!IMING AT A "REAKTHROUGH#URRENT 3TATE OF THE $IVISION OF-OLECULAR %LECTRONICS AND "IOELECTRONICSAND /UTLOOK FOR THE &UTURE-ITSUMASA )7!-/4/#HIEF $IVISION OF -OLECULAR %LECTRONICS AND "IOELECTRONICS*APAN 3OCIETY OF !PPLIED 0HYSICS

4HE YEAR  MARKS THE TH YEAR SINCE THE $IVISION OF -OLECULAR%LECTRONICS AND "IOELECTRONICS -"% $IVISION 4HE *APAN 3OCIETY OF !PPLIED 0HYSICS WAS ESTABLISHED !S  IS ALSO THE TH ANNIVERSARY OFTHE 7ORLD 9EAR OF 0HYSICS THE -"% $IVISION HAS SHARED THIS PATH FORONE FIFTH OF THIS IMPORTANT CENTURY 4HE -"% $IVISION BEGAN WITH THECONTRIBUTIONS OF 4OYOSAKA -ORIIZUMI EMERITUS PROFESSOR OF THE 4OKYO)NSTITUTE OF 4ECHNOLOGY ND 3ECRETARY 'ENERAL AMONG OTHERS UNDERTHE LEADERSHIP OF THE LATE -ASAKAZU /KADA THEN PROFESSOR OF (IROSHIMA5NIVERSITY WHO ACTED AS THE FIRST 3ECRETARY 'ENERAL 4HE EXCEPTIONAL INSIGHT OF THE ORIGINAL MEMBERS IS CLEAR IN THAT ONE OF THE POLICIES FROM THEOUTSET WAS THE VIEW THAT THE INTEGRATION OF NOT ONLY THE ORGANICS FIELDAND THE ELECTRONICS FIELD BUT OF THE BIOLOGY FIELD AS WELL WAS ESSENTIAL
TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE -"% $IVISION
4HE -"% $IVISION STARTED OFF AS A SMALL ORGANIZATION WITH ONLYABOUT  MEMBERS BUT AS OF !PRIL  IT ALREADY HAD  MEMBERSAND THE MEMBERSHIP CONTINUES TO GROW STEADILY ,OOKING AT THIS TRENDWE CAN SAY WITH CONFIDENCE THAT THE -"% $IVISION WILL CONTINUE TOGROW BUILDING ON THE MOMENTUM ESTABLISHED OVER THE PAST  YEARS
4HE MAIN GOAL OF THE -"% $IVISIONS FIRST PHASE WAS TO INTERACT WITH RESEARCHERS CONDUCTING RESEARCH IN DIFFERENT FIELDS AND TO ENCOURAGE PARTICIPATION IN THESE FIELDS BY YOUNG RESEARCHERS WHO ARE NOT CONSTRAINEDBY CONVENTIONAL BOUNDARIES !MONG THE VARIOUS THEMES COVERED AT ANNUAL MEETING STUDY MEETINGS AND SEMINARS THE GREATEST LEVEL OF INTEREST WAS FOCUSED ON NEW ORGANIC FILM GROWTH TECHNOLOGIES DRY PROCESSES WET PROCESSES ELECTROLYTIC POLYMERIZATION PROCESSES ETC  MOSTNOTABLY THE STRUCTURES OF THESE FILMS AND METHODS OF EVALUATING THEIRCHARACTERISTICS AND PROPERTIES $ISCUSSIONS ON SUCH TOPICS CONTRIBUTEDSIGNIFICANTLY TO ENABLING RESEARCHERS IN DIFFERENT RESEARCH AREAS TO TRANSCEND THE BOUNDARIES OF THESE FIELDS$URING THIS TIME CONSIDERABLE PROGRESS WAS MADE IN NUMEROUSTECHNOLOGIES INCLUDING ULTRA HIGH VACUUM TECHNOLOGIES 34- TECHNOLOGIES ELECTRON MICROSCOPES ," AND SELF ASSEMBLY TECHNOLOGIES AND OTHERS AND A COMMON AWARENESS WITHIN THESE FIELDS WAS GRADUALLY CULTIVATED 7HEN THE -"% $IVISION WAS FIRST ESTABLISHED THE RESEARCHERS OFTENTALKED ABOUT THEIR hFIELDS OF SPECIALIZATION v BUT AS TIME WENT ON THEYBEGAN TO LOOK AT THE RESEARCH FROM A PERSPECTIVE THAT WAS NOT LIMITEDBY SUCH SPECIALIZED FIELDS )N THIS BACKDROP THE -"% $IVISION GRADUALLYSHIFTED INTO ITS SECOND PHASE 4HE UNIQUE FEATURES OF THIS SECOND PHASECAN BE CLEARLY SEEN IN THE TRENDS OF THE PAST TEN YEARS !T THIS STAGEBASED ON THE STRENGTHS OF RESEARCHERS WHO HAVE CULTIVATED THEIR KNOWLEDGE THROUGH THESE INTERACTIONS AND THE YOUNG RESEARCHERS WHO HAVEBEEN TRAINED IN THESE FIELDS THE ACTIVITIES OF THE -"% $IVISION BECOMEEVEN MORE ENERGETIC TARGETING THE DEVELOPMENT OF DEVICES THAT ARE EXPECTED TO FORM THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE INDUSTRIAL WORLD DEVICES SUCH ASORGANIC %, ELECTROLUMINESCENCE ORGANIC TRANSISTORS ORGANIC SOLAR CELLSAND ,#$ DISPLAYS
/F COURSE THIS TREND IS RELATED TO GLOBAL TRENDS IN THIS FIELD SUCH ASTHE DISCOVERY OF ORGANIC %, MATERIALS OF HIGH MOBILITY ORGANIC MATERIALS AND OF NEW LIQUID CRYSTALS 7E WOULD LIKE TO POINT OUT HOWEVER THATDURING THIS TIME THE -"% $IVISION HAS BEEN FOSTERING THE ABILITY TO ABSORB THESE NEW TRENDS 4HIS HAS BEEN ACCOMPLISHED BY ACTIVELY CALLING ONYOUNG PEOPLE IN THEIR S AND S TO TAKE UP THE POSITIONS OF $IVISIONSECRETARIES AND FULL TIME SECRETARIES WHILE PLANNING AND CONDUCTING RESEARCH MEETINGS AND SEMINARS AS PART OF THE $IVISION@S ACTIVITIES AND BYCONSTANTLY ENCOURAGING PARTICIPATION IN THIS FIELD FROM OTHER NEW FIELDSWITHOUT PLACING EXCESSIVE EMPHASIS ON ANY SINGLE AREA OF RESEARCH 4HE-"% $IVISION HAS THUS BEEN GROWING STEADILY OVER THE YEARS BUT NOWEVEN AS IT DIRECTS ITS ENERGIES TOWARD FIELDS SUCH AS BIOTECHNOLOGY ANDNANOTECHNOLOGY IT IS WORKING TO ADD BIOELECTRONICS AND MOLECULAR ELECTRONICS TO THE EXISTING FIELDS OF ORGANIC ELECTRONICS EG ORGANIC %, ORGANIC &%4 AND LIQUID CRYSTALS 4HE GOALS OF THE -"% $IVISION AS CONCEIVED  YEARS AGO AREABOUT TO BE ACHIEVED WITH THE SUPPORT OF RESEARCH ACTIVITIES TARGETINGNEW ORGANIC DEVICES AND THE DISCOVERY OF NEW MATERIALS THAT COULD NOTHAVE EVEN BEEN IMAGINED AT THAT TIME )N THE FUTURE THE -"% $IVISIONHOPES TO CONTINUE ITS ACTIVITIES CONTRIBUTING TO THE EFFORTS OF THE $IVISION MEMBERS AND MEMBERS OF *3!0 BUT IN TERMS OF THESE FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS WE FEEL THAT LEADERSHIP IN THE -"% $IVISIONS ACTIVITIES WHICH
HAVE BEEN STEADILY INCREASING IN SCALE HAS BECOME MORE IMPORTANT THAN
EVER BEFORE %XCHANGES BETWEEN DIFFERENT FIELDS HAVE BEEN USEFUL IN CREATING NEW TRENDS BUT WITH THIS EXPANSION WE ARE CURRENTLY WITNESSING APHENOMENON CHARACTERIZED BY A DIVERGENCE OF INDIVIDUAL THEMES WITHINTHE -"% $IVISION &OR EXAMPLE THE ANNUAL MEETINGS WHICH WERE CONDUCTED USING A SINGLE SESSION WHEN THE -"% $IVISION WAS FIRST ESTABLISHED CAN NOW ONLY BE EFFECTIVELY ADMINISTERED USING A PARALLEL SESSION
4HESE TYPES OF ISSUES CANNOT BE AVOIDED BUT THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT THISFIELD WILL BE OF CENTRAL IMPORTANCE IN THE ST CENTURY "ASED ON THE CONDITIONS OUTLINED HERE THE -"% $IVISION WILL CONTINUE TO GROW AND DEVELOP AS AN APPEALING ORGANIZATION IN THE FUTURE WHILE BRINGING TOGETHER THE KNOWLEDGE AND WISDOM OF ITS MEMBER RESEARCHERS*3!0 )NTERNATIONAL .O *ULY 