Embassy of France in Japan’s Attaché for Science and Technology Pays a Visit

On September 1, Dr. Jean-Baptiste Bordes, the Attaché for Science and Technology at the Embassy of France in Japan, visited Tohoku University and met with Executive Vice President (EVP) Motoko Kotani and EVP Toshiya Ueki.

EVP Ueki welcomed Dr. Bordes and introduced him to the university’s facilities and cutting-edge research. Tohoku University has more academic agreements with France than with any other European country – 25 university-level agreements and 24 department-level agreements. Active exchanges are ongoing, including the ELyTMaX joint laboratory. ELyTMaX, which stands for Engineering Science Lyon-Tohoku for Materials and Systems under Extreme Conditions, is an international joint unit established in 2016 by Tohoku University, the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), and the Université de Lyon.

EVP Ueki noted that the majority of students outside of Asia hail from French universities. He also expressed the university’s desire to further exchanges with France.

EVP Kotani discussed the next-generation synchrotron radiation facility, NanoTerasu, and the consortium of companies that have invested in it. She highlighted that institutions joining the consortium will gain access to the facility and can leverage their expertise through collaborations with researchers. Additionally, she emphasized that the NanoTerasu-based system is expected to drive various innovations.

Dr. Bordes spoke about the mission of the French Embassy’s Office for Science and Technology and about the importance of strengthening the relationship between academic institutions in both countries.

After the meeting, the group visited the Institute for Materials Research, the Advanced Institute for Materials Research (AIMR), the Graduate School of Information Sciences and the ElyTMaX Laboratory. At each visit they heard an overview of the research facilities and research presentations from young researchers.