text:
Electromechanical transducer and method of manufacturing the same
Disclosed is an electromechanical transducer, including: a cell including a substrate, a vibration film, and a supporting portion of the vibration film configured to support the vibration film so that a gap is formed between the substrate and the vibration film; and a lead wire that is placed on the substrate with an insulator interposed therebetween and extends to the cell, wherein the insulator has a thickness greater than the thickness of the supporting portion. The electromechanical transducer can reduce parasitic capacitance to prevent an increase in noise, a reduction in bandwidth, and a reduction in sensitivity.
Torashima, Kazutoshi (Yokohama, JP)
Kato, Ayako (Kawasaki, JP)
Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Tokyo, JP)
73/718, 73/724, 324/686, 367/181
G01L11/00; B06B1/02; G01L9/12; G01R27/26; H04R19/00
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JP201098454 April, 2010
JP2011004280A 2011-01-06 CAPACITIVE ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCER
JP2010098454A 2010-04-30
U.S. Appl. No. 13/421,791, filed Mar. 15, 2012 by Kazutoshi Torashima et al.
Chinese Office Action dated Jun. 3, 2014 for counterpart Chinese Appln No. 201210114687.2.
Allen, Andre
Fitzpatrick, Cella, Harper & Scinto
1. An electromechanical transducer, comprising: a substrate; a vibration film; a supporting portion of the vibration film configured to support the vibration film so that a gap is formed between the substrate and the vibration film; an insulator on the substrate; and a lead wire which is placed on the insulator and which extends to the vibration film, wherein the insulator has a thickness greater than the thickness of the supporting portion.
2. The electromechanical transducer according to claim 1, wherein the substrate is a silicon substrate functioning as a first electrode, the vibration film comprises a monocrystalline silicon film functioning as a second electrode, and the lead wire is electrically connected to the monocrystalline silicon film.
3. The electromechanical transducer according to claim 2, wherein the insulator is a thermal oxide of the monocrystalline film.
4. The electromechanical transducer according to claim 1, wherein the thickness of the insulator is equal to or greater than the sum of the thickness of the supporting portion and the thickness of the vibration film.
5. The electromechanical transducer according to claim 2, wherein a groove is formed in the monocrystalline silicon film around each of a plurality of elements, and each of the elements is electrically isolated.
6. A method of manufacturing an electromechanical transducer comprising a first substrate, a vibration film, and a supporting portion of the vibration film configured to support the vibration film so that a gap is formed between the first substrate and the vibration film, the method comprising: forming a first insulating layer on one surface of the first substrate which is silicon substrate; forming a recess for the gap in the first insulating layer and a portion for the supporting portion; bonding a second substrate, which comprises silicon layer, to the portion for the supporting portion; thinning the second substrate to leave the silicon layer; oxidizing a part of the silicon layer other than a portion for the vibration film to for a second insulating layer; and forming an electrically-conductive layer on the second insulating layer to form a lead wire.
7. The method of manufacturing an electromechanical transducer according to claim 6, further comprising: forming a protective film before the oxidizing step so that at least the vibration film-forming portion of the silicon layer is protected by the protective film; and removing the protective film after the oxidizing step, wherein in the oxidizing step, a part of the silicon layer other than the vibration film-forming portion, on which the protective film is formed, is thermally oxidized to form the second insulating layer oxide.
8. The method of manufacturing an electromechanical transducer according to claim 6, wherein an SOI substrate is used as the second substrate.
9. The method of manufacturing an electromechanical transducer according to claim 6, wherein a silicon nitride film is formed as the protective film.
10. The method of manufacturing an electromechanical transducer according to claim 9, wherein an SOI substrate is used as the second substrate, a silicon oxide layer and a surface silicon layer of the SOI substrate are left when the second substrate is thinned, and a two-layer structure comprising the silicon oxide layer and the silicon nitride film formed on the silicon oxide layer is formed as the protective film.
11. An electromechanical transducer, comprising: a silicon substrate, a first insulating layer on the silicon substrate, a vibration film, comprising a silicon layer, which is placed on the first insulating layer so that a gap is formed between the substrate and the vibration film, a second insulating layer, comprising a thermal oxide of the silicon layer, which is placed on the first insulating layer, and a lead wire which is placed on the second insulating layer and which extends to the vibration film.
12. The electromechanical transducer according to claim 11, wherein the combined thickness of the first insulating layer and the second insulating layer under the lead wire is greater than the thickness of the first insulating layer at a supporting portion of the vibration film.
13. The electromechanical transducer according to claim 11, wherein the silicon substrate functions as a first electrode, wherein the silicon layer is a monocrystalline silicon film and functions as a second electrode, and wherein the lead wire is electrically connected to the monocrystalline silicon film.
14. The electromechanical transducer according to claim 12, wherein a groove is formed in the silicon layer around each of a plurality of elements, each of the elements is electrically isolated.
The present invention relates to an electromechanical transducer such as a capacitive electromechanical transducer for use as an ultrasonic transducer or the like, and to a method of manufacturing such an electromechanical transducer.
Micromachining technology has made possible micrometer-scale fabrication of micromachine parts. Using such parts, a variety of very small functional transducers have been developed. Capacitive electromechanical transducers such as capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducers (CMUTs) manufactured using such technology have been studied as alternatives to piezoelectric transducers. Such capacitive electromechanical transducers enable transmission and reception of ultrasound by using vibration of a vibration film, while it can easily achieve good broadband characteristics particularly in liquid.
Concerning such capacitive electromechanical transducers, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) No. 2010-098454 discloses a transducer in which the parasitic capacitance between a wire connecting a plurality of upper electrodes and a lower electrode is reduced using a monocrystalline silicon vibration film formed by bonding onto a silicon substrate or other processes. According to this publication, a silicon substrate is used as a lower electrode, and upper electrodes are provided on the monocrystalline silicon vibration films. The upper electrode on each vibration film is connected to a wire, and a supporting portion of the vibration film provided between the lower electrode and the wire has a cavity so that the parasitic capacitance generated between the wire and the lower electrode is reduced.
In the above capacitive electromechanical transducer having a monocrystalline silicon vibration film formed on a silicon substrate by bonding or the like, a silicon layer including the monocrystalline silicon vibration film can be used as an electrode, and the silicon substrate can also be used as another electrode. In order to more efficiently decrease noise, degradation of broadband characteristics, and a reduction in sensitivity, it is desirable that parasitic capacitance occurring between the silicon substrate and the silicon layer including the monocrystalline silicon vibration film are reduced. Particularly when a lead wire is formed on the silicon layer so that electrical signals can be transmitted and received, a parasitic capacitance that can easily occur in a large amount between the lead wire and the silicon substrate is desirably reduced.
From another perspective, in the above capacitive electromechanical transducer having a monocrystalline silicon vibration film, while the parasitic capacitance can be reduced by forming an insulator under the lead wire, it is more desirable that the insulator on the vibration film, which is deposited when the insulator is formed after the formation of the vibration film and which can function as a vibration film together with the monocrystalline silicon part, is removed. Such removal can lead to reduced variations in thickness of the entire vibration film. However, when the insulator on the vibration film is removed, other variations in the thickness of the vibration film may occur due to the removal. This may cause variations in the spring constant or bending of the monocrystalline silicon vibration film, so that the uniformity of the capacitive electromechanical transducer may decrease, which may increase variations in the element performance.
In view of the above problems, the present invention provides an electromechanical transducer, including: a cell including a substrate, a vibration film, and a supporting portion of the vibration film configured to support the vibration film so that a gap is formed between the substrate and the vibration film; and a lead wire which is placed on the substrate with an insulator interposed therebetween and which extends to the cell, wherein the insulator has a thickness greater than the thickness of the supporting portion.
In view of the above problems, the present invention also provides a method of manufacturing an electromechanical transducer including a cell including a substrate, a vibration film, and a supporting portion of the vibration film configured to support the vibration film so that a gap is formed between the substrate and the vibration film, which includes the steps of: forming an insulating layer on one surface of a first silicon substrate and forming a recess for the gap and a portion for the supporting portion; bonding a second silicon substrate to the insulating layer; thinning the second silicon substrate to form a silicon layer including at least a portion for the vibration film; oxidizing a part of the silicon layer other than the portion for the vibration film; and forming an electrically-conductive layer on the oxide, produced in the oxidizing step, to form a lead wire.
Since the vibration film-equipped electromechanical transducer of the present invention has the insulator, which is provided under the lead wire and which is thicker than the supporting portion, it can reduce the parasitic capacitance between the lead wire and the substrate-side electrode. Thus, an increase in noise, a reduction in bandwidth, and a reduction in sensitivity can be prevented.
In the method for manufacturing an electromechanical transducer of the present invention, a silicon layer other than the vibration film-forming portion is oxidized, and a lead wire is formed on the resulting oxide. Thus, due to the presence of the thermal oxide, the parasitic capacitance between the lead wire and the silicon substrate-side electrode can be reduced, so that an increase in noise, a reduction in bandwidth, and a reduction in sensitivity can be prevented.
Further features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the attached drawings.
FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating an electromechanical transducer according to an embodiment of the present invention and Example 1;
FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 1B-1B of FIG. 1A;
FIG. 2A is a diagram illustrating an electromechanical transducer according to Example 2 of the present invention;
FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 2B-2B of FIG. 2A; and
FIGS. 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D, 3E, and 3F are cross-sectional views of a process of manufacturing an electromechanical transducer according to another embodiment of the present invention and Example 3.
DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail in accordance with the accompanying drawings.
The gist of the present invention is that an insulator thicker than a supporting portion of a vibration film is provided at a cell lead wire placement portion on a substrate such as a silicon substrate so that the parasitic capacitance between the lead wire and a substrate-side electrode can be reduced.
Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B that illustrate an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1A is a top view of a capacitive electromechanical transducer of this embodiment, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 1B-1B of FIG. 1A. In this embodiment, cells 1 and lead wires 12 are provided. In this structure, a cell corresponds to each membrane structure including a silicon substrate, a vibration film, and a supporting portion of the vibration film configured to support the vibration film so that a gap such as an air gap is formed between the silicon substrate and the vibration film. While the structure shown in FIG. 1 is an array structure including four transducer elements each having cells 1, the number of the elements is not limited thereto. While each element includes nine cells 1, the number of the cells is also not limited thereto.
In this embodiment, the cell 1 includes a monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4, a gap 5, a supporting portion 6 of the vibration film configured to support the monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4, and a silicon substrate 7. In contrast to a vibration film formed by deposition (such as a silicon nitride film), the monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4 has little residual stress and small variations in thickness and in vibration film spring constant. Therefore, variations in performance between the elements or between the cells are small. The supporting portion 6 is preferably made of an insulator such as silicon oxide or silicon nitride. If it is not made of an insulator, an insulating layer should be formed on the silicon substrate 7 to insulate the silicon substrate 7 from the monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4. As described below, the silicon substrate 7 is used as a common electrode between the plurality of elements and therefore it is preferably a low-resistance substrate with a resistance of 0.1 Ωcm or less so that an ohmic contact can be easily formed. The term "ohmic" means that the resistance is constant regardless of the current direction and the voltage level.
The portion under the lead wire 12 is made of an insulator 11 extending from the surface of the silicon substrate 7 to the lower side of the lead wire, and the thickness 13 of the insulator 11 under the lead wire is greater than the thickness 8 of the supporting portion 6. The insulator 11 is preferably a thermal oxide film. In a case where the transducer includes a plurality of elements, the insulator 11 may also be placed around each element, so that each of the elements can be electrically isolated. FIG. 1 shows that the thickness 13 of the insulator 11 is almost equal to the sum of the thickness 8 of the supporting portion 6 and the thickness of the vibration film 4 (including an aluminum thin film 10 as described below). Alternatively, the thickness of the insulator may be equal to or more than the sum of the thickness of the supporting portion and the thickness of the vibration film.
This structure enables transmission and reception of electrical signals through the lead wire without formation of through wiring penetrating the element in a thickness direction thereof. This structure can also increase the distance between the lead wire 12 and the silicon substrate 7, which functions as a common electrode (first electrode), so that it can reduce parasitic capacitance. Therefore, it can prevent an increase in noise, a reduction in sensitivity, and a reduction in bandwidth, which would otherwise be caused by parasitic capacitance. Particularly in the case of an array structure, the lead wires of the respective elements may differ in length and, in such a case, parasitic capacitance and resistance may differ from element to element, so that sensitivity, bandwidth, and the amount of noise may differ from element to element. In the capacitive electromechanical transducer according to this embodiment, on the contrary, the distance between the lead wire 12 and the silicon substrate 7 serving as a common electrode can be increased, so that even in an array structure, an increase in noise, a reduction in sensitivity, and a reduction in bandwidth can be prevented.
The drive principle in this embodiment is as follows. Each element is formed on the same silicon substrate 7 which can be used as a common electrode (first electrode). The monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4 also functions as an electrode for each individual element (second electrode). The monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4 is electrically connected to the lead wire 12, so that an electrical signal for each individual element can be transmitted through the lead wire 12. When the capacitive electromechanical transducer receives ultrasound, a DC voltage (e.g., a DC voltage of 100 V or less) is applied to the silicon substrate 7 from voltage applying means (not shown). When it receives ultrasound, the monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4 is deformed, so that the distance of the gap 5 between the vibration film 4 and the silicon substrate 7 is changed, and thus the capacitance is also changed. The capacitance change causes a current to flow in the lead wire 12. The current is detected as a voltage by a current-voltage transducer (not shown) so that the ultrasound can be received. Alternatively, a DC voltage and an AC voltage can also be applied to the silicon substrate 7 or the monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4, and the monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4 can be vibrated by an electrostatic force, and thus ultrasound is transmitted.
As described above, the silicon layer under the lead wire 12 is replaced with the insulator 11 in this embodiment, so that parasitic capacitance generated between the lead wire 12 and the silicon substrate 7 can be reduced. This can prevent an increase in noise, a reduction in sensitivity, and a reduction in bandwidth, which would otherwise be caused by parasitic capacitance. The use of the monocrystalline silicon vibration film also makes film thickness control easy and reduces residual stress in contrast to the use of a vibration film formed by deposition, such as a silicon nitride film vibration film. In addition, no high-residual-stress material is deposited on the monocrystalline silicon vibration film, and the vibration film is made mainly of monocrystalline silicon, which has low residual stress. Therefore, variations in the spring constant of the vibration film and variations in the bending of the vibration film can be reduced, so that variations in performance between cells or elements can be reduced to a very low level, which enables to stabilize transmission and reception characteristics.
The supporting portion and the gap can be formed on a first substrate, and a second substrate can be bonded thereto to form the vibration film, so that variations in the distance between the monocrystalline silicon vibration film and the silicon substrate can be reduced. Thus, variations in the sensitivity of reception/transmission between cells or elements can be reduced. The insulator is preferably a thermal oxide. When such a thermal oxide is formed, silicon is also consumed. Therefore, for example, when a 1 μm thick silicon layer is thermally oxidized, an about 2 μm thick thermal oxide can be formed. This enables to further reduce the parasitic capacitance between the lead wire 12 and the silicon substrate 7.
A groove may be further formed in the silicon layer around the element including a plurality of cells, so that a structure for electrical isolation between a plurality of elements can be formed. Stress may occur when the silicon layer to be located under the lead wire is converted into an oxide by thermal oxidation or the like, but the element isolation structure can suppress the bending of the silicon vibration film 4 caused by the stress.
Referring to FIGS. 3A to 3F that illustrate an example of the manufacturing process according to this embodiment, FIGS. 3A to 3F are cross-sectional views of a capacitive electromechanical transducer, which has almost the same structure as shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 3A, an insulating layer 51 is formed on a first silicon substrate 50, and recesses for forming gaps 52 and portions for forming supporting portions of the vibration film are formed. The first silicon substrate 50 preferably has a resistivity of about 0.1 Ωcm or less. If the insulating layer 51 is directly bonded to a second silicon substrate 53 for forming a monocrystalline silicon vibration film in the following step, it is preferably made of a silicon oxide film formed by thermal oxidation. This is because the direct bonding requires that the substrate to be bonded should have high flatness and low surface roughness and, on the other hand, the silicon oxide film formed by thermal oxidation has high flatness and it does not increase the surface roughness of the substrate, and thus the direct bonding can be easily conducted. The gaps 52 are formed by photolithography or etching.
Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 3B, a second silicon substrate 53 for forming a monocrystalline silicon vibration film is bonded thereto by direct bonding. The direct bonding may be a method including activating the substrate surface and bonding it or a method including bonding the substrates with water molecules interposed therebetween and then heating them to increase the bond strength. As shown in FIG. 3B, this step may be performed using a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate as the second silicon substrate 53 for forming the monocrystalline silicon vibration film. The SOI substrate has a structure including a silicon substrate (handle layer) 56, a surface silicon layer (active layer) 54, and a silicon oxide layer (BOX layer) 55 interposed between the substrate 56 and the layer 54. When the SOI substrate is used, since the active layer 54 of the SOI substrate can be used as a silicon layer including a monocrystalline silicon vibration film, the active layer side is bonded.
Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 3C, the second silicon substrate 53 is thinned, and a protective film 58 is formed on the silicon layer having the monocrystalline silicon vibration film. Since the silicon layer for forming the monocrystalline silicon vibration film is preferably several μm or less in thickness, the second silicon substrate 53 is thinned by etching, grinding, or chemical mechanical polishing (CMP).
As shown in FIG. 3C, when an SOI substrate is used as the second substrate, the SOI substrate is thinned by removing the handle layer 56 and the BOX layer 55. The handle layer 56 can be removed by grinding, CMP, or etching. The removal of the BOX layer 55 can be performed by oxide film etching (dry etching or etching with hydrofluoric acid). Since wet etching with hydrofluoric acid or the like can prevent the etching of silicon, it can be more preferably used so that variations in the thickness of the monocrystalline silicon vibration film 57 formed by the etching can be reduced. The active layer of the SOI substrate for forming the monocrystalline silicon vibration film can be prepared with reduced variations in thickness, so that variations in the thickness of the monocrystalline silicon vibration film 57 can be reduced. Therefore, variations in the spring constant of the vibration film of the capacitive electromechanical transducer can be reduced, so that variations in frequency during transmission and reception can be reduced. When the SOI substrate is not used as the second silicon substrate for forming the monocrystalline silicon vibration film, back grinding or CMP can be used to reduce the thickness to about 2 μm.
An insulator is formed under a lead wire in the following step, in which step the protective film 58 prevents the insulator from coming into direct contact with the monocrystalline silicon vibration film. When a silicon oxide film formed by thermal oxidation is used as the insulator, the monocrystalline silicon vibration film may also be oxidized, so that its thickness may vary. The silicon oxide film can be formed by thermal oxidation in such a manner that about 50% of the desired amount of film formation is attained by the oxidation of the silicon surface. Therefore, the protective film is preferably a silicon nitride film or any other material that does not undergo thermal oxidation.
As shown in FIG. 3C, the BOX layer 55 of the SOI substrate may be used without being removed, so that the protective film can have a two-layer structure including the BOX layer 55 and a silicon nitride film 58 formed thereon. If the SOI substrate is not used, a two-layer structure can be provided by forming an oxide film by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and forming a silicon nitride film thereon. If the monocrystalline silicon vibration film is etched during the removal of the film formed on the monocrystalline silicon vibration film, variations in thickness will occur, so that variations in the spring constant of the vibration film or variations in the bending of the vibration film may occur. Therefore, the protective film is preferably removed by wet etching with hydrofluoric acid or any other etchant not attacking the monocrystalline silicon vibration film. Thus, the silicon oxide film is preferably formed directly on the monocrystalline silicon vibration film, and the silicon nitride film is preferably formed thereon. This enables to form the vibration film without variations in the thickness of the monocrystalline silicon vibration film 57.
Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 3D, the protective film is removed at the part of the silicon layer to be oxidized, and as shown in FIG. 3E, thermal oxidation is performed from one surface of the silicon layer to the other surface so that an insulator 59 is formed. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 3F, the protective film 58 on the silicon vibration film is removed, and a lead wire 60 is formed on the insulator 59. An aluminum thin film 61 or the like may be formed on the vibration film 57.
By this manufacturing method, a capacitive electromechanical transducer with reduced variations in the thickness and spring constant of the monocrystalline silicon vibration film and with reduced variations in performance can be easily formed. In addition, the parasitic capacitance between the lead wire 60 and the silicon substrate 50 serving as a common electrode can also be reduced, so that a reduction in sensitivity, a reduction in bandwidth, and an increase in noise can be prevented, which would otherwise be caused by parasitic capacitance. While the above bulk micromachining process is preferred to manufacture elements having the structure shown in FIG. 1B, it will be understood that such elements can also be manufactured by other processes (such as surface micromachining processes using sacrificing layer etching). It should be noted, however, that after a vibration film is protected by a protective film and an insulator including a part to be located under a lead wire is formed, the step of removing the unnecessary insulator and protective film should be performed appropriately.
Hereinafter, the present invention is described in detail with reference to more specific examples. It will be understood that the examples are not intended to limit the present invention and various changes and modifications can be made within the gist of the present invention.
The structure of a capacitive electromechanical transducer according to Example 1 is described with reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B. The capacitive electromechanical transducer of this example is an array structure including a plurality of transducer elements each having cells 1 and a lead wire 12. While FIG. 1A only shows four elements, the number of elements is not limited thereto.
The cells 1 each include a 1 μm thick monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4, a gap 5, a supporting portion 6 of the vibration film which is configured to support the monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4 and which have a resistivity of 0.01 Ωcm, and a silicon substrate 7. The silicon substrate 7 has a thickness of 300 μm and a resistivity of 0.01 Ωcm. While the cell 1 is circular in this example, it may be in any other shape such as a quadrangle or a hexagon. The monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4 is made mainly of monocrystalline silicon. Since no high-residual-stress layer is formed on the monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4, the uniformity between elements is high, and variations in transmittance/reception performance can be reduced. An about 200 nm thick aluminum thin film 10 or the like may also be formed to improve the electrically conducting properties of the monocrystalline silicon vibration film. When an aluminum thin film is formed on the monocrystalline silicon vibration film, the silicon layer between the cells 1 may also be converted into an insulator. This structure can reduce the parasitic capacitance between the electrodes. In this structure, the cells 1 are each a circle with a diameter of 30 μm, the supporting portion 6 is made of silicon oxide and has a height of 300 nm, and the distance of the gap 5 is 200 nm.
The lead wire 12 is formed on the insulator 11. In the structure, the thickness 13 of the insulator under the lead wire 12 is greater than the thickness 8 of the supporting portion 6 which is configured to support the monocrystalline silicon vibration film 4. The lead wire 12 is made of aluminum and it has a width of 10 μm and a height of 0.2 μm. The insulator 11 is a thermal oxide, which is an about 2 μm thick oxide formed by thermal oxidation from one surface of a silicon layer 9 to the other surface. Thus, the distance between the lead wire 12 and the silicon substrate 7 serving as a common electrode is made greater than that in the case where the silicon layer is not thermally oxidized. When the silicon layer is not thermally oxidized, the parasitic capacitance between the lead wire and the silicon substrate is about 10 pF. In contrast, when the insulator 11 is provided under the lead wire 12, the parasitic resistance can be reduced to about 1 pF. In this structure, sensitivity and bandwidth can be increased by 4% and 13%, respectively, and noise can be reduced by 35%, relative to those in the case where the silicon layer under the lead wire is not thermally oxidized. As described above, the parasitic capacitance can be reduced, so that a reduction in sensitivity, a reduction in bandwidth, and an increase in noise can be prevented.
The drive principle of this example is as described above in the embodiment section. When the transducer of this example is used in a material having similar acoustic impedance to a liquid, the transducer has a center frequency of about 7 MHz and a 3 dB frequency bandwidth from about 2.5 MHz to 11.5 MHz and therefore it has broadband characteristics. In the electromechanical transducer of this example, the silicon layer under the lead wire is thermally oxidized from one surface to the other, so that the parasitic capacitance between the lead wire and the silicon substrate serving as a common electrode can be reduced. Thus, an increase in noise, a reduction in sensitivity, and a reduction in bandwidth, which would otherwise be caused by parasitic capacitance, can be prevented in this structure.
The structure of a capacitive electromechanical transducer according to Example 2 is described with reference to FIGS. 2A and 2B. FIG. 2A is a top view, and FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 2B-2B of FIG. 2A. The structure of the capacitive electromechanical transducer of Example 2 is almost the same as that of Example 1. In Example 2, a groove is formed in a silicon layer 29 around each element having a plurality of cells 21, so that an isolation structure 31 is formed to electrically insulate each element. In addition, the silicon layer under a lead wire 22 is thermally oxidized, so that the parasitic capacitance between the lead wire 22 and a silicon substrate 27 serving as a common electrode is reduced. In each cell 21, a gap 25 is formed below a vibration film 24 supported by a supporting portion 26 of the vibration film. An aluminum thin film 30 or the like may also be formed on the vibration film 24.
The parasitic capacitance between the lead wire 22 and the silicon substrate 7 is reduced in this structure, so that it can prevent an increase in noise, a reduction in sensitivity, and a reduction in bandwidth, which would otherwise be caused by parasitic capacitance. In addition, the portion to be thermally oxidized is only the silicon layer under the lead wire 22, and the silicon layer 29 around the element is removed so that the isolation structure 31 is formed. In the structure, therefore, stress generated in the process of oxidizing the silicon layer under the lead wire 22 has no influence on each element. While the silicon layer around each element is removed in this example, the silicon layer around the wire 22 may be alternatively removed. When such a structure is formed, each element does not suffer from deformation of the silicon vibration film or the like, which is caused by stress generated by the oxidation of the silicon layer, so that variation between cells or elements can be reduced.
A method of manufacturing a capacitive electromechanical transducer according to Example 3 is described with reference to FIGS. 3A to 3F. As shown in FIG. 3A, an insulating layer 51 of silicon oxide is formed on a 300 μm thick first silicon substrate 50 by thermal oxidation, and gaps 52 are formed by photolithography or etching. The first silicon substrate 50 has a resistivity of about 0.01 Ωcm.
Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 3B, a second silicon substrate 53 is bonded and thinned. In this step, the second silicon substrate 53 is an SOI substrate. The SOI substrate includes an active layer 54 with a thickness of 1 μm, a BOX layer 55 with a thickness of 0.4 μm, and a handle layer 56 with a thickness of 525 μm. The active layer 54 of the SOI substrate has a resistivity of 0.1 Ωcm. The active layer 54 used herein has a thickness variation of ±5% or less, and the active layer side is bonded directly. Since variations in the thickness of the active layer of the SOI substrate 53 is small, variations in the thickness of the monocrystalline silicon vibration film can be reduced. Thus, variations in the spring constant of the vibration film can be reduced in the capacitive electromechanical transducer. The SOI substrate is thinned by removing the handle layer 56. The removal of the handle layer is performed by back grinding or alkali etching.
Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 3C, a protective film 58 is formed on the active layer 54 for forming a vibration film 57. The protective film 58 is a silicon nitride film. In this example, the protective film is formed using the BOX layer 55 of the SOI substrate in combination with a silicon nitride film formed thereon. The protective film is provided to prevent thermal oxidation of the upper part of the monocrystalline silicon vibration film 57 in the step of thermally oxidizing the silicon layer, which is performed after this step.
Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 3D, the protective film 58 is subjected to photolithography and etching so that the protective film 58 can be partially left on each element, and as shown in FIG. 3E, the portions not covered with the protective film (silicon layer portions other than those for forming vibration films) are oxidized. In this example, thermal oxidation is performed. Since the protective film 58 includes a silicon nitride film, which is not thermally oxidized, the silicon layer protected by the protective film, which includes the vibration film 57, is not thermally oxidized.
Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 3F, the protective film is removed, and an Al wire 60 is formed on the produced thermal oxide 59. The removal of the protective film is performed by a process including removing the silicon nitride film by dry etching and removing the BOX layer 55 by wet etching with an etchant containing hydrogen fluoride. The BOX layer 55 is removed by wet etching, which is not capable of etching the silicon layer, and thus the monocrystalline silicon vibration film is exposed. Therefore, variations in mechanical characteristic, such as variations in the vibration film thickness do not occur. The Al wire 60 is formed by a process including performing sputtering or vapor deposition of Al to form an electrically-conductive layer and performing photolithography and etching. Thus transmission and reception of electrical signals to and from each element is enabled.
A capacitive electromechanical transducer with reduced variations in the thickness and spring constant of the monocrystalline silicon vibration film and with reduced variations in performance can be easily formed by this manufacturing method. In addition, the parasitic capacitance between the lead wire and the silicon substrate serving as a common electrode can also be reduced, so that a reduction in sensitivity, a reduction in band, and an increase in noise can be prevented, which would otherwise be caused by parasitic capacitance.
While the present invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. The scope of the following claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent structures and functions.
This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No. 2011-093370, filed Apr. 19, 2011, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
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This crazy, beautiful life calls for quick and easy meal preparation! Not to mention, it has to be delicious. This recipe for a Reuben Ring fits the bill. Put it together for brunch or a potluck, and you'll get rave reviews!
On a round pizza pan, lay out the crescent rolls in a circle with the points facing the outside of the circle, and the wider ends overlapping toward the middle. This creates a wreath that you can stuff with endless possibilities!
Place a dot of mustard on the center of each crescent, followed by a slice of Swiss and a slice of pastrami. Top with chopped pickles or sauerkraut. Fold the points in to the middle and gently press together at the center. Brush with beaten egg, and bake for 20 minutes. 15 on the top rack, then move to the bottom rack for the last 5 minutes.
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text:
<?php
	class Repository extends CI_Controller {

		public function __construct() {
			parent:: __construct();
			$this->load->model('repo_model');
			$this->load->model('project_model');
			$this->load->model('document_model');
			$this->load->library('unit_test');
			$this->load->helper('form');
			$this->load->library('table');
		}

		public function show_snip() {

			$data['snippets'] = $this->repo_model->get_snippets();
			$data['titles'] = $this->project_model->get_proj_title();

			$checkboxes = $this->input->get('checkbox'); //array
			$proj_title_repo = $this->input->get('projecto_titles');

			if(empty($checkboxes)) {
				$this->load->view('templates/header');
				$this->load->view('snipsnip', $data);
				$this->load->view('templates/footer');
			}
			else {

				$chosen_titles = array();
				foreach ($checkboxes as $checkbox) {
					$chosen_titles[] = $data['snippets'][$checkbox]['SNIPPET_TITLE'];
				}

				$this->load->view('templates/header');
				$this->load->view('success');
				$this->load->view('templates/footer');

				$this->document_model->set_doc_data($chosen_titles, $proj_title_repo);

			}
		}

	}
?>

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Q: Name Error: name 'x' is not defined when working with function I have 3 dataframes that I'm working with that has the same column names and that I'm working on merging them.  The first column is for the dataframes I want the same.  The rest of the columns are years, and I wanted to add a letter to each of years to distinguish between the dataframes.  I was able to do this manually without any issues.  But when I tried defining a function, I get the following error

NameError: name 'x' is not defined.

This is my initial attempt without defining a function.  dfyears is the dataframe I'm trying to change the columns names with.  The first column 'City_State', I want to keep the same, and the rest I want to add a letter behind depending on the dataframe.
dfyearlist = (dfyears.columns[1:].values.tolist())
dfcols = [(dfyears.columns[0])]
for i in dfyearlist:
    dfcols.append(i + 'r')
dfyears.columns = dfcols

Here's the first 3 lines of my output:
        City_State        2010r        2011r        2012r        2013r  \
0     New York, NY  1771.666667  1753.384615  1803.615385  1955.384615
1  Los Angeles, CA  2190.333333  2185.076923  2185.000000  2242.692308
2      Houston, TX  1198.666667  1195.538462  1197.846154  1252.692308

         2014r        2015r        2016r        2017r        2018r
0  2124.000000  2271.230769  2331.846154  2337.384615  2295.846154
1  2331.384615  2522.692308  2687.000000  2798.307692  2883.153846
2  1322.076923  1411.461538  1439.461538  1423.615385  1432.923077

But when I tried defining a function:
def changecolumnnames(s, x):
    templist = [s.columns[1:].values.tolist()]
    returnlist = [(s.columns[0])]
    for i in templist:
        returnlist.append(i + str(x))
    s.columns = returnlist

zillrentyears = changecolumnnames(zillrentyears, r)

I get:

NameError: name 'r' is not defined.

Not sure what I'm doing wrong here?

A: r is a string and you're trying to pass it as a variable.
You need to change your function to hangecolumnnames(zillrentyears, "r") and then inside the function you can call returnlist.append(i + x) without using str.

A: x is not defined outside of changecolumnnames
You provide r as an input to changecolumnnames. r is your x outside of changecolumnnames

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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Experience a year of Sports Management graduate school - all in less than a week.
Paul DePodesta, the man behind the movie and bestselling book Moneyball, explains his technique of combining analytics and critical thinking.
Some view ego as a negative thing, but when harnessed and used the right way, ego can serve as an incredible driver to positive outcomes.
Utilize grit and perseverance to achieve your dreams.
"My management team was not only entertained, but inspired and energized after hearing of the leadership how-to's from sports figures they recognize."
"Not only has SMI programming been a catalyst for transformation for my clients and their organizations, I've personally and professionally evolved into a new dimension of my career as result of becoming a certified SMI Executive Leadership Coach."
"Collaboration is a word we use a lot during class and during our projects. But listening to the stories of teamwork from established executives in the field of sports makes it real."
"Behavioral change and growth requires engagement and accountability. The Sports Mind Institute (SMI) brings both of these to the table in a readily useful form."
"The course is great. It is helping me put into perspective the choice I made to take time out of my career and go to graduate school to enrich and transition to a career of more meaning, value, and success."
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The Tasty Treats at WDW!
Okay, so there is NO way I could eat all of the treats at Walt Disney World! There are just too many to choose from sometimes. But, I have had a few that have really stood out! So, I am going to share a few of those with you!
First up, is the absolutely delicious and very rich Butterfinger Cupcake served at Starring Rolls in Disney's Hollywood Studios! The cupcake was moist and soft while the topping had the taste and crunch of a Butterfinger candy bar. It was quite a mix of flavors on the tongue! It is a very rich cupcake and could easily be shared by two or three people.
Next, is the Cinnamon Roll at The Magic Kingdom! The roll is gooey and fresh! The taste of cinnamon is nice and strong, for a true cinnamon lover! And, the icing completely covers the roll and even consumes the plate! The only one I have had, to date, is the one from the Main Street Bakery (now a Starbucks). It is my understanding that you now must go to Gaston's Tavern and that the icing is a different flavor. I must get this on my next visit!
And, one more, just because it is my current FAVORITE treat! It is a bit pricey, but OOOOOHHHHH So Good!! Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you, the No Way Jose'! This wonderful creation of Ice Cream perfected is found only at Beaches and Cream, at Disney's Beach Club Resort! If you LOVE Peanut Butter, (and I do!), you will love this huge sundae! You may want to plan on it being one of you meals! Keep in mind, however, that Beaches and Cream now requires an ADR for sit-down service!
There are many, many, MANY more treats to talk about! Such as: Disney Parks Popcorn, Mickey Ice Cream Bars, Mickey Krispy Treats, and anything from the Goofy Candy Co., but that is for another time!
Please feel free to share some of your favorites in the comments section below! And, as always, have a Blessed and Magical day, my friends!!
Author threestrandswdwPosted on 08/30/2014 Categories Disney Destinations, Disney's Beach Club Resort, Disney's Hollywood Studios, Magic Kingdom Park, Walt Disney WorldTags Magic Kingdom Cinnamon Rolls, No Way Jose, Starring Rolls1 Comment on The Tasty Treats at WDW!
Is The Freeze On For Norway at WDW?
As you may have heard by now, the Norway Pavilions in the World Showcase at EPCOT may be going under an extended refurbishment during the off-season. What does this mean? That is the question that many in the Disney community is wanting an answer to, and quickly!
There has been some speculation that Maelstrom may receive a FROZEN overlay, others think it may be completely turned into a FROZEN attraction. Still others are hoping that it will be a simple update, with some fresh paint and a few screws tightened up.
What I have heard, is that the country of Norway has ceased any support for the pavilion from a financial standpoint. I hope that the officials of this beautiful country decide to help supplement any refurbishment that may take place, if they hope to have a say in what type of changes might be made. Otherwise, there may be a bit of Sven and Olaf in the place of some of the Vikings!
It is only my opinion, at this time, but I think that FROZEN should NOT be a part of the Norway pavilion, as I believe it cancels out the original ideas of the Disney Imagineers in presenting something about the cultures of the countries of the World Showcase! I like Maelstrom as it is! It is a bit of a unique experience, and I get chills when I see the scenes, as portrayed, in this attraction that allows me to see just how beautiful this land is, and the hard work it has taken to make Norway the country that it is today!
So, where should FROZEN go? I truly think the best place would be at Disney's Hollywood Studios! With the closing of the American Idol Experience, one has to wonder if the success of the Frozen Summer Fun may be getting a more permanent venue? Makes sense to me, but at this point, we will just have to see how it all comes together!
For now, we'll just sit back, and see what develops! If you have any thoughts, please share them in the comments section below!
Thanks for reading and may you have a Blessed and Magical day, my friends!
Author threestrandswdwPosted on 08/21/2014 Categories Disney Destinations, Disney memories, Disney World Trip Planning, EPCOT, Walt Disney WorldTags Disney Theme Parks, Disney World Refurbishments, Disney's Hollywood Studios, Frozen, Maelstrom1 Comment on Is The Freeze On For Norway at WDW?
The Tomorrowland Transit Authority Peoplemover reopened this week with a new color scheme! It isn't complete, yet, as the Astro Orbiter is still under refurbishment which effects part of the TTA's theming and appearance. But, at least one of My favorite attractions is back in business!
Frozen Summer Fun is getting an extended stay at Disney's Hollywood Studios! The fun will continue through September 28, 2014. Premium Packages are available Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays only! The cost is $59 for adults, and $34 for kids! The cost includes tax!
Magic Kingdom first aid is moving on Sunday, August 10! The temporary location is at a lounge near Space Mountain. No word on why or how long this relocation will be needed.
Move It! Shake It! Celebrate it! will be touring Main Street U.S.A. in the evenings only at 5:40p and 7:00p while some concrete work is being completed during the day. The dates for this work are August 12, 13, 19, 20, and 29.
At Disney's Animal Kingdom, the It's Tough To Be A Bug refurbishment is going to take a bit more time than expected. Originally scheduled for July 7 – August 11, it is now scheduled to reopen on September 28.
And, finally, Bob Iger said in an interview this week, that there WILL BE a stronger Star Wars presence in the parks in the U.S.! But, of course, there was no discussion of a timeline for this presence to be revealed! I don't mind that Disney takes it's time to get attractions up and running. I think they have more of a do it right attitude! But, it's already been years! How about a bigger bone of information?
I hope you enjoyed reading, please come back soon! Or, better yet, follow this blog!
Have a Blessed and Magical Day, my friends!!
A few weeks ago, Walt Disney World decided to limit the stand-by line at Anna and Elsa by giving guests a piece of paper with a return window time printed on it. You are given something that resembles the classic Fastpass that has a 30 minute window to return to the stand-by entrance and meet the Frozen royalty!
A week or so later, the same type of system was introduced for stand-by guests at Soarin'. It, too, has a 30 minute window for re-entry to the stand-by queue in time to get your flight!
This week, WDW has introduced this line reducing strategy at the Be Our Guest restaurant for lunch! You report to the entrance of the Stand-by queue, a Cast Member gives you ticket timed for a specific return. Once all of these Fastpass type tickets have been distributed, a sign stating that there is no more stand-by seating for the day will be put in place! So, there are now two primary ways to eat at Be Our Guest for lunch!! Either, you are one of the blessed on-site guests who get the email invitation for Fastpassing Be Our Guest, or you head Stand-by line and hope to get a lucky ticket!
In my mind there is an advantage to these attractions being managed in this manner. Instead of standing in a queue for as much as three hours, you can use that time to see some other attractions and shows! It may require moving a few things around, but if these are things on your Must-Do lists, it may be worth the adjustments!
Enjoy your weekends!! And, have a Blessed and Magical Day, my friends!


text:
Q: no viable conversion from 'string *' (aka 'basic_string *') to 'shared_ptr So I have this code:
#include <iostream>
#include <list>
#include <string>
#include <memory>

using namespace std;

int main() {

    {
        shared_ptr<string> str = new string("Marius");
        cout << str + " MMG";
    }

    return 0;
}

By compiling it with:
clang++ -Wall -g -std=c++14 test.c++ -o test

I get:
test.c++:11:22: error: no viable conversion from 'string *' (aka 'basic_string<char> *') to 'shared_ptr<string>'
                shared_ptr<string> str = new string("Marius");

Where is the mistake?
With GCC I get the same error.

A: The constructor for std::shared_ptr that takes a raw pointer is explicit.
Also note there is no operator= that takes a raw pointer, so the following would also fail to compile:
std::shared_ptr<std::string> ptr;
ptr = new std::string{"Marius"};

To construct one properly, there are two options:
std::shared_ptr<std::string> ptr{new std::string{"Marius"}};

// or the (much) preferred
auto ptr = std::make_shared<std::string>("Marius");


text:
The accident in "And then"
How Japan's most famous modern novelist borrowed from a real-life mountain disaster
Natsume Soseki
Few would argue that Natsume Sōseki (1867-1916) was greatly into extreme sports. So it's all the more surprising to happen on a reference to modern alpinism in his novel Sore kara (ably translated as And then by Norma Moore Field). This occurs in Chapter XV, when Daisuke, a typically perplexed and troubled Sōseki hero, is leafing through a "certain popular foreign magazine":
In one number, he had come across an article entitled "Mountain Accidents" and had been alarmed. The article recounted the injuries and mishaps that befell those adventurers who crawled up high mountains. There was a story of a climber lost in an avalanche whose bones appeared forty years later on the tip of a glacier; another described the plight of four adventurers who, about to pass a flat, vertical rock that stood halfway up the side of a peak, had piled one on top of the other like monkeys; but just as the highest was about to reach for the tip of the rock, it had crumbled, the rope had broken, and the three, doubled one upon the other, had plunged headlong past the fourth into the abyss. In the midst of these accounts were inserted several illustrations of human beings glued like bats to a mountainside as sheer as a brick wall. Daisuke, imagining the wide sky and distant valleys that lay beyond the white space beside the precipitous cliffs, could not help re-experiencing the dizziness brought on by terror.
On reading this account, Daisuke reflects that "in the world of morality, he stood on the same ground as those climbers". At the same time, he is unwilling or unable to break off the budding liaison with a friend's wife that is leading him towards moral and social destruction. For the fate that Sōseki has in store for his hero will be every bit as annihilating as the accident that befell the "four adventurers" in the fictional magazine.
Or was that magazine really fictional? Except for the number of people involved, the accident it describes closely resembles the one in August 1899 that ended the career of the English rock-climbing pioneer Owen Glynne Jones (below) and three guides on the Ferpècle Arête of the Dent Blanche.
The original O G Jones in action (photo by George D Abraham)
In that notorious episode, the lead guide tried to surmount a rocky obstacle by standing on an ice-axe held firm by his colleagues. When he slipped, he pulled Jones and two other guides to their deaths. The fifth member of the party, a Mr F W Hill, survived only because the rope joining him to the others snapped under the strain. A detailed post on OG Jones's life and death can be found on Summitpost.
Could Sōseki have heard of this accident? The dates seem to work. In 1901, only a few years after the Dent Blanche disaster, he was sent to England on a Japanese government scholarship to improve his knowledge of English literature. During his stay, Sōseki unquestionably fulfilled his mandate, spending most of his time closeted in libraries or his lodgings, reading voraciously. It seems possible that he also stumbled across a magazine – but which one? – containing an account of Dent Blanche accident.
The Dent Blanche, as featured in "And then"
Sōseki's English sojourn was the making of his career. Returning to Japan, he took up an appointment at the First National College in Tokyo and later became the professor of English literature at Tokyo Imperial University. Novels started to tumble out at a rate of one a year. Yet his memories of England were more bitter than sweet: "The two years I spent in London were the most unpleasant in my life. Among English gentlemen I lived in misery, like a poor dog that had strayed among a pack of wolves."
A few of Sōseki's English friends did their best to alleviate his misery. His last set of landladies, the Leale sisters of Clapham, "successfully urged him to get out more and take up cycling", or so Wikipedia asserts. Had the sisters been a bit more successful, one could imagine a kind of alternative history in which Sōseki parlays his newfound cycling fitness into a general enthusiasm for the outdoors, returning to Japan just in time to join the nascent Japanese Alpine Club, as quite a few other contemporary writers would do.
You know, it might almost have happened – in Sōseki's Kusamakura, published in 1906, the year after the Japanese Alpine Club was founded, the narrator opens his account walking down a spring mountainside towards a remote hot spring village. We learn that he is a painter on a hiking tour, not unlike the real-life artists Nakamura Seitarō and Ibaraki Inokichi, who both became keen Sangakukai men.
At least one caution is in order here. A novel's narrator is not necessarily the same sort of person as his author. Thus, although the protagonist of Kusamakura may have been a likely candidate for Japan's new alpine club, this doesn't mean that his creator ever considered joining. Come to think about it, it's a mercy that Sōseki didn't sign up as a pioneer alpinist. Japanese literature would in all probability be much the poorer for it.
Posted by Project Hyakumeizan at 8:38 PM No comments:
Labels: alpinism, literature
A meizanologist's diary (12)
October 20: with only the afternoon to spare, we need a low mountain. Monju-san, a few kilometres south of Fukui, fits the bill. It has just one metre of altitude for each day in the year. Height, though, is not the same as stature, as Fukada Kyūya points out in the afterword to his most famous book. For this is a mountain that no meizanologist should miss.
Monju was "opened" by Monk Taichō himself, in the first year of Yōrō (717). Presumably, he was warming up for his pioneering excursion to Hakusan in the same year – the climb that Fukada somewhat adventurously identifies as Japan's first high-mountain ascent. Actually, it is surprising that Taichō didn't climb Monju sooner, since he was born in Asōzu, the village at its foot, more than three decades earlier.
Be that as it may, Monju's Meizan status cannot be disputed. Like any self-respecting sacred mountain, it has three peaks, identified on the hiking map as Little Monju, Big Monju and the Inner Sanctuary (Oku-no-in). But the first and last ones are known additionally as Murodō and Ōnanji, names that also adorn the equivalent places on Hakusan and Tateyama. This suggests that people once saw Monju in the same terms as those two other sacred peaks.
Some centuries after Taichō, Monk Saigyō, the all-terrain poet of the Heian era, distinguished the mountain in a deft tanka:
越に来て富士とやいはん角原の文殊が岳の雪のあけぼの
In Koshi, over yonder
Is it Fuji there, I wonder?
So bright the daybreak glows
On Tsunohara-Monju's snows
Indeed, you can still climb Monju via a "Tsunohara course". And it may be that the mountain really does look like Mt Fuji from that western aspect. Though, when we step out of the Sensei's van at the foot of the normal route, it is a straggling ridge that rises above us rather than a shapely cone.
In the carpark, we brush up on Monju's history from a signboard. On its battered paintwork, a tiny frog is contemplating a vertical direttissima. A few minutes into the woods, we encounter a sign warning that bears might leap out at us. The Sensei is unfazed, but I deploy her bear-bell all the same. It's always best to err on the safe side when dealing with these ursine types.
In fact, the trail presents a greater hazard – it is broad but slippery, the mud polished to a mirror glaze by the passage of a millennium's worth of feet. About half-way up our hill, the Sensei tires of it and launches into the woods on our right. Trust me, she says, there really is a path. So, chiming rhythmically, we start our own direttissima across the mountain's north face. A strip of red tape marks the way for those who would brave this route in mid-winter.
In front of us, the leaf litter rustles as something leaps for cover. Fortunately, it is an order of magnitude or two smaller than a bear. Instead, we find a fat brown frog palpitating by the side of the track– pregnant with eggs, says the Sensei, who knows about country things. Perhaps it is taking the warm weather for the start of spring.
We come up on the ridge close to a pavilion that houses a Kannon, or so at least a gaudy banner suggests. Nearby is a tree wearing a sacred rope, suggesting that nobody ever tried very hard to disentwine Buddhism and Shintoism here, as they did on Ochi-san. Even today, the Sensei tells me, it is a temple at the foot of the mountain that looks after the shrines up here.
High on the ridge, we pass a lightning-scarred tree. Monju, one of the four great Bodhisattva (Bosatsu), is sometimes portrayed with a thunderbolt (vajra) in his hand. He seems to toss them down with considerable liberality on his namesake mountain.
A few minutes later, on the summit itself, we see a tree-stump that a lightning strike has completely burned out. Probably one should avoid Monju during thunderstorms.
Below the Oku-no-in, the path leads into a rift between the two halves of a gigantic boulder. You should only pass through if you have a clear conscience. No impure thoughts now, says the Sensei. Or the rocks will clap together and swallow you up.
I hesitate for a moment. I mean, suppose there were an earthquake. Then, surviving the passage unscathed, we circle back through the woods towards the middle peak.
Guarded by a row of jizō statues, the summit shrine is silvery with age. Its timbers must have looked fresher when Fukada Kyūya, then in his fourth year at Fukui Middle School, came up here with three companions on November 27, 1919. Another noticeboard gives us these details.
As fellow students had helped to clear the path a year or two before, Fukada and his friends might have felt a proprietary interest in Monju-san. At any rate, all four felt entitled to inscribe their names on the shrine.
Where the future Hyakumeizan author left his mark
(Photo: Fukui Shimbun)
Ninety-nine years later, I look here and there for the graffiti, without success – sorry, says the Sensei, they carved their names inside the shrine, and you can only see them when the doors are opened for the annual festival.
The view makes up for any disappointment. For its height, Monju must afford one of the best all-round vistas in the prefecture. Through gaps in the trees, we look westwards to Ochi-san and the coastal hills. In the opposite direction, Hakusan and all those other famous mountains of Hokuriku loom through the haze. Mountains, as any meizanologist will testify, are places that let you see further.
Tomorrow, we would have to head back to the Big Slope. There were friends to meet and a flight to catch. We'd take the view from Monju with us, though.
Labels: literature, mountain religion, travelogue
October 20: watching NHK's weather feature over breakfast, we're finally able to put some numbers on our observations. We've noticed how warm it is this October - how could we not? In our student days, October mornings used to be crisp, cold affairs out here in the Fukui countryside.
Autumn as it should be (Kurobe valley)
In those days, the leaves would already be red and gold up on Hakusan, frost pillars would be pushing out of the ground, and, if you didn't look lively, you might be mugged by a sudden snowstorm. All that is unimaginable this year. There isn't even a dusting of snow on Hakusan, the trees are still more or less green and the bears are still wide awake. As for snowstorms, you're much more likely to be bitten by a viper.
Now NHK explains why. "Autumn has been shortened," the announcer says. The average temperature in recent Octobers has been 1.9°C higher than the average temperature for the month during the 1980s. (I'm not sure whether he's talking just about Fukui, or for the whole country.) Of course, recent Decembers have been warmer too, but by a lesser margin – only 0.9°C warmer than in the 1980s. The figures don't look that alarming, until you consider that the world today is only a few degrees warmer, on average, than during the Ice Ages.
Exploring the moulin in the Kuranosuke coire
On another morning, NHK reports on a deep hole or "moulin" that has appeared in the Kuranosuke snowfield high up on Tateyama's eastern flank. This is the first one that has appeared in these parts for eleven years.
The Kuranosuke snowfield
(photo: Tateyama Caldera Sabo
Museum)
The savants of the Tateyama Caldera Sabo Museum are shown boldly roping down into the shaft, taking measurements as they go. On the way down, they encounter a layer of shattered boulders, evidence of some ancient rockfall centuries ago.
"Moulin" usually refers to the deep blue pits that drain surface streams down into the icy depths of alpine glaciers. Several thousand years ago, there would have been a real glacier in the Kuranosuke corrie.
But a survey in the 1980s did discover hard-packed ice layers at the bottom of its permanent snowfield that were 1,700 years old. Let's hope the moulin closes up again before that ancient ice is all washed away.
Labels: science, travelogue
A meizanologist's diary (9)
October 18: The answer is the snow-covered summit of Jiigatake. At last, I can reply to the question so many people have asked me – that is, from which vantage point in the Japan Northern Alps did Peter Skov take the photo that adorns the cover of One Hundred Mountains of Japan?
The question can now be answered because Peter and I have met up at last, in a station coffee shop at Higashi Omiya, close to his workplace. I say, at last, because – incredible as it may seem – this is the first chance we've had to actually meet, although Peter several years ago volunteered his magnificent image for the book's front cover (left), sight unseen of the publisher or translator.
Taken on a mountain hike in late 2007, the original picture (below) also appears in Peter's first photo book, The Japan Alps and in an online album. The view is westward, across Obuchizawa, towards Harinoki in the foreground and Yakushi in the far distance. For me, and I hope the book's readers, it captures the essence of the Japan Alps: "vast, mysterious, sublime, as if wrapped in some purple cloud", as another mountain artist expressed it.
Afternoon cloud sea, by Peter Skov
Sipping a less than sublime iced cocoa from a plastic receptacle, I put the inevitable question – what kind of camera did you use? It seems that Peter, like this blogger, decided to stay aloof from the mediocre early generations of digital cameras. So this picture was taken through a 24-85mm zoom lens on an old-fangled Minolta SLR with Fuji Velvia film, which may at least partly account for the subtlety of the image's colours and tones.
A book prominent on both our bookshelves is Mountain Light, a kind of photographic manifesto by the late but still inspirational Galen Rowell. As Peter points out, pictures like this one amply vindicate Rowell's claim that, if handled with care, 35mm film cameras can produce printed images that give larger formats a run for their money.
Peter's freezer is still full of film, but these days there is less time to use it – the arrival of a baby daughter, the Skovs' second child, has ruled out long mountain weekends for now. So what does a mountain photographer do when he can no longer get to the mountains? Peter's answer was to change both focus and medium.
Picking up a used Sony digital camera – handier than film for dealing with weak early-morning light – he started photographing scenes on his way to work in Saitama. Appropriately, the inspiration for this project came as he was descending from one of his last mountain hikes, on Ryōgami, a member of the Hyakumeizan.
The resulting collection, Little Inaka, is a reminder that you don't need to visit a national park to find camera-worthy scenery in Japan. And Peter demonstrates that you can apply the same skills to the woods near your house as you do to the Japan Alps, alternating the broad panorama with season-by-season micro-landscapes worthy of Elliot Porter, another influence on his work.
I also appreciate the colour palette of this collection. It's lively enough to sustain the images, even on the printed page of the Blurb edition, but stops well short of the spectral and tonal shoutiness that seems to have overtaken so much landscape photography these days. One sign that Peter has hit the right note is that it's all but impossible to say, if you didn't know already, whether the original medium was film or digital. These are colours that you'd recognise in nature.
Early morning fog, Saitama, by Peter Skov
The Sakitama burial mounds – a group of tumuli from the third to the seventh centuries – appear several times in Little Inaka – indeed, one is on the cover. Their enigmatic forms run through the seasons as a kind of unifying theme, rather like the school belfry in Maeda Shinzō's Seasons of a Hilltop Tower.
Alas, there won't be any more images of Sakitama for the moment. Last summer, the Skov's moved house, taking the burial mounds and other Little Inaka sites out of early-morning stroll range. But Peter is already scouting new locations for the next photographic project. And, who knows, NHK may be back with another idea for a mountain documentary – the last one took Peter back to the Northern Alps.
"When artists get together, they talk about where you can buy cheap turpentine," said Picasso. I could talk about turpentine – or cameras, lenses and locations – all afternoon with Peter. But the next appointment beckons, far across that vast abyss of time and space that men call Tokyo. I remember only when I'm on the train that I forgot to take a photo of Peter. So this post will have to do with a screenshot from his NHK page. Mōshiwake arimasen....
Posted by Project Hyakumeizan at 9:30 PM 10 comments:
Labels: photography, travelogue
October 16: "Ara-mah!" The Sensei's exclamation of surprise is more than justified. For what could be more improbable than a chance meeting, well into the twenty-first century, on a local train somewhere in Hokuriku, between the instigator of Nihon Hyakumeizan, a book first published in 1964, and its translators more than half a century later.
Yet, without a doubt, the figure balancing carefully towards us along the swaying railcar is none other than Ohmori-san – who, as a young magazine editor back in 1959, saw fit to commission a series of essays about one hundred selected Japanese mountains. We first met him last year, at the Japanese Alpine Club in Tokyo.
The Fukada Kyuya Museum at Daishoji
The three of us are on our way to Daishōji, the small town between Fukui and Kanazawa that numbers the Hyakumeizan author as one of its most famous sons. We've been invited to a seminar on the book's translation by officials of the Fukada Kyūya Yama no Bunkakan, a museum to the writer's memory.
The Bunkakan is a graceful old wooden building, shaded by a magnificent gingko tree in its courtyard. In Fukada's youth, it housed the offices of a textile firm. In an aery first-floor room, floored with tatami, I expound on the role that the "white mountain" Hakusan played in the Englishing of Japan's most famous mountain book.
Hakusan was Fukada Kyūya's native mountain. It was the first high one he climbed – indeed, the same is true for his translator. While a student in Kyoto, I climbed Hakusan with the Sempai.
Then, when I was at a loss on how to research the book's introduction some years ago, it was the Senpai who brought me a copy of Heibonsha's "Hito wa naze yama ni noboru no ka" (Why do people climb mountains?). This very readable history of Japan's mountaineering history was co-edited by a certain Ohmori Hisao. Yō no naka wa semai, na …
After the seminar, we are invited to pay our respects to Fukada's grave. The Sensei and I decide to walk there, taking in the author's childhood home on the way. There is still a small printshop at the address, just as there was in Fukada's day, although the business has since passed out of the family. A photo at the Bunkakan shows a young Fukada (with bicycle) standing in front of the house.
The Fukada family's printing shop, then and now
Daishōji is still a quiet country town where, if you listen carefully, you can catch a few echoes from Fukada's evocation in Nihon Hyakumeizan:-
My native mountain is Hakusan. You could see it from the top floor of the house where I was born, from the gates of our primary school, from the banks of the river where we used to catch minnows, from the sand dunes of the beach where we swam, in short from just about anywhere in our town. There it was, right in front of us, noble and beautiful. As the name promises, it was a white mountain for fully half the year.
We wander into a shrine on the wooded hill that bounds Daishōji's southern edge. Entering the peaceful grove, we realise that, not for the first time, we are uncertain of our position.
Back in the street, a random passer-by must be accosted. Fukada Kyūya's grave? Certainly – you'll find him up that flight of stone stairs, through the gateway. It's good to be in a town where everybody knows your favourite author.
Fukada's gravestone is a simple granite stele. You could see Hakusan from here, our guide tells us, until yonder pine tree grew up. We then walk to Enuma Shrine to visit another, more elaborate, memorial to Fukada.
The stone panel is engraved with one of the author's best-known poems.
Before supper, we have a few minutes in the Yama no Bunkakan's museum.
Ohmori-san and I linger beside a cabinet with one of Fukada's manuscripts, a copy of Bungei Shunjū, one of Japan's leading critical monthlies, and a 1959 edition of a now-defunct mountaineering magazine. Together, these items sum up the genesis of Nihon Hyakumeizan, but it's best if Ohmori-san tells the story:-
As Hōbundō was a small company, I had to do everything by myself. While editing books, I also had to help edit magazines. Thanks to this, I acquired the necessary skills on the job. One day, the editor of the monthly magazine Yama to Kōgen (Mountains and Highlands) retired, and I was asked to take on this work.
Just then, I came across Mr Fukada's essay on "Uncrowded Meizan – in pursuit of repose and solitude," which he'd written for a special issue of Bungei Shunjū. It was in this article that he first floated the idea of 'a hundred famous mountains of Japan'. "That's it!" I thought to myself – this would definitely make an excellent project.
You see, I wanted to make something more of this magazine than just something for outdoor or mountaineering club members. And the literary prowess and the mountain experience that Mr Fukada brought to the table was exactly what I had in mind. So I called on him at his home in Setagaya, did some negotiation with him, and got his agreement to write.
Regrettably, you won't find this history in the introduction to One Hundred Mountains of Japan – that's because I only learned it after we went to press. But I hope to correct this omission, if there is a chance to reprint the book one of these days.
Over supper – we are now in a fine ryōtei – we are introduced to Oki Masato, a retired professor of architecture, who has recently published an authoritative book on the Indian Himalaya. Even without this information, I can see by Oki-sensei's bearing that I'm sitting opposite a veteran of the Greater Ranges.
In the early 1960s, Oki-sensei was one of many young climbers who visited Fukada Kyūya at his Setagaya home to seek advice on unclimbed Himalayan peaks. In 1965, as a member of the renowned Meiji University mountaineering club, he took part in a first ascent of Daulaghiri II (7751m). It is probably no coincidence that Fukada reminds us in his Hakusan chapter that Daulaghiri is the 'white mountain' of the Himalaya.
Our conversation is momentarily drowned out by some lively demonstrations at the other end of the table. One of our hosts is to be heard toasting Ohmori-san on commissioning Nihon Hyakumeizan. Ohmori-san brushes aside the compliment: "It was the obvious thing to do." Our host is unabashed: "It's a book that brings people together" he insists. And with that nobody can cavil.
The passport issued to "Kyuya Fukata" for his Nepal expedition
Labels: hyakumeizan, travelogue
October 14: A shrill "Kyaaah!" from up ahead tells me that the Sensei has met a snake. Bears, by contrast, leave her unfazed. By the time I get there, the hapless viper has wriggled off into some hole. It's unseasonably warm; in our student days, no self-respecting snake would have sunned itself on a mountain path in mid-October.
OK, at 613 metres, this isn't a very high mountain. We've chosen it so that we can get away with a late start. A more meizanological reason for climbing Ochi-san is that it was the first mountain to be "opened" by Taichō, the monk who later pioneered Hakusan (2,702 metres) in the first year of Yōrō (717).
The start of our own climb is marked by a modest signboard, showing Ochi-san as it was in the heyday of mountain pilgrimages. We zig-zag up through a dense plantation of sugi (cryptomeria). Unlike the one on Genanpō, this grove is well-tended. We exchange good mornings with a quartet of foresters, who are preparing to shin up the trees with spiked boots and climbing gear in order to trim off the lower branches.
Sultans of silviculture
Above the sugi, we start meeting with the labels – each new variety of tree is labelled with its Japanese names and in English too. Unwisely, I start photographing every one, slowing me up so much that I'm far behind the Sensei when she sees the viper. Thus I miss my chance to meet Gloydius blomhoffii.
In the shadow zone
The labels underline Japan's astonishing biodiversity. I remember a conversation with Ben Jones, the curator of Oxford University's Harcourt Arboretum. Unlike other temperate regions, he explained, the Japanese islands were never scraped clean by the ice ages. This let a whole herbarium of plants survive that were razed out in more northerly climes. A year or two ago, Ben was in the Chichibu mountains collecting seeds from one of these old survivors for Kew Gardens. (And, for true plant otaku, here is a day-to-day account of that trip.)
The path leads onto a straggling ridge. I'm surprised to meet the first beech trees at just over 300 metres – that seems low for this part of Honshū, but perhaps their lower limit has been "downshifted" by the hard Hokuriku winters. Signs marking the "stations" (gome), just as on Mt Fuji, remind us that we're on a sacred mountain.
Just above the fifth station, we take our first break at a pavilion that enshrines jizō statues. Some are missing their heads. The Sensei says they lost them during the Meiji government's campaign to separate Buddhism and Shinto in the 1870s. I look at a date scratched on one of the headless figures – perhaps the third year of Tempō (1832). The post-Meiji ones seem to be intact.
After dropping down to a spring that issues from a rockface, we start on a steeper section of ridge. The sunlight filters through a mixed canopy of beech, maple and hornbeam. We pass a Japanese stewartia (natsu-tsubaki) romantically entwined with a Korean whitebeam (azuki-nashi).
A little later, a cherry tree afflicted with witches' broom disease (tengusūbyō) hints at nature's darker side.
Now slippery with moss, the path tops a rise and drops into a level glen of fir trees (momi). A torii heralds the main sanctuary.
From the engawa of a building that combines the shrine itself and a mountain hut, an elderly man seems to be waiting for us. "Did anything leap out at you on the way?" he asks – could he have heard the Sensei's "Kyaah", I wonder. Then he invites us in for tea.
We make our way past a shed full of jizō figures (these seemed to have kept their heads) to a flight of stone steps leading to the summit sanctuary. As Ochi-san is an eminence in Fukui's coastal range of hills, the view is all-encompassing.
Westwards, a band of fog elides the boundary between sea and sky while, inland, a single sweep round the skyline takes in all of Hokuriku's famous mountains, from Hino to Arashima, Kyō-ga-take and Fujisha.
Beyond them lies the district's highest Meizan, still without a shred of snow. "It was from here that Taichō first saw Hakusan," the Sensei says. This seems right. Any meizanophile would see the distant mountains beckoning to them.
We present ourselves again at the door of the priest's house. When we have settled ourselves around the irori, a traditional sunken fire-pit, Otani-san serves out bowls of miso soup, while we share the celebratory red rice presented to us by the Senpai's wife yesterday evening. They go well together. Dessert is a blackened banana each.
Between April and November, Otani-san lives up here for ten days at a time, going down intermittently to stock up on food. Fortunately – he is over eighty – you can drive all the way up the mountain. The eldest sons of his family have been priests for thirty-one generations; his daughter, a primary school teacher, will carry on the tradition. Before taking over from his own father, he worked for JR and the city administration.
The duties of a priest are various. Once, he had to take down a small shrine that stood in the way of a housing development and haul it all the way up here. Today is quiet but tomorrow a hundred schoolchildren will visit the mountaintop. If they want to read up about the shrine's foundation, Otani-san has a short print-out ready for them.
Ascents of Ochi-san book-end the story of Monk Taichō's life. A plausible date for his birth is the month of June in Hakuhō 11 (682), in the village of Asōzu, now part of Fukui City. Curiously, one of the Sensei's relatives was born there too.
The dates are deduced from a biography, the Taichō wajō denki that was published some centuries later. As a child, Taichō is said to have fashioned Buddhist images out of mud and, at the age of fourteen, he climbed Ochi-san for the first time, where he venerated the Eleven-Headed Kannon.
In 716, when Taichō was thirty-four, the goddess of Hakusan appeared to him in a dream, and the following year he climbed the mountain. According to Nihon Hyakumeizan, this was the first ascent of a high mountain in Japan for religious ends. On the summit, the goddess appeared to him again, this time in the guise of the Eleven-Headed Kannon.
In 722, he journeyed to Nara, the capital, and cured the Empress Genshō of an illness. In 736, he visited the capital again, and received from Monk Genbō a copy of an Eleven-Headed Kannon sutra. The following year, the ninth of Tempyō, he performed a rite of repentance to ward off an outbreak of smallpox that threatened the capital. For this he was raised to the high monastic rank of "wajō".
Returning to his home province, he climbed Ochi-san again in the second year of Tempyō-Hōji (758) and retired to a cave to meditate. He died in 767 at the age of eighty-six.
It's time to go. We bow to the priest at his door, receive his blessing, and start down. One tends to forget that, even if autumn days are now unseasonably warm, that doesn't make them any longer than they used to be. Shadows are lengthening by the time we reach the Sensei's van.
Labels: mountain religion, travelogue

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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