A nanocomposite material that can withstand prolonged contact with molten glass and glass precursor melts may include a cermet substrate and a glass reaction material overlying the cermet substrate. The cermet substrate may include a refractory metal matrix and ceramic particles embedded in the refractory metal matrix, and the glass reaction material may be the reaction product of molten glass and the cermet substrate in an inert environment. The nanocomposite material can be used to construct any kind of structure, such as an impeller or a vessel liner, that may be exposed to molten glass or glass precursor melts.

A conductive paste contains at least a conductive powder, glass frit, and an organic vehicle. The conductive powder is a mixed powder of an atomized powder prepared by an atomization method and a wet reduced powder prepared by a wet reduction method and the conductive powder contains the atomized powder in the range of 5 to 40 wt %. The atomized powder is 5.2 to 9 m in average particle size and the content of a chlorine component mixed in the conductive powder is 42 ppm or less. The conductive paste is applied in the form of a line onto a glass substrate 1 and subjected to firing to form conductive films. This conductive paste can prevent glass substrates from undergoing color changes and prevent base layers for conductive films from having structural defects such as cracks.

A method of forming an electrode, an electrode for a solar cell manufactured, and a solar cell, the method including forming a pattern of a finger electrode by: coating a composition for forming a first electrode that includes a conductive powder, an organic vehicle, and a first glass frit that is free of silver and phosphorus, and drying the coated composition for forming a first electrode; forming a pattern of a bus electrode by: coating a composition for forming a second electrode that includes a conductive powder, an organic vehicle, and a second glass fit that includes silver and phosphorus, and drying the coated composition for forming a second electrode; and firing the resultant patterns.

A method of manufacturing a polarizing glass sheet includes subjecting, while heating, a glass preform sheet containing metal halide particles to down-drawing, to thereby provide a glass member having stretched metal halide particles dispersed in an aligned manner in a glass matrix, and subjecting the glass member to reduction treatment to reduce the stretched metal halide particles, to thereby provide a polarizing glass sheet. A shape of the glass preform sheet during the down-drawing satisfies a relationship of the following expression:

L.sub.1/W.sub.11.0

where L.sub.1 represents a length between a portion in which a width of the glass preform sheet has changed to 0.8 times an original width and a portion in which the width of the glass preform sheet has changed to 0.2 times the original width W.sub.0, and W.sub.1 represents a length equivalent to 0.5 times the original width W.sub.0 of the glass preform sheet.

A method of forming an electrode, an electrode for a solar cell manufactured, and a solar cell, the method including forming a pattern of a finger electrode by: coating a composition for forming a first electrode that includes a conductive powder, an organic vehicle, and a first glass frit that is free of silver and phosphorus, and drying the coated composition for forming a first electrode; forming a pattern of a bus electrode by: coating a composition for forming a second electrode that includes a conductive powder, an organic vehicle, and a second glass frit that includes silver and phosphorus, and drying the coated composition for forming a second electrode; and firing the resultant patterns.

Provided is a photochromic substance that has lower toxicity, exhibits good sensitivity in a visible light region, changes color deeply, has slow speed of color fading, has chemical and thermal stability, and has good durability. The photochromic substance has a composition represented by the formula:
Ba.sub.(a-b)Ca.sub.bMg.sub.cSi.sub.dO.sub.e:Fe.sub.fM.sub.gM.sub.h where 1.8a2.2, 0b0.1, 1.4c3.5, 1.8d2.2, e=(a+c+2d), 0.0001f, 0.0001g, 0h, M is at least one of Al and Eu, and M is at least one element selected from the group consisting of Na, K, Nd, Li, S, C, Ti, V, Mn, Cr, Cu, Ni, Co, Ge, Zn, Ga, Zr, Y, Nb, In, Ag, Mo, Sn, Sb, Bi, Ta, W, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Gd, Er, Ho, Tb, Tm, Yb, Lu, P, Cd, and Pb.

The present invention provides a novel crystalline oxide, a process for producing the crystalline oxides, a conductive paste comprising the crystalline oxides and an article comprising a substrate and an abovementioned conductive paste applied on the substrate.

A structured polarizer includes a substrate including a dielectric material including elongated metal particles embedded to form a polarizing layer including a plurality of first polarizing regions having first elongated metal particles collectively aligned along a first direction and a plurality of second regions having second metal particles, the first polarizing regions and the second regions adjoining each other, the first metal particles being in the same plane as the second metal particles, a degree of polarization with respect to the first direction in the first polarizing regions at between 0.5 m and 1 m from a boundary between the first polarizing regions and the second regions being more than 90%, and a degree of polarization with respect to the first direction in the second regions at between 0.5 m and 1 m from the boundary between the first polarizing regions and the second regions being less than 10%.

A method includes forming a glassy article. The glassy article includes a first glassy layer and a second glassy layer adjacent to the first glassy layer. The second glassy layer includes a photosensitive glass. The glassy article is exposed to radiation to form an exposed glassy article. The exposed glassy article is subjected to a heat treatment, whereby a plurality of inclusions is formed in the photosensitive glass of the second glassy layer.

A conductive paste contains at least a conductive powder, glass frit, and an organic vehicle. The conductive powder contains a noble metal powder such as an Ag powder and a base metal powder containing Cu and/or Ni, and the base metal powder has a specific surface area of less than 0.5 m.sup.2/g. The content of the base metal powder with respect to the total amount of the conductive powder is, in ratio by weight, 0.1 to 0.3 when the base metal powder contains Cu as its main constituent, 0.1 to 0.2 when the base metal powder contains Ni as its main constituent, and 0.1 to 0.25 when the base metal powder contains a mixed powder of Cu and Ni as its main constituent.