≦0.700, 0.020≦d≦0.240, 0.020≦x≦0.240 and 0.950<a+b+c+d≦1.050.

An ESD protection device 1 includes a ceramic insulating material 10, first and second discharge electrodes 21 and 22, and a discharge auxiliary section 51. The discharge auxiliary section 51 is an electrode configured to reduce a discharge starting voltage between the first discharge electrode 21 and the second discharge electrode 22. The discharge auxiliary section 51 comprises a sintered body including conductive particles and at least one of semiconductor particles and insulating particles. At least the discharge auxiliary section 51 comprises at least one of an alkaline metal component and a boron component. The content of at least one of the alkaline metal component and the boron component in the discharge auxiliary section 51 is larger than the content of at least one of the alkaline metal component and the boron component in the ceramic insulating material 10.