Micro/Nano-Machining Research and Education Center, Tohoku University

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Outline

Equipment in our facilities are shared. We look forward to your use. Please feel free to contact us.

Objectives

Venture Business Laboratory (VBL), the predecessor of Micro/Nano-Machining Research and Education Center (MNC), was established by a fund for creative research projects in the FY 1995 Supplementary Budget of the Japanese government. Tohoku University has set “Research and Development of Sensors and Micromachines (Micro/Nano-Machining)” as a research and educational theme and is promoting this project with all-campus cooperative systems. The objectives of MNC are the following three points:

  1. Promotion of practical and creative research and development programs that lead to the creation of new industries
  2. Development of creative human resources with highly professional and vocational ability and rich venture spirit
  3. Management of large-scale advanced technology and research and education facility dedicated to graduate schools

Role of MNC

We are responsible for training free thinking and creativity for young researchers centered on graduate students; developing human resources with a wide range of attributes and skills through interdisciplinary collaboration beyond the boundaries of graduate schools and majors; carrying out joint research that includes researchers from domestic universities and companies; accepting researchers from overseas such as specially invited foreign researchers; organizing international exchanges such as overseas research by young researchers. In addition, we will actively disseminate the outcomes to the world.

High technology is a comprehensive technology

High technology is a comprehensive technology that aims for large-scale integration, so various equipment and knowledge are indispensable. If each laboratory has its own expensive equipment for research, it will be wasteful, so it is necessary to devise a way to share the equipment.

Micromachining Facility

The “Micromachining Facility” has a clean room of 600 square meters and is an environment to realize microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices and integrated circuits in earnest. In the clean room on the ground floor, small silicon wafers of 2 cm square or 2 inch in diameter are processed for ease of maintenance. We have a facility where full-scale MEMS devices and integrated circuits can be prototyped within the university, so please make great use of it. On the 2nd and 3rd floors, there are laboratories for sample measurement, evaluation, analysis, etc.

Nanomachining Facility

The “Nanomachining Facility” is a clean room of 150 square meters and is an environment that is easy to use for research related to nanomachining. In addition to photomask manufacturing-related equipment, laser lithography equipment, long-focus projection exposure equipment, scanning probe microscope-related equipment, etc. are installed.

Organization and Management

Staff

  • Director: Prof. Takahito ONO
  • Deputy Director: Assoc. Prof. Naoki INOMATA
  • 3 technical staff
  • 1 clerical staff

Committees and User meeting

Micro/Nano-Machining Research and Education Center Steering Committee

Objective: discussion for important matters related to the operation of the center.
Composition: chairman; full-time professor of the Graduate School of Engineering; persons deemed necessary by the Steering Committee.

Micro/Nano-Machining Research and Education Center Campus Joint Use Committee

Objective: adjustments required to the use of the center.
Composition: chairman, professor or associate professor of Graduate Schools of Engineering, Science, Environmental Studies, New Industry Creation Hatchery Center, Institute for Materials Research, Research Institute for Tuberculosis and Cancer, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Institute of Fluid Science, Research Institute of Electrical Communication, Institute of Multidisciplinary Research for Advanced Materials; persons deemed necessary by the Campus Joint Use Committee.

User Meeting

Objective: a meeting once a month about the operation of MNC.
Composition: the director, deputy director, laboratory staff who use MNC, etc.

History of MNC

Successive directors

June 10, 1996–March 31, 2006:
Director of Venture Business Laboratory, Tohoku University

From April 1, 2006:
Director of Micro/Nano-Machining Research and Education Center, Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University

*The position at the time of inauguration is stated in the Name column.

Name Term of office
Prof. Masayoshi ESASHI June 10, 1996–May 20, 1998
Prof. Mitsumasa KOYANAGI May 21, 1998–May 20, 2000
Prof. Kazuhiro HANE May 21, 2000–May 20, 2002
Prof. Hiroaki NIITSUMA May 21, 2002–March 31, 2004
Prof. Hiroo YUGAMI April 1, 2004–July 31, 2006
Prof. Masayoshi ESASHI Augast 1, 2006–March 31, 2008
Prof. Masayoshi ESASHI April 1, 2008–March 31, 2009
Prof. Hiroki KUWANO March 1, 2009–March 31, 2012
Prof. Takahito ONO April 1, 2012–March 31, 2014
Prof. Shuji TANAKA April 1, 2014–March 31, 2016
Prof. Kazuhiro HANE April 1, 2016–March 31, 2018
Prof. Takahito ONO April 1, 2018–March 31, 2020
Prof. Yoshiaki KANAMORI April 1, 2020–March 31, 2022
Prof. Shuji TANAKA April 1, 2022–March 31, 2024