Several kinds of recently advanced microanalytical techniques—like electron probe x-ray microanalysis, laser Raman microprobe, and Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy combined with a microsampling method—have been used for the study of the microstructure of gallstones. The organic and inorganic constituents of three kinds of gallstones are characterized on a microscopic scale. The microstructure of a cholesterol-bilirubin gallstone with a layered structure has been studied with particular emphasis. Small white particles contained in both a bilirubin gallstone and a cholesterol-bilirubin mixed gallstone have been found to consist of calcium salt of a fatty acid, probably calcium palmitate. The results obtained here will be very useful for understanding the mechanism of the gallstone-formation process.

Molecular orientations and surface morphology of mechanically rubbed polyimide films have been extensively studied by FT-IR, ellipsometry and atomic force microscope. In-plane and out-of-plane molecular orientations of rubbed polyimide films have been examined by angular dependences of polarized infrared transmission spectra. It has been confirmed that the polyimide chain inclination against the surface plane is induced by the rubbing. It has been shown that mapping of molecular orientation can be obtained by a grazing angle FT-IR microspectroscopy.

Abstract— Image‐sticking phenomenon is one of the most important issues affecting LCDs, especially LCD TV. It is known that image sticking is caused by residual DC voltage. An analysis of the cause that induces image sticking on a real LCD cell is very difficult to perform and is rarely reported. In this paper, the impurities that cause boundary image sticking on a real MVA cell was analyzed by examining a cross section of a cell, the bulk LC layer, the vicinity of the LC layer, the LC layer/PI alignment film interface using microanalysis methods such as infrared micro‐spectroscopy (μ‐IR) and micro‐sampling mass spectrometry (μ‐MS). It is clarified that there is quite a bit of aromatic acid at the boundary of the image‐sticking area than in the normal area at the LC/PI alignment film interface on the color‐filter side, not the TFT side, and it is assumed that aromatic carboxylic acid, a negative charged material, is condensed at the LC/PI alignment film interface on the color filter side by an electrically driven DC component inducing an electric‐condenser residual DC voltage.

The degradation analysis of NBR and Epichlorohydrin rubber was carried out by infrared micro spectroscopy (m-IR) and micro sampling mass spectrometry (m-MS) which gives information on the scission and crosslinking of rubber molecules. Samples were prepared by three different treatments, heat as well as ultra violet (UV) and electron beam (EB) irradiations.It was found for NBR vulcanizates that the heat treatment induced the oxidation, scission and crosslinking of rubber molecules. By the UV treatment, chain scission and crosslinking accompanied by a slight oxidation were induced. The EB treatment enhanced the crosslinking, however, the extent of oxidation was negligible. For Epichlorohydrin rubber vulcanizates, the heat treatment accelerated chain scission rather than crosslinking. On the other hand, the oxidation and crosslinking were induced by the UV and EB treatments. Figure 1. Schematic drawing of electrophotographic apparatus.