Process of imaging an amorphous Si(C) photoconductive member

Claim 2

An electrophotographic process comprising: (1) charging a photoconductive member for electrophotography comprising a support and a layer on the surface of said support; said layer comprising an amorphous material having silicon atoms as matrix containing at least one of hydrogen atom and halogen atom; and containing in at least a portion thereof a layer region containing carbon atoms; said carbon atoms being distributed unevenly in the thickness direction of said layer and distributed evenly within the planes parallel to said support surface; and (2) applying electromagnetic waves to said photoconductive member thereby forming an electrostatic image.

Claim 3

An electrophotographic process according to claim 1 wherein maximum carbon atom concentration in said layer region is present on the side of the surface of the layer opposite the surface of said layer which is on said support.

Claim 4

An electrophotographic process according to claim 1 wherein the maximum carbon atom concentration in said layer region is present on the surface of said layer which is on said support.

Claim 5

An electrophotographic process according to claim 1 further comprising controlling the state of electric conduction of said photoconductive member by incorporating in said layer an impurity which controls electric conduction.

Claim 6

An electrophotographic process according to claim 4, wherein said impurity which controls electric conduction is a p-type impurity.

Claim 7

An electrophotographic process according to claim 5 wherein said p-type impurity is an element of group IIIA of the periodic table.

Claim 8

An electrophotographic process according to claim 6 wherein said element is selected from the group consisting of B, Al, Ga, In, and Tl.

Claim 9

An electrophotographic process according to claim 5 wherein the content of said p-type impurity is 3×10 -2 atomic percent or less.

Claim 10

An electrophotographic process according to claim 4 wherein said impurity which controls electric conduction is an n-type impurity.

Claim 11

An electrophotographic process according to claim 9 wherein said n-type impurity is an element of group VA of the period table.

Claim 12

An electrophotographic process according to claim 10 wherein said element is selected from the group consisting of N, P, As, Sb and Bi.

Claim 13

An electrophotographic process according to claim 1 wherein said layer has a thickness of 3 to 100 microns.

Claim 14

An electrophotographic process according to claim 1 including employing an intermediate layer between said support and said layer.

Claim 15

An electrophotographic process according to claim 13 wherein said intermediate layer comprises an electrically insulating metal oxide.

Claim 16

An electrophotographic process according to claim 13 wherein said intermediate layer has a thickness of 30 to 1000 angstroms.

Claim 17

An electrophotographic process according to claim 1 including employing a layer having a combined content of hydrogen atom and halogen atom from 1 to 40 atomic percent.

Claim 18

An electrophotographic process comprising: (1) charging a photoconductive member for electrophotography comprising a support and a lyaer on the surface of said support; said layer comprising a photoconductive amorphous material having silicon atoms a matrix containing at least one of hydrogen atom and halogen atom and carbon atoms with a maximum carbon atom concentration, C max , in a plane parallel to said support surface; ssid carbon atoms being distributed unevenly in the thickness of direction of said layer and distributed evenly within the planes parallel to said support surface; and (2) applying electromagnetic waves to said photoconductive member thereby forming an electrostatic image.

Claim 19

An electrophotographic process comprising: (1) charging a photoconductive member for electrophotography comprising a support and a lyaer on the surface of said support; said layer comprising a photoconductive amorphous material having silicon atoms a matrix containing at least one of hydrogen atom and halogen atom and carbon atoms with a maximum carbon atom concentration, C max , in a plane parallel to said support surface; ssid carbon atoms being distributed unevenly in the thickness of direction of said layer and distributed evenly within the planes parallel to said support surface; and (2) applying electromagnetic waves to said photoconductive member thereby forming an electrostatic image.

Claim 20

An electrophotographic process according to claim 17 including employing in said layer a region in which said carbon atoms are increasingly distributed continuously in the thickness direction of said layer to said C max .

Claim 21

An electrophotographic process comprising: (1) charging a photoconductive member for electrophotography comprising a support and a lyaer on the surface of said support; said layer comprising an amorphous material having silicon atoms as matrix containing at least one of hydrogen atom and halogen atom; and containing in at least a portion thereof a layer region containing carbon atoms in an amount from 0.05 to 30 atomic percent with a maximum carbon atom concentration, C max , in a plane parallel to said support surface of from 0.03 to 90 atomic percent; said carbon atoms being distributed unevenly in the thickness direction of said layer and distributed evenly within the planes parallel to said support surface; and (2) applying electromagnetic waves to said photoconductive member thereby forming an electrostatic image.

Claim 22

An electrophotographic process comprising: (1) charging a photoconductive member for electrophotography comprising a support and a lyaer on the surface of said support; said layer comprising an amorphous material having silicon atoms as matrix containing at least one of hydrogen atom and halogen atom; and containing in at least a portion thereof a layer region containing carbon atoms in an amount from 0.05 to 30 atomic percent with a maximum carbon atom concentration, C max , in a plane parallel to said support surface of from 0.03 to 90 atomic percent; said carbon atoms being distributed unevenly in the thickness direction of said layer and distributed evenly within the planes parallel to said support surface; and (2) applying electromagnetic waves to said photoconductive member thereby forming an electrostatic image.

Claim 23

An electrophotographic process comprising: charging a phoboconductive member for electrophotography comprising a support and a layer on the surface of said support; said layer which comprises an amorphous material containing silicon atoms as matrix and at least one of hydrogen and halogen atoms, said layer containing carbon atoms and the distribution profile of the content of carbon atoms being uneven in the direction of the layer thickness, wherein the layer comprises a lower layer region in which the content of carbon atom is distributed substantially uniformly in the layer thickness direction at a distribution content of C 1 , an upper layer region in which the content of carbon atom is distributed substantially uniformly in the layer thickness direction at a distribution content of C 2 and an intermediate layer region sandwiched between both of said layer, in which the content of carbon atoms is distributed substantially uniformly in the layer thickness direction at a distribution content of C 3 , the values of C 1 and C 2 being respectively greater than the value of C 3 ; and applying electromagnetic waves to said photoconductive member thereby forming an electrostatic image.

Claim 24

An electrophotographic process comprising: charging a phoboconductive member for electrophotography comprising a support and a layer on the surface of said support; said layer which comprises an amorphous material containing silicon atoms as matrix and at least one of hydrogen and halogen atoms, said layer containing carbon atoms and the distribution profile of the content of carbon atoms being uneven in the direction of the layer thickness, wherein the layer comprises a lower layer region in which the content of carbon atom is distributed substantially uniformly in the layer thickness direction at a distribution content of C 1 , an upper layer region in which the content of carbon atom is distributed substantially uniformly in the layer thickness direction at a distribution content of C 2 and an intermediate layer region sandwiched between both of said layer, in which the content of carbon atoms is distributed substantially uniformly in the layer thickness direction at a distribution content of C 3 , the values of C 1 and C 2 being respectively greater than the value of C 3 ; and applying electromagnetic waves to said photoconductive member thereby forming an electrostatic image.

Claim 25

An electrophotographic photoconductive member comprising a support and a layer; said layer which comprises an amorphous material containing silicon atoms as matrix and at least one of hydrogen and halogen atoms, said layer containing carbon atoms and the distribution profile of the content of carbon atoms being uneven in the direction of the layer thickness, wherein the layer comprises a first layer region in which the content of carbon atoms is distributed in the layer thickness direction at the first distribution content, a second layer region in which the content of carbon atoms is distributed in the layer thickness direction at the second distribution content different from the first distribution content, and a third layer region defined between the first and second regions, and wherein the content of distribution carbon atoms changes in the layer thickness direction from the first distribution content on the side of the first layer region to the second distribution content on the side of the second layer region.

Claim 26

An electrophotographic photoconductive member comprising a support and a layer; said layer which comprises an amorphous material containing silicon atoms as matrix and at least one of hydrogen and halogen atoms, said layer containing carbon atoms and the distribution profile of the content of carbon atoms being uneven in the direction of the layer thickness, wherein the layer comprises a first layer region in which the content of carbon atoms is distributed in the layer thickness direction at the first distribution content, a second layer region in which the content of carbon atoms is distributed in the layer thickness direction at the second distribution content different from the first distribution content, and a third layer region defined between the first and second regions, and wherein the content of distribution carbon atoms changes in the layer thickness direction from the first distribution content on the side of the first layer region to the second distribution content on the side of the second layer region.