A self-cleaning transparent conductive surface includes a hydrophobic film and a metal nano-web coupled to the hydrophobic film. The metal nano-web imparts conductive properties to the surface of the film and texturing formed by either the hydrophobic film, substrate or metal nano-web create a super-hydrophobic surface. This super-hydrophobic and conductive surface may be created by etching and layering a metal nano-web over the surface of a hydrophobic film or a rigid substrate, the metal grid may the hydrophobic film or substrate may also be etched in a moth's eye pattern. Both the hydrophobic film or substrate and metal nano-web may be coated in a layer of hydrophobic material to further increase the hydrophobic effect.

An electrode, process for preparing the electrode and devices thereof. An electrode comprising at least one metal deposited on a substrate; and at least one electrically conducting polymer. The devices comprising the electrode for energy storage and molecular separation.

A plating method can improve adhesivity with a substrate. The plating method of performing a plating process on the substrate includes forming a vacuum-deposited layer 2A on the substrate 2 by performing a vacuum deposition process on the substrate 2; forming an adhesion layer 21 and a catalyst adsorption layer 22 on the vacuum-deposited layer 2A of the substrate 2; and forming a plating layer stacked body 23 having a first plating layer 23a and a second plating layer 23b which function as a barrier film on the catalyst adsorption layer 22 of the substrate 2. By forming the vacuum-deposited layer 2A, a surface of the substrate 2 can be smoothened, so that the vacuum-deposited layer 2A serving as an underlying layer can improve the adhesivity.

Atomic layer etching (ALE) enables effective filling of small feature structures on semiconductor and other substrates, such as contacts and vias, by bottom-up fill, for example electroless deposition (ELD) of cobalt.

The invention relates to a washing solution for a tin plating film after electroless tin plating and before water washing. The invention also relates to a method for forming a tin plating film, the method includes a step of washing step using the washing solution. The washing solution according to the present invention is an acidic aqueous solution containing an acid, a complexing agent, a stabilizer and a chloride ion. The washing solution has a chloride ion concentration of 2 wt % or more, and a tin concentration of 0.5 wt % or less. The washing solution according to the present invention has good washing property for a tin plating film surface, and allows a tin plating film to easily maintain its properties. In addition the washing solution causes little influence on a tin plating film surface even when continuously used and is excellent in temporal stability.

Walls of through-holes and vias of substrates with dielectric material are electroless plated with copper using tin-free ionic silver catalysts. Conductive polymers are first formed on the substrates by treating the substrates with a permanganate solution containing complexing anions followed by applying monomers, oligomers or conductive polymers to the substrate to form a conductive polymer coating on the dielectric of the substrate as well as on the walls of through-holes and vias of the substrate. A tin-free ionic silver catalyst is then applied to the treated substrate. Optionally, the tin-free ionic silver catalyst can include a ligand agent to form a coordination entity with the silver ions of the tin-free catalyst. The silver ions of the tin-free catalyst are reduced by the conductive polymer and then an electroless metal copper bath is applied to the treated substrate to copper plate the dielectric and walls of the through-holes and vias of the substrate.

A method for producing an alloy steel composition includes the following steps: performing a first heat treatment on an alloy steel composition and maintaining for a first time period to soften the alloy steel composition; performing a first cooling treatment on the softened alloy steel composition; performing a treatment on the softened the alloy steel composition to form a workpiece; performing a second heat treatment on the workpiece and maintaining for a second time period; and performing a second cooling treatment on the workpiece to make the workpiece become to be a Bainite structure, and a cooling rate of the second cooling treatment is high than the cooling rate of the first cooling treatment.

An electrode for a lithium secondary battery, which may be applied to the lithium secondary battery to increase cycling performance and efficiency of the battery, and a manufacturing method thereof. When the electrode for the lithium secondary battery of the present invention is applied to the lithium secondary battery, uniform deposition and stripping of lithium metals occur throughout the surface of the electrode when charging/discharging the battery, thereby inhibiting uneven growth of lithium dendrites and improving cycle and efficiency characteristics of the battery. Further, the electrode for the lithium secondary battery of the present invention exhibits remarkably high flexibility, as compared with existing electrodes including a metal current collector and an active material layer, thereby improving processability during manufacture of the electrode and assembling the battery.

The invention relates to a method for depositing a metal M1 onto a carbon layer, as well as to a method for manufacturing an electrode for fuel cells and to a method for manufacturing a fuel cell. The method for depositing a metal M1 onto a porous carbon layer according to the invention includes a step of depositing said metal M1 by means of the electrochemical reduction of an electrolytic solution of a salt of the metal M1, and, prior to said step of depositing the metal M1 by means of electrochemical reduction, a step of depositing a metal M2 by means of chemical reduction using a reducing gas of a salt of the metal M2, the thermodynamic equilibrium potential between the ionic form of the salt of M2 and M2, E.sup.eq.sub.ionic form of the salt of M2/M2 being greater than the thermodynamic equilibrium potential between the ionic form of the salt of M1 and M1, E.sup.eq.sub.ionic form of the salt of M1/M1. The invention can be used, in particular, in the field of fuel cells.

Provided is a device and a method for forming a metal plating film having a thick film thickness by a solid substitution-type electroless plating method. The present disclosure relates to a film formation device for forming a film of a first metal on a plating film of a second metal by a solid substitution-type electroless plating method, comprising: a conductive mounting base; a third metal; an insulating material; a microporous membrane; a plating bath chamber; and a pressing unit, wherein the third metal has an ionization tendency larger than ionization tendencies of the first metal and the second metal, and wherein the insulating material is installed between a base material and the third metal so as to contact respective materials of the base material and the third metal when the base material having the plating film of the second metal is installed.