National Institute for Materials Science
Encyclopedia
is an Independent Administrative Institution
and one of the largest scientific research centers in Japan
.
1956 National Research Institute for Metals (NRIM) was established in Meguro, Tokyo
, Japan
. In 1979, NRIM opened an office in Tsukuba and by 1995, the institute had moved most of its functions to that location. The Meguro campus continues to exist; and it remains a part of the NRIM successor, the National Institute for Materials Science.
1966 National Institute for Research in Inorganic Materials (NIRIM) was established in Toshima, Tokyo, Japan
. NIRIM was moved to Tsukuba in 1972, in the very early stages of the Tsukuba Science City. This event was considered as the first transfer of a national research institute in Japan.
2001 An independent administrative institute NIMS was established in Tsukuba by merging NRIM and NIRIM.
synchrotron located in Hyōgo Prefecture
, Japan
. Whereas all campuses host scientific research units, most administration is located at Sengen. In total, about 1500 researchers, engineers and administrative staff members are employed in all those campuses. Sengen, Namiki and Sakura branches are located several kilometers apart in Tsukuba — a Science City within an hour from central Tokyo by Tsukuba Express train. A free shuttle bus facilitates transfer between the Tsukuba campuses.
Besides, a number of novel devices and techniques have been proposed at NIMS:
(MANA) embarked on a new program of scientific cooperation with the Yonsei University
in Seoul
, Korea
. The exchange of researchers and research information between the two institutions is projected as a crucial factor in collaborative research on the development and evaluation of sustainable chemical technology and Nano-biofusion technology.
Independent Administrative Institution
An Incorporated Administrative Agency or in lay terms an Independent Administrative Corporation or Independent Administrative Institution is a newly designed type of legal body for Japanese governmental organizations regulated by the Basic Law on Reforming Government Ministries of 1998...
and one of the largest scientific research centers in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
.
History
The growth and development of today's scientific research center has passed through several phases in a number of locations:1956 National Research Institute for Metals (NRIM) was established in Meguro, Tokyo
Meguro, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. It calls itself Meguro City in English.Meguro hosts fifteen foreign embassies and consulates. One of Tokyo's most exclusive residential neighborhoods is located in Meguro....
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. In 1979, NRIM opened an office in Tsukuba and by 1995, the institute had moved most of its functions to that location. The Meguro campus continues to exist; and it remains a part of the NRIM successor, the National Institute for Materials Science.
1966 National Institute for Research in Inorganic Materials (NIRIM) was established in Toshima, Tokyo, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. NIRIM was moved to Tsukuba in 1972, in the very early stages of the Tsukuba Science City. This event was considered as the first transfer of a national research institute in Japan.
2001 An independent administrative institute NIMS was established in Tsukuba by merging NRIM and NIRIM.
Campuses
NIMS campuses are named Sengen, Namiki, Sakura, and Meguro. In addition, NIMS has a beamline station at the SPring-8SPring-8
SPring-8 is a synchrotron radiation facility located in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan and run by the Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute. The machine consists of a storage ring containing an 8 GeV electron beam...
synchrotron located in Hyōgo Prefecture
Hyogo Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region on Honshū island. The capital is Kobe.The prefecture's name was previously alternately spelled as Hiogo.- History :...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. Whereas all campuses host scientific research units, most administration is located at Sengen. In total, about 1500 researchers, engineers and administrative staff members are employed in all those campuses. Sengen, Namiki and Sakura branches are located several kilometers apart in Tsukuba — a Science City within an hour from central Tokyo by Tsukuba Express train. A free shuttle bus facilitates transfer between the Tsukuba campuses.
Development
NIMS has developed as a dynamic organization; and new initiatives are launched virtually every month. Among the more noteworthy of these are:- October 2001 Establishment of Biomaterials Center, Superconducting Materials Center, Computational Materials Science Center and Materials Information Technology Station
- April 2002 Establishment of Steel Research Center, Ecomaterials Center, High Magnetic Fields Center and Materials Analysis Station
- June 2002 Establishment of the Nanotechnology Researchers Network of Japan
- September 2003 Establishment of the International Center for Young Scientists (ICYS)
- April 2004 Establishment of Doctoral Program in Materials Science and Engineering of Graduate School of Pure and Applied Science, University of Tsukuba
- May 2004 Establishment of High Voltage Electron Microscopy Station
- April 2006 Start of the Second Mid-Term Program. This event coincided with significant reorganization of NIMS.
- October 2007 Establishment of the International Center for Materials NanoarchitectonicsInternational Center for Materials NanoarchitectonicsInternational Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics is a special research unit established in 2007 at the National Institute for Materials Science within the Research Center Initiative by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science .- Members :MANA brings together outstanding researchers...
(MANA)
Research
NIMS is dedicated to materials research with strong emphasis on the synthesis, characterization and applications of metals, semiconductors, superconductors, ceramics, and organic materials in their bulk and nanoscaled forms. The applications cover a wide range including electronics, optics, coatings, fuel cells, catalysts, and biotechnologies. As to characterization, techniques associated with electron microscopy, high-energy particle beams and high magnetic fields are particularly developed. Most research is experimental though at least one research center is devoted to theoretical modeling.Selected achievements
NIMS has evolved into a recognized world leader in many scientific fields, including:- Growth of single crystals of diamondSynthetic diamondSynthetic diamond is diamond produced in a technological process; as opposed to natural diamond, which is created in geological processes. Synthetic diamond is also widely known as HPHT diamond or CVD diamond, denoting the production method, High-Pressure High-Temperature synthesis and Chemical...
and boron nitrideBoron nitrideBoron nitride is a chemical compound with chemical formula BN, consisting of equal numbers of boron and nitrogen atoms. BN is isoelectronic to a similarly structured carbon lattice and thus exists in various crystalline forms...
by the high-pressure high-temperature technique.
- N-type doping of diamond thin filmsChemical vapor deposition of diamondChemical vapor deposition of diamond or CVD is a method of producing synthetic diamond by creating the circumstances necessary for carbon atoms in a gas to settle on a substrate in crystalline form....
.
- Beside synthesis of diamond and BN crystals and films, their optoelectronic applications have been demonstrated, such as deep-UV laserLaserA laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...
and light-emitting diodeLight-emitting diodeA light-emitting diode is a semiconductor light source. LEDs are used as indicator lamps in many devices and are increasingly used for other lighting...
s,
- Growth and characterization of boron nitride nanotubes.
- Superconducting and organic materials.
- Functional ceramics, such as superplastic ceramics, etc.
- CatalystCatalysisCatalysis is the change in rate of a chemical reaction due to the participation of a substance called a catalyst. Unlike other reagents that participate in the chemical reaction, a catalyst is not consumed by the reaction itself. A catalyst may participate in multiple chemical transformations....
nanoparticles.
- Electron beam induced depositionElectron beam induced depositionElectron beam-induced deposition is a process of decomposing gaseous molecules by electron beam leading to deposition of non-volatile fragments onto a nearby substrate...
- a technique of growing nanostructureNanostructureA nanostructure is an object of intermediate size between molecular and microscopic structures.In describing nanostructures it is necessary to differentiate between the number of dimensions on the nanoscale. Nanotextured surfaces have one dimension on the nanoscale, i.e., only the thickness of the...
s and nanodevices using the beam of electron microscopeElectron microscopeAn electron microscope is a type of microscope that uses a beam of electrons to illuminate the specimen and produce a magnified image. Electron microscopes have a greater resolving power than a light-powered optical microscope, because electrons have wavelengths about 100,000 times shorter than...
.
Besides, a number of novel devices and techniques have been proposed at NIMS:
- Atomic switch - a nano-scaled semiconducting device controlling movements of atoms.
- The world smallest thermometer based on a single-wall carbon nanotubeCarbon nanotubeCarbon nanotubes are allotropes of carbon with a cylindrical nanostructure. Nanotubes have been constructed with length-to-diameter ratio of up to 132,000,000:1, significantly larger than for any other material...
.
- Giant electrostrainPiezoelectricityPiezoelectricity is the charge which accumulates in certain solid materials in response to applied mechanical stress. The word piezoelectricity means electricity resulting from pressure...
effect.
- Warm spraying - an efficient technique of coating a substrate with a layer of metal, polymer or glass.
Publications
- Science and Technology of Advanced MaterialsScience and Technology of Advanced MaterialsScience and Technology of Advanced Materials is a bimonthly peer-reviewed scientific journal in materials science that was established in 2000. In 2008 it became an open access journal through the sponsorship by the National Institute for Materials Science . The journal is international, with its...
(STAM) - an international, peer-reviewed journal in materials scienceMaterials scienceMaterials science is an interdisciplinary field applying the properties of matter to various areas of science and engineering. This scientific field investigates the relationship between the structure of materials at atomic or molecular scales and their macroscopic properties. It incorporates...
- has become an open access journalOpen access journalOpen access journals are scholarly journals that are available online to the reader "without financial, legal, or technical barriers other than those inseparable from gaining access to the internet itself." Some are subsidized, and some require payment on behalf of the author.Subsidized journals...
in 2008 through the NIMS sponsorship. The journal remains by all means international, with its editors and referees located all over the world. However, the journal management is performed by the Scientific Information Office of NIMS, which has recently launched an initiative to drastically improve the prestige of STAM. The journal is printed by the Institute of PhysicsInstitute of PhysicsThe Institute of Physics is a scientific charity devoted to increasing the practice, understanding and application of physics. It has a worldwide membership of around 40,000....
which maintains another STAM homepage.
- NIMS NOW International is a monthly newsletter of NIMS, which since July 2003 has been published exclusively for international readers. Monthly coverage includes NIMS latest research activities, management policy, progress in international collaborations, world-renowned guests, outstanding researchers and staff members, events, and other information, which reports current activities as well as key trends in materials science. NIMS NOW has more than 2400 subscribers in Japan and 73 countries worldwide. A printed version is available free of charge.
- Materials Science Outlook is a brochure intended for policy makers, research institute managers, and materials science researchers both domestic and overseas. This publication provides readers with detailed information to plan policies for their activities.
- NanotechJapan and Nanotech Magazine are regular publications of a MEXT-sponsored project. This collaborative project is hosted by NIMS and includes sharing scientific instrumentation between the 13 leading Japanese institutions.
Scientific cooperation
In September 2008, an innovative NIMS research unit, the International Center for Materials NanoarchitectonicsInternational Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics
International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics is a special research unit established in 2007 at the National Institute for Materials Science within the Research Center Initiative by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science .- Members :MANA brings together outstanding researchers...
(MANA) embarked on a new program of scientific cooperation with the Yonsei University
Yonsei University
Yonsei University is a Christian private research university, located in Seoul, South Korea. Established in 1885, it is one of the oldest universities in South Korea, the top private comprehensive universities in South Korea, and is widely regarded as one of the top three comprehensive...
in Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
, Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
. The exchange of researchers and research information between the two institutions is projected as a crucial factor in collaborative research on the development and evaluation of sustainable chemical technology and Nano-biofusion technology.
See also
- International Center for Materials NanoarchitectonicsInternational Center for Materials NanoarchitectonicsInternational Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics is a special research unit established in 2007 at the National Institute for Materials Science within the Research Center Initiative by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science .- Members :MANA brings together outstanding researchers...
(MANA) - List of Independent Administrative Institutions (Japan)
- List of National Laboratories (Japan)
- Materials databaseMaterials databaseA materials database is a database used to store experimental, standards or design data for materials in such a way that they can be retrieved efficiently by humans or computer programs.- Background :...
- Research Institutes in Tsukuba