JPS63208051A - Electrophotographic sensitive body - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain an electrophotographic sensitive body which has a high traveling property of a carrier and has high resistance and excellent electric charge characteristic by using the superlattice structure constituted by laminating thin layers having optical band gaps different from each other on a photoconductive layer. CONSTITUTION:The photoconductive layer 3 is constituted of an electric charge generating layer 6 and an electric charge holding layer 5. The charge generating layer 6 is constituted by alternately laminating thin fine crystalline silicon films having different degrees of crystallization. The charge holding layer 5 is constituted by alternately laminating the thin fine crystalline silicon films and thin amorphous silicon films contg. elements for increasing dark resistance. The concns. of the elements in the thin amorphous silicon films are changed with each of the thin films in the layer thickness direction. The elements for increasing the dark resistance to be incorporated into the thin amorphous silicon films include, for example, hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen. These thin films vary in the optical band gaps and the respective thicknesses thereof are in a 30-200Angstrom range. The excellent traveling property of the carrier and high photoconductive characteristics are thereby obtd. and a sharp image is obtd.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to an electrophotographic photoreceptor having excellent charging characteristics, dark decay characteristics, photosensitivity characteristics, environmental resistance, and the like.

[Prior Art] Amorphous silicon (hereinafter abbreviated as a-8i:H) contained in water In addition, it is applied to photoreceptors in electrophotographic processes.

Conventionally, CdS, ZnOr Ss, or Ss-T has been used as a material constituting the entire photoconductive layer of an electrophotographic photoreceptor.
.

or poly-N-vinylcarbazole (PV
Organic materials such as Cz) or trinitrofluorenone (TNF) have been used. However, a-8l
Compared to these inorganic or organic materials, H is a non-polluting substance and does not require recovery treatment, has high spectral sensitivity in the visible light range, and has high surface hardness and wear resistance. It has advantages such as excellent impact resistance. For this reason, a-81:H is attracting attention as a photoreceptor material for electrophotographic processes.

A-8t:H is being studied as a photoreceptor material based on the Carlson method, but in this case, high resistance and photosensitivity are required as photoreceptor characteristics. However, it is difficult to satisfy both of these characteristics with a single photoreceptor, so a barrier # is provided between the photoconductive layer and the conductive support, and a surface charge retention layer is provided on the photoconductive layer. The use of a laminated structure satisfies these requirements.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] By the way, a-8l:H is usually formed by a glow discharge decomposition method using a silane gas, but at this time,
a-81: Hydrogen is taken into the H film, and the electrical and optical characteristics vary greatly due to the difference in hydrogen amount. That is, a-
8t: When the amount of hydrogen that enters HJ increases, the optical bandgap becomes wider and the resistance of a-81:H increases, but the photosensitivity to long wavelength light decreases accordingly. Therefore, it is difficult to use it, for example, in a Radbeam printer equipped with a semiconductor laser.

Also, when the hydrogen content in the a-81:H film increases,
Depending on the film forming conditions, those having bonding structures such as (SiH2)n and 5IH2 may occupy most of the area in the film. In this case, the number of gates increases and the number of silicon dangling ends increases, resulting in deterioration of photoconductive properties and the use as an electrophotographic photoreceptor. On the contrary, a-8
As the amount of hydrogen incorporated into i:H decreases, the optical bandgap decreases and its resistance decreases, but
Increased photosensitivity to long wavelength light. However, when the hydrogen content is low, there is less hydrogen to combine with and reduce the dangling bonds of silicon. For this reason,
The mobility of the generated carriers is lowered, the life is shortened, and the photoconductive properties are deteriorated, making it difficult to use as an electrophotographic photoreceptor.

In this way, the photoconductive layer of the electrophotographic photoreceptor can be formed into a single a-8
If the structure is made up of only the i:H layer, there is a problem that the characteristics change greatly depending on the manufacturing conditions of the a-8t:H layer, and desired characteristics cannot be obtained.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and
To provide an electrophotographic photoreceptor that has excellent charging ability, low residual potential, high photosensitivity over a wide wavelength range up to the near infrared region, good adhesion to a substrate, and excellent environmental resistance. With the goal.

[Structure of the Invention] (Means for Solving the Problems) As a result of extensive research, the present inventors have discovered that the light guide of an electrophotographic photoreceptor is composed of a charge retention layer and a charge generation layer. ,
The present inventors have discovered that the above object can be achieved by stacking a plurality of predetermined semiconductor films, that is, forming a region with a superlattice structure, and have completed the present invention.

That is, the electrophotographic photoreceptor of the present invention is an electrophotographic photoreceptor comprising an electrically conductive support and a photoconductive layer, the photoconductive layer comprising a charge generation layer and a charge retention layer, The generation layer is composed of alternating layers of microcrystalline silicon thin films having different degrees of crystallinity, and the charge retention layer is composed of a microcrystalline silicon thin film, an amorphous silicon thin film containing an element that increases dark resistance, and a gold layer alternately stacked. It is characterized in that it is constructed by stacking layers, and the concentration of the element in the amorphous silicon thin film varies from film to film in the layer thickness direction.

Examples of elements that increase the dark resistance contained in the amorphous silicon thin film include hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen.

The microcrystalline silicon (μc-Si) used in the present invention is thought to be formed by a mixed layer of microcrystalline silicon and amorphous silicon with a grain size of about several tens of Angstroms, and is described below. It has the following physical properties. First, in X-ray diffraction measurements, 20 shows a crystal diffraction/arm turn in the vicinity of 28 to 28.5 degrees, and is clearly distinguished from amorphous a-St in which only a halo appears. Second, μc
The dark resistance of -3i can be adjusted to 10 Ω or more, and it is clearly distinguished from polycrystalline silicon, which has a dark resistance of 10 Ω.

The optical bandgap (Eg') of the μc-Sl used in the present invention is preferably 1.55 cV, for example. However, it can be set arbitrarily within a certain range. It is preferable to add the required amount of hydrogen to each to obtain the desired Eg (1) and use it as μc-8t:H. This compensates for the dangling bonds of silicon,
The particles of dark resistance and bright resistance are removed, and photoconductivity is improved.

Note that the actual μc-Si expansion often takes on a weak P-type or N-type depending on specific factors such as manufacturing conditions (it tends to be N-type in %). Therefore, what is necessary to form a superlattice structure? In order to obtain a conductivity type, it is preferable to lightly dope impurities having opposite conductivity types to cancel out the P type or N type.

The concentration of the element that increases the dark resistance contained in the amorphous silicon thin film is preferably varied within the range of 0.01 to 20 W, more preferably 0.5 to 10 W.

The layer thickness of each thin film constituting the superlattice structure is 30 to 200X
It is preferable that

(Function) In the electrophotographic photoreceptor of the present invention, since the photoconductive layer is provided with the superlattice structure, the lifetime of carriers generated in this region is long and the mobility is also high. Although the theory has not yet been fully established, there is no doubt that it is the Doji effect due to the periodic well potential characteristic of the superlattice structure, and this is particularly referred to as the superlattice effect.

In this way, carrier mobility in the photoconductive layer increases,
Furthermore, the sensitivity of the electrophotographic photoreceptor is significantly improved due to the longer life of the carrier.

(Example) FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a cross-sectional structure of an electrophotographic photoreceptor according to an example of the present invention. In the figure, conductive support 1
A barrier layer 2 is formed thereon, and a photoconductive layer 3 consisting of a charge retention layer 5 and a charge generation layer 6 is formed thereon.

Further, a surface layer 4 is formed on the charge generation layer 6.

Note that both the charge retention layer 5 and the charge generation layer 6 have a superlattice structure.

Hereinafter, the structure of the electrophotographic photoreceptor shown in FIG. 1 will be explained in more detail.

The conductive support 1 usually consists of a drum made of aluminum.

The barrier layer 2 may be formed using Ac-81 or a-81:H'i, or may be formed using -BN:H (amorphous boron to which nitrogen and hydrogen are added).

Furthermore, an insulating film may be used. For example, μc −8
By making i:H and a-8i:H contain one or more elements selected from carbon C, nitrogen N and oxygen O,
A high resistance insulating barrier can be formed. barrier 1
The film thickness of No. 2 is preferably 100X to 10 μm.

The barrier layer 2 is formed to enhance the charge retention function of the photoreceptor surface by suppressing the flow of charges between the conductive support 1 and the charge generation j5, and to increase the charging ability of the photoreceptor. It is. Therefore, when forming a Carlson type photoreceptor using a semiconductor layer as a barrier layer, the barrier surface 2 is made to be P type or N type in order not to reduce the ability to retain charges charged on the surface. That is, when the surface of the photoreceptor is positively charged, the barrier layer is of the IfP type to prevent electrons that neutralize the surface charge from being injected into the charge generation layer.

Conversely, when the surface pressure is negatively charged, the barrier rf12'(f
- N type to prevent holes that neutralize surface charges from being injected into the charge generation layer. Since carriers injected from the barrier Ir7I2 become noise with respect to carriers generated in the charge generation layer 6 upon incidence of light, preventing carrier injection as described above improves sensitivity. In order to make #c-8t:H or a-8L:H P-type, elements belonging to Group Ⅰ of the periodic table, such as boron B, aluminum At, gallium Ga, indium In,
It is preferable to dope with thallium Tt or the like.

In addition, in order to make μc-8i:H and a-81:H N-type, elements belonging to Group Ⅰ of the periodic table, such as nitrogen and phosphorus P
, arsenic As, antimony Sb, bismuth B1, etc. are preferably doped.

The charge generation 16 generates carriers by the incidence of light, and carriers of one polarity neutralize the charges on the surface of the photoreceptor, and the other carriers travel within the charge retention layer 5 and become conductive. The support 1 is reached.

The charge retention layer 5 and charge generation layers 6U and 2'a are laminated alternately. These thin layers have different optical bandgaps, each with a thickness of 30 to 200×
within the range of In this way, by laminating thin layers with mutually different optical bandgaps, a layer with a large optical bandgap can be created based on a layer with a small optical bandgap, regardless of the size of the optical bandgap itself. A superlattice structure having periodic potential barriers is formed. In this superlattice structure, since the thin barrier layer is extremely thin, carriers pass through the barrier and travel through the superlattice structure due to the carrier tunneling effect in the thin layer.

Furthermore, in such a superlattice structure, a large number of carriers are generated by incident light. Therefore, it has high photosensitivity. Note that by changing the bandgap and layer thickness of the thin layer of the superlattice structure, the apparent bandgap of the layer having the Peter junction superlattice structure can be adjusted freely.

a-8t constituting the charge retention layer 5 and charge generation layer 6:
The hydrogen content in H and μc-8i:H is 0,
01 to 30 atoms are preferred, and 1 to 25 atoms are more preferred. Such hydrogen content compensates for the dangling bonds of silicon, balances dark resistance and bright resistance, and improves photoconductive properties.

a-8t: H#i To form a film using the glow discharge decomposition method, silane gases such as SiH4 and Si2H5 are introduced into the reaction chamber as raw materials, and a thin layer is formed by glow discharge using high frequency. Hf: Can be added. If desired, hydrogen or helium gas can be used as a carrier gas for the silica. On the other hand, silicon halides such as SiF4 gas and 5ict4 gas can be used as the source gas.

In addition, even if the reaction is performed with a mixed gas of silane gas and silicon halide gas, a-8l:Ht containing all H
- Can be formed into a film. Note that, instead of using the glow discharge decomposition method, the entire thin layer can also be formed by a physical method such as sputtering.

Similarly to a-81:H, μc-St f@ can also be formed into a film using a high-frequency glow discharge decomposition method using silane gas as a raw material. In this case, the temperature of the support is set to a-
If υ is set higher than when forming 3t:H, and the high frequency power is also set higher than when forming a-81:H, μc-8
l: H is less likely to form. Furthermore, by increasing the support temperature and high frequency power, the flow rate of source gas such as silane gas can be increased, and as a result, the film formation rate can be increased. In addition, the raw material gas SiH4
By using a gas prepared by diluting a high-order silane gas such as 512H6 with hydrogen, μc-8t:H can be formed with even higher efficiency.

jje -Sl: H and a-si: In order to make it an alp type, it is fully doped with elements belonging to Group Ⅰ of the periodic table, such as boron B, aluminum, gallium Ga, indium In, and thallium T1. In order to make the μc-8l:H and a-8i:H'in types, elements belonging to Group Ⅰ of the periodic table, such as nitrogen N, phosphorus P, arsenic Am, antimony Sb, It is preferable to dope with bismuth B1 or the like. This doping with p-type impurities or n-type impurities prevents charges from moving from the support side to the photoconductive layer. On the other hand, μ
By incorporating at least one element selected from carbon C nitrogen N and oxygen O into c-8l:H and a-8t:H, high resistance can be achieved and the surface charge retention ability can be increased. can. The content of these elements is from 5 to 40 atoms, preferably from 10 to 3 atoms.

A surface layer 4 is provided on the charge generation layer 6.

Since a-81:H and the like of the charge generation layer 6 has a relatively large refractive index of 3 to 3.4, light reflection easily occurs on the surface. When such light reflection occurs, the proportion of the amount of light absorbed by the photoconductive layer or the charge generation layer decreases, resulting in an increase in optical loss. For this reason, it is preferable to provide the surface layer 4 to prevent reflection. Further, by providing the surface layer 4, the charge generating element 6 is protected from damage. Furthermore, by forming a surface layer, the charging ability is improved and a charge can be easily placed on one surface. Materials forming the surface layer include *-
8IN: H, a-810:H, and a-8iC:H
and organic materials such as polyvinyl chloride and polyamide.

The surface of an electrophotographic photoreceptor constructed in this way.

When charged with a positive voltage of about 5oov by corona discharge,
A potential barrier is formed. Light (h) is applied to this photoreceptor.
When ν) is incident, carriers of electrons and holes are generated in the charge-generating superlattice structure of N6. Electrons in the conduction band are accelerated toward the surface layer 4 side, and holes are accelerated toward the conductive support 1 side by the electric field in the photoreceptor. In this case,
The number of carriers generated at the boundary between thin layers with different optical bandgaps is significantly greater than the number of carriers generated in the bulk. Therefore, this superlattice structure has high photosensitivity. In addition, in the potential well layer,
Due to quantum effects, the lifetime of carriers is 5 to 10 times longer than in the case of a single-layer structure that does not have a superlattice structure. Furthermore, in a superlattice structure, periodic barriers 1 are formed due to the discontinuity of the band gap, but carriers easily pass through the entire bias due to the tunneling effect, so the effective mobility of carriers is equal to the mobility in the bulk. The carrier has excellent runnability.

Similarly, in the case of the charge retention layer 5, due to quantum effects, the lifetime of carriers in the potential well layer is 5 to 10 times longer than in the case of a single layer without a superlattice structure.

In addition, in a superlattice structure, a rainbow or periodic barrier layer is formed due to discontinuity in the band gap, but carriers can easily pass through the bias layer due to the tunnel effect.
The effective mobility of the carrier is equivalent to the mobility in bulk, and the carrier has excellent mobility. As mentioned above,
A superlattice structure in which thin RiI layers having different optical band gaps are stacked can provide high photoconductivity and provide clearer images than conventional photoreceptors.

Referring to FIG. 2, an apparatus and manufacturing method for moxibusting the electrophotographic photoreceptor of the above embodiment by a glow discharge method will be described below. In the same figure, gas? Empe21.22,23.
In 24, for example, S tH4+B2H6, H2, C
A raw material gas such as H4 is contained.

The gas in these gas cylinders is fed by a pulp 26 for flow rate adjustment.
and is supplied to a mixer 28 via a pipe 27. A pressure gauge 25 is installed in each cylinder,
By adjusting the pulp 26 while monitoring the pressure gauge 25, the flow rate and mixing ratio of each raw material gas supplied to the mixer 28 can be adjusted.

The gases mixed in the mixer 28 are supplied to a reaction vessel 29. A rotating shaft 30 is attached to the bottom 31 of the reaction vessel 29 so as to be rotatable around the vertical direction. The rotating shaft 3
At the upper end of 0, a disk-shaped support 32 has its surface aligned with the rotation axis 30.
It is fixed vertically. Inside the reaction vessel 29, a cylindrical electric conductor 33 is installed on the bottom 3 so that its axial center coincides with the axial center of the full rotation shaft 30. A drum base 34 of a photoreceptor is placed on a support base 32 with its axial center aligned with the axial center of the rotating shaft 30.
A heater 35 for heating the drum base is disposed inside the drum. A high frequency power source 36 is connected between the electrode 33 and the drum base 34.

A high frequency current is supplied between the electrode 33 and the drum base 34. The rotary shaft 30 is rotationally driven by a motor 38 . The pressure inside the reaction vessel 29 is monitored by a pressure gauge 37, and the reaction vessel 29 is connected via a dirt pulp 38 to an appropriate εF gas means such as a vacuum pump.

When manufacturing a photoreceptor using the above-mentioned manufacturing apparatus, after installing the drum base 34 in the reaction vessel 29, f-) the pulp 39 is opened and the pressure inside the reaction vessel 29 is reduced to below a pressure of about Q, 1 Torr. Exhaust. Next, cylinders 21, 22, 23.
24, the required reaction gases are mixed at a predetermined mixing ratio and introduced into the reaction vessel 29.

In this case, the flow rate of the gas introduced into the reaction vessel 29 is set so that the pressure within the reaction vessel 29 is 0.1 to 1.0 Torr. Next, the motor 38 is operated to rotate the drum base 34, and the heater 35 rotates the drum base 34.
is heated to a constant temperature, and a high frequency current is supplied between the stain electrode 33 and the drum base 34 by the high frequency power supply 36 to form a glow discharge between them. As a result, a-81:H is deposited on the drum base 34. Note that N2O, NH3, No2. N2. CH2, C2
By using H4,02 gas etc., carbon, oxygen,
Nitrogen can be included in a-81:H.

As described above, the electrophotographic photoreceptor according to the present invention can be manufactured using a closed system manufacturing apparatus, and therefore is safe for the human body.

Next, the results of testing the electrophotographic properties of an electrophotographic photoreceptor according to the present invention formed into a film will be described.

Test Example 1 In accordance with the announcement, in order to prevent interference, an aluminum drum base with a diameter of 80 m and a width of 350 m, which had been subjected to acid treatment, alkali treatment, and sandblasting, was installed in the reaction vessel. Vented to 5 Torr X rawhide.

The drum base was heated to 250°C, and while rotating at 10 rpm, 5IH4 gas was introduced into the reaction vessel at a flow rate of 500 SCCM%B2H6 gas'1slH4 gas at a flow rate of 10, and the pressure in the reaction vessel was 'fc. I
Torr K adjusted. Then, high frequency power of 13.56 MHz was applied to generate plasma to form a p-type a-SIC:Hk wall layer on the drum base.

Next, 5II (4 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 50 SCCM and H2 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 500 SCCM, the pressure inside the reaction vessel was set to 1.2 Torr, 1.2 kW of high frequency power was applied, and a 120X μc- 8i:H thin layer was formed. Then S IH4 gas was added to 500 SCCM 1H2
7! /su 250 SCCM.

CH4 gas was introduced at a flow rate of 708 CCM, and 400
A-SIC of 120X by applying high frequency power of W:
A thin H layer was formed. Repeat this operation until 12μ
A charge retention layer having a superlattice structure of m was formed.

In addition, for the formation of the a-8iC:H thin layer, the flow rate of CH4 gas was decreased for each thin film formation, and the final
8 CCM, and the carbon concentration was changed from 5 atoms to 1 atom.

Next, 50 SCCM of 5IR4 gas, H2 gas all ivo.

It was introduced at a flow rate of SCCM, and the pressure inside the reaction vessel was set to 1,
A 100X μe-8i:H thin layer (65% crystallinity) was applied at 2 Torr and 1.2 kW of high-frequency power was applied.
was formed. Then, the SiH4 gas flow f total 30 sec
As M, a 100X μc-8i:H thin layer (crystallinity 75%) was similarly formed. Repeat these operations,
A charge generation skin with a superlattice structure of 3 μm was formed.

Finally, a surface layer consisting of a 0.1 μm thin a-8iC:H layer was formed.

When the surface of the photoreceptor thus formed is positively charged at about 500 μm and exposed to white light, this light is absorbed by the charge generation layer and carriers of electron-hole pairs are generated. In this test example, a large number of carriers were generated, the carriers had a long life, and high running performance was obtained. This resulted in clear, high-quality images. Furthermore, when the photoreceptor manufactured in this test example was repeatedly charged, the reproducibility and stability of the transferred image were excellent, and the corona resistance was also excellent.

It was demonstrated that four durability properties such as moisture resistance and abrasion resistance were impaired.

The photoreceptor manufactured in this manner has high sensitivity even to long wavelength light of 780 to 790 nm, which is the oscillation wavelength of a semiconductor radar. When this photoreceptor was installed in a semiconductor laser printer and an image was formed using the Carlson process, a clear, high-resolution image could be obtained even when the exposure amount on the photoreceptor surface was 25 argcrn.

Test Example 2 One thin film constituting the charge retention layer, a-sic diH
An electrophotographic X photoreceptor was produced in the same manner as in Test Example 1, except that a thin layer of a-3IN:H was formed on the two-layer thin layer.

a-SIN: H thin layer is 5IH4ff 200
SCCM.

N2 gas t150 SCCM, H2 gas t'200
It was introduced at a flow rate of 8 CCM, and the pressure inside the reaction vessel was
Torr and applying a high frequency power of 150W was successful. In this case, the flow rate of N2 gas is decreased after each a-8iN:H thin layer formation, and finally 258C
CM, and the nitrogen concentration was changed from 7 FA molecules to 1 atomic atoms.

When an image was formed using this photoreceptor in the same manner as in Test Example 1, a clear and high quality image was obtained.

Test Example 3 An electrophotographic photoreceptor was prepared in the same manner as Test Example 1, except that the carbon concentration of the a-SIC:H thin layer was changed as shown in FIG. Manufactured.

When images were formed using these photoreceptors in the same manner as in Test Example 1, clear and high quality images were obtained.

Test Example 4 Test Example 2 except that the nitrogen concentration of the a-8IN:H thin layer constituting the charge retention N was changed as shown in FIG.
An electrophotographic photoreceptor was produced in the same manner as described above.

When images were formed using these photoreceptors in the same manner as in Test Example 1, clear and high quality images were obtained.

Note that the charge retention layer and the charge generation N? The constituting thin layer glaze is not limited to two types as in the above test example, but three or more types of thin layers may be laminated, and the boundary between the thin layers with different K and optical band gaps may be used. Just form it.

[Effects of the Invention] According to this invention, an optical band gap f is added to the photoconductive layer.
Since a superlattice structure is used, which is formed by laminating thin layers with different layers, it is possible to obtain an electrophotographic photoreceptor with high carrier mobility, high resistance, and excellent charging characteristics. In particular, the present invention has the advantage that by appropriately combining the materials forming the thin layer, it is possible to obtain a photoreceptor having an optimum optical conductivity t% for light in any wavelength band.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an electrophotographic photoreceptor according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an apparatus for manufacturing an electrophotographic photoreceptor according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. Change in carbon or nitrogen concentration in silicon thin film? FIG. 1: Conductive support, 2: Barrier layer, 3: Photoconductive layer, 4: Surface layer, 5: Charge retention layer, 6: Charge generation layer. Applicant's agent Patent attorney Takehiko Suzue Layer 1 (a) Mu (C) Third layer 1 (b) Mu 1 (d) Figure

Claims (10)

[Claims] (1) In an electrophotographic photoreceptor having a conductive support and a photoconductive layer, the photoconductive layer is composed of a charge generation layer and a charge retention layer, and the charge generation layer includes microcrystals having different degrees of crystallinity. The charge retention layer is composed of alternating layers of silicon thin films, and the charge retention layer is composed of alternating layers of microcrystalline silicon thin films and amorphous silicon thin films containing elements that increase dark resistance. An electrophotographic photoreceptor characterized in that the concentration of the element in the thin film varies from film to film in the layer thickness direction. (2) The electrophotographic photoreceptor according to claim 1, wherein the thin film has a thickness of 30 to 200 Å. (3) The electrophotographic photoreceptor according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the element that increases the dark resistance is at least one selected from hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen. (4) The microcrystalline silicon thin film constituting the photoconductive layer is
The electrophotographic photoreceptor according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the electrophotographic photoreceptor contains at least one selected from carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen. (5) The photoconductive layer includes at least one element selected from elements belonging to Group III and V of the periodic table. The electrophotographic photoreceptor according to any one of the items. (6) Any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the crystallinity of the microcrystalline silicon thin film constituting the charge generation layer varies from film to film in the layer thickness direction.
The electrophotographic photoreceptor described in . (7) A patent claim characterized in that a barrier layer made of an amorphous material or a semiconductor material in which at least a portion thereof is microcrystallized is formed between the conductive support and the photoconductive layer. The electrophotographic photoreceptor according to item 1. (8) The electrophotographic photoreceptor according to claim 7, wherein the barrier layer contains at least one element selected from elements belonging to Group III and Group V of the periodic table. . (9) The electrophotographic photoreceptor according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the barrier layer contains at least one element selected from carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen. (10) The electrophotographic photoreceptor according to claim 1, wherein a surface layer is formed on the photoconductive layer.