| abstract |
Provided is a charging member with which inferior cleaning rarely occurs and as a result, the formation of longitudinal streaks in an image generated by an electrophotographic device is prevented. The charging member comprises a support, an elastic layer and a surface layer. The surface layer contains a polymer compound having at least one bond selected from an Si-O-M bond and a Si-O-Ta bond, at least one bond selected from an M-O-Ge bond and a Ta-O-Ge bond, and an Si-O-Ge bond. M is an element selected from the group consisting of Ti, Zr, and Hf. This polymer compound has structural units represented by formula (1) and formula (2), as well as structural units represented by formula (3) and/or formula (4). The charging member has fissures that extend from the surface thereof to the elastic layer, and the edges of the fissures are raised. As a result, the surface of the charging member is rough. |