1. A method for treating a carbon fibril, comprising the step of exposing said fibril to a plasma selected from the group consisting of fluorine, oxygen, ammonia, helium, nitrogen, and hydrogen, said fibril being substantially cylindrical, having a substantially constant diameter, having a c-axis substantially perpendicular to its cylindrical axis, being substantially free of pyrolytically deposited carbon and having a diameter less than 0.1 micron.
2. A method for treating one or more carbon fibrils, comprising the steps of:
placing said fibrils in a treatment vessel, said fibrils being substantially cylindrical, having a substantially constant diameter, having c-axes substantially perpendicular to their cylindrical axes, being substantially free of pyrolytically deposited carbon and having a diameter less than 0.1 micron; and
contacting said fibrils with a plasma selected from the group consisting of fluorine, oxygen, ammonia, helium, nitrogen, and hydrogen within said vessel for a predetermined period of time.
3. A method for treating one or more carbon fibrils, said fibrils being substantially cylindrical, having a substantially constant diameter, having c-axes substantially perpendicular to their cylindrical axes, being substantially free of pyrolytically deposited carbon and having a diameter less than 0.1 micron, comprising the steps of
placing said fibrils in a treatment vessel;
creating a gaseous environment having a pressure less than 500 milliTorr in said treatment vessel; and
generating a plasma in said treatment vessel, such that the plasma is in contact with said fibrils for a predetermined period of time.
4. The method defined in claim 3, wherein a plurality of fibrils is treated.
5. The method defined in claim 4, wherein said carbon fibrils are in the form of a carbon fibril structure.
6. The method defined in claim 5, wherein said carbon fibrils are in the form of an aggregate.
7. The method defined in claim 5, wherein said carbon fibrils are in the form of a fibril mat.
8. The method defined in claim 5, wherein said carbon fibrils are in the form of a hard porous fibril structure.
9. The method defined in claim 3, wherein the plasma treatment of said one or more carbon results in one or more functionalized fibrils.
10. The method defined in claim 3, wherein said gaseous environment comprises fluorine.
11. The method as defined in claim 3, wherein said gaseous environment comprises fluorine and one or more inert gases.
12. The method defined in claim 3, wherein said gaseous environment comprises ammonia.
13. The method defined in claim 3, wherein said gaseous environment comprises ammonia and one or more inert gases.
14. The method defined in claim 3, wherein said gaseous environment comprises N2 and H2.
15. The method defined in claim 3, wherein said gaseous environment comprises one or more inert gases.
16. The method defined in claim 3, wherein said gaseous environment comprises oxygen.
17. The method defined in claim 3, wherein said gaseous environment comprises air.
18. The method as defined in claim 2 or 3, wherein said predetermined period of time is no greater than 10 minutes.
19. The method as defined in claim 3, wherein said pressure is no greater than 100 milliTorr.
20. The method as defined in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein said plasma is a cold plasma.
21. The method as defined in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein said plasma is selected from the group consisting of radio frequency plasmas and microwave plasmas.
22. A method for treating one or more carbon fibrils, said fibrils being substantially cylindrical, having a substantially constant diameter, having c-axes substantially perpendicular to their cylindrical axes, being substantially free of pyrolytically deposited carbon and having a diameter less than 0.1 micron, comprising the steps of
placing said fibrils in a treatment vessel;
creating a gaseous environment having a pressure less than 500 milliTorr in said treatment vessel, said gaseous environment consisting of one or more inert gases; and
generating a plasma in said treatment vessel, such that the plasma is in contact with said fibrils for a predetermined period of time.
23. A method for treating a carbon fibril, comprising the step of exposing said fibril to a plasma, said fibril being substantially cylindrical, having a substantially constant diameter, having a c-axis substantially perpendicular to its cylindrical axis, being substantially free of pyrolytically deposited carbon and having a diameter less than 0.1 micron, and said plasma having been generated from a gaseous environment consisting of one or more inert gases.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A signal processing apparatus comprising:
an optical sensor for outputting a detection signal by detecting a surface of a recording medium on which a correction image is to be formed; and
a control section configured to conduct control steps of:
having said optical sensor to detect the surface of the recording medium without the correction image being formed thereon;
making a frequency analysis of a first detection signal outputted from said optical sensor detecting the surface of the recording medium without the correction image being formed thereon;
extracting a dominant frequency corresponding to the frequency component dominant over other values from a first analysis signal obtained by making the frequency analysis of the first detection signal;
having said optical sensor to detect the surface of the recording medium with the correction image formed thereon;
making a frequency analysis of a second detection signal outputted from said optical sensor detecting the surface of the recording medium with the correction image being formed thereon;
deleting the component of the extracted dominant frequency from a second analysis signal obtained by making the frequency analysis of the second detection signal; and
obtaining a detection signal, in which the dominant frequency component has been deleted by making reverse frequency analysis of the second analysis signal from which the dominant frequency component has been deleted.
2. The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control section is configured to conduct the extracting step by extracting dominant frequency corresponding to noise due to a scratch or dust on an intermediate transfer member from the first analysis signal.
3. The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the correction image includes a density patch for density correction in an image forming operation and wherein said control section calculates density information in accordance with a detection signal obtained by detecting the density patch wherein the dominant frequency has been deleted from the detection signal.
4. The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the correction image includes a registration mark for registration correction in an image formation and wherein said control section calculates position information of the registration mark in accordance with a detection signal obtained by detecting the registration mark wherein the dominant frequency has been deleted from the detection signal.
5. The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control section calculates correction information for correcting image formation in accordance with the detection signal wherein the dominant frequency component has been deleted.
6. The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording medium is an intermediate transfer member.
7. An image forming apparatus comprising:
an image forming section for forming an image on a recording medium; and
a signal processing apparatus, including:
an optical sensor for outputting a detection signal by detecting a surface of the recording medium on which a correction image is to be formed by said image forming section; and
a control section which conducts control steps of:
having said optical sensor to detect the surface of the recording medium without the correction image being formed thereon;
making a frequency analysis of a first detection signal outputted from said optical sensor detecting the surface of the recording medium without the correction image being formed thereon;
extracting a dominant frequency corresponding to the frequency component dominant over other values from a first analysis signal obtained by making the frequency analysis of the first detection signal;
having said optical sensor to detect the surface of the recording medium with the correction image formed thereon;
making a frequency analysis of a second detection signal outputted from said optical sensor detecting the surface of the recording medium with the correction image being formed thereon;
deleting the component of the extracted dominant frequency from a second analysis signal obtained by making the frequency analysis of the second detection signal; and
obtaining a detection signal, in which the dominant frequency component has been deleted by making reverse frequency analysis of the second analysis signal from which the dominant frequency component has been deleted.
8. The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the correction image includes a density patch for density correction in an image forming operation and wherein said control section calculates density information in accordance with a detection signal obtained by detecting the density patch wherein the dominant frequency has been deleted from the detection signal and wherein said image forming section forms an image in accordance with the calculated density information.
9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the correction image includes a registration mark for registration correction in an image formation and wherein said control section calculates position information of the registration mark in accordance with a detection signal obtained by detecting the registration mark wherein the dominant frequency has been deleted from the detection signal and wherein said image forming section forms an image in accordance with the calculated position information.
10. The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said control section calculates correction information for correcting image formation in accordance with the detection signal wherein the dominant frequency component has been delete and wherein said image forming section forms an image in accordance with the calculated correction information.
11. The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the recording medium is an intermediate transfer member.