Researchers are now spreading their wings fromTohoku to the world.

TI - FRIS
Tohoku Initiative for Fostering Global Researchers for Interdisciplinary Sciences

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Overview of the Initiative
The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT)’ s Strategic Professional
Development Program for Young Researchers aims to enhance the research productivity of Japan. It
supports universities and research institutions that promote the strategic development of excellent
researchers. The project includes incorporating information about the best models in other countries into
good examples of the development of researchers in Japan, creating programs for developing the world’s
top-class researchers, and establishing a coordinated system for researcher development (e.g., a system topublish papers in leading international journals, to obtain overseas research grants, etc.) rather thandisparate schemes in each laboratory.
In 2020, the Tohoku Initiative for Fostering Global Researchers for Interdisciplinary Sciences (TI-FRIS) wasincorporated into the MEXT Strategic Professional Development Program for Young Researchers. TI-FRIS,
led by Tohoku University, formed a consortium with fellow universities of the Tohoku region Hirosaki
University, Iwate University, Akita University, Yamagata University, Fukushima University and Miyagi
University of Education as well as the Mitsubishi Research Institute. In partnership with cooperating
research institutions and companies in Japan and worldwide, the initiative is building a new researcher
development program covering the whole Tohoku region that will foster world-class researchers who are
equipped with interdisciplinarity, internationality and are sociability.

Interdisciplinarity

the ability to carry out interdisciplinary researchwith researchers in different fields

Internationality

the ability to conduct research through friendly competition
with researchers around the worldSociability
the ability to work with society to translate research outcomes
into social applications01

What isTI-FRIS?

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Message from the Program Manager
The Tohoku region of northern Japan is faced with numerous challenges from a declining birth rate to disasterrecovery and the need to switch to green energy. These are issues that concern the future of humanity andare deeply connected to the SDGs, and they are shared globally. The seven national universities of the Tohoku
region all have their strengths in terms of independent research related to these challenges. They have built
strong foundations and boast good track records on education and research in all of these areas.
TI-FRIS aims to foster world-class researchers who will be essential to addressing those challenges. They must
be equipped with interdisciplinarity (able to develop interdisciplinary research with researchers in different
fields), internationality (to conduct research through friendly competition with researchers around the world)and sociability (to work with society to translate research outcomes into social applications).
TI-FRIS is led by Tohoku University, which has been working to foster research talent based oninterdisciplinary research. A consortium was formed with fellow universities of the Tohoku region Hirosaki
University, Iwate University, Akita University, Yamagata University, Fukushima University and Miyagi
University of Education as well as the Mitsubishi Research Institute - all of which possess their own researchstrengths. This program seeks to harness those advantages and their own characteristic initiatives. In
partnership with cooperating research institutions and companies in Japan and worldwide, TI-FRIS
provides interdisciplinary researcher exchange, international collaborative research and sociallyimplemented research programs, as well as a basic transferable skills training
program. These programs will create a diverse, creative forum to flexibly serveand support the independent growth of researchers. Through these programs,
our aim is to develop researchers to lead international collaborative research
projects and projects to implement research findings in society.

Toshiyuki Hayase Program ManagerDirector,Frontier Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences
Tohoku University02

3Governance
The TI-FRIS Secretariat sits within the Frontier Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences at Tohoku
University, the lead institution. The Program Manager oversees the initiative overall, while the Program
Steering Committee made up of members from each participating institution deliberates on importantmatters related to the initiative. The Advisory Board and External Evaluation Committee are made up ofthird-party experts. The Faculty Evaluation Committee selects and assesses program trainee candidates,
while the Program Development Working Group is responsible for general implementation of theprograms. Japanese and international mentors provide support to trainees. With its online researcher
exchange and meeting system, TI-FRIS has established the conditions for both researcher exchanges andefficient working of the committees.
Tohoku University’s President
Executive Vice President for Research

Outside experts
Advisory Board
External Evaluation Committee

Participating institutions/
Collaborating institutions

Program Manager

Participating institutions
Management Council Executives
Participating universities Directors
Participating companies

Program Steering Committee
Faculty Evaluation Committee
Program Development Working Group

Seminar lecturers, etc.

Secretariat / Technical Support

Collaborating institutions abroad
Mentors in Japan

Mentors outside of Japan

TI-FRIS Fellows

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4Partnerships
Johns Hopkins University(USA, soft materials)

Lund University

Iwate University

Hirosaki University

Agriculture-industry cooperation

Natural environment and food

（Sweden, wireless communication）

Veterinary medicine

Nuclear medicine

Disaster-preventionurban development

Shanghai University(China, interdisciplinary research)

Simon Fraser University

Tohoku University

Stanford UniversityDeclining birth rate

Materials science

Ultra-high-density magnetic recording

Spintronics(Australia, interdisciplinary research)

University of British Columbia(Canada, Life Sciences)

University of Geneva(Switzerland, astronomy)

University of Otago(New Zealand, Food)

Energy Support(Agriculture-industry cooperation)

Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
(Advanced electronic components)(nuclear medicine)

Earth Resource / Recycling

The University of Melbourne(Radiation damage alleviation)

World Health Organization (WHO)Akita University(Canada, soft materials)(USA, Sleep research)

Interprotein CorporationFuturistic healthcare

Yamagata University

Disaster science

National Center for
Geriatrics and Gerontology(Geriatric research)

Mizusawa VLBI Observatory,
National Astronomical Observatory ofJapan(Radio astronomy)

Japan Petroleum Exploration
Co., Ltd.

Organic electronics
Soft materials
Molecular epidemiology

Miyagi University ofEducation

Institute of Nasca

Study of education(Earth Resource)

Fuji Electric(Nuclear hazard monitoring)

Fukushima Medical University(Radiation dose evaluation)

Fukushima University

MRI

Post-disaster reactor decommissioning

Social implementation of research

Mitsubishi Chemical(organic chemistry)Sociology

Under TI-FRIS, a consortium has been formed with seven national universities of the Tohoku region withtrack records of partnership in all areas of education and research, as well as the Mitsubishi ResearchInstitute, a multidisciplinary international thinktank. This researcher development program is being rolled
out in partnership with research institutions and companies in Japan and worldwide, based on the buildingof a network that harnesses the strengths of each institution. This global network, anchored in the Tohoku
region, will create a tremendously diverse and creative forum.

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Researcher Development Program
Five programs are being implemented under this initiative in order to foster field-leading world-classresearchers who are equipped with the ability to develop interdisciplinary research with researchers indifferent fields (interdisciplinarity), the ability to conduct research through friendly competition withresearchers around the world (internationality) and the ability to work with society to translate researchoutcomes into social applications (sociability). These are the International Collaborative Research Program,the Interdisciplinary Researcher Exchange Program, the Socially Implemented Research Program, theTransferable Skills Training Program and the Sharing Program.
FeaturesFeatures1Features

23Interdisciplinarity

Internationality

Sociability

Interdisciplinary ResearcherExchangeProgram

International Collaborative
Research Program

Socially Implemented
Research Program

Bringing together different specializations
and institutions, research exchanges takeinterdisciplinary research to the next level
through presentation and discussion ofresearch findings. Builds ability to developinterdisciplinary research with researchers
in different fields (interdisciplinarity).

Program participants spend around one
month every year at an overseas research
institution, conducting ongoing international
collaborative research with top-level foreign
researchers. Builds ability to conduct researchthrough friendly competition with researchers
around the world (internationality).

Program participants undertake industry-academic
joint research with participating companies
and others, engaging in exchanges and supporting
the application of research findings in society.
Builds ability to work with society to translate
research outcomes into social applications(sociability).

ー 5 years ーー 5 years ーTransferable Skills Training Programー 5 years ーー 5 years ー

Sharing ProgramFeaturing lectures from top researchers, academic impact lectures, social
impact lectures, industry R&D and societal research implementationlectures and academic research lectures. Builds the essential skills forbecoming a top-class global researcher. Note: Transferable skills arethose skills that are applicable regardless of industry or work type, suchas problem-solving, self-management and people skills.

In partnership with participating institutions, a research equipment sharing
network is to be established providing the basic gear for research, in orderto ensure that program participants are able to conduct research in an
independent research environment. International symposia are also held forprogram participants to impart their findings, meet those from participating
and partner institutions, and disseminate information about the program.

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TI-FRIS Fellow
TI-FRIS recruits TI-FRIS fellows from participating universities every year. The program takes up to fiveyears, with a follow-up period of five further years. In the programs provided by TI-FRIS, they will
engage in regular interdisciplinary researcher exchanges with different specializations and institutions,ongoing international collaborative research with overseas researchers, and application of researchfindings in society.

Hirofumi Tazoe Associate Professor

Naoya Onizawa Associate Professor

My study is method development of radionuclide inenvironmental and biological samples. In addition to solid
phase extraction and mass-spectrometry, development ofautomated separation system is also investigated forestablishment of international standard

The objective of this study is to establish invertible logic
that can realize bidirectional computing , where a current
computing technology realizes only forward computing. In
addition, the application using invertible logic is developed
for artificial intelligence and various social issues.

Belongs / Hirosaki University ■Institute of Radiation Emergency Medicine

Keyword

Keyword

Belongs/Tohoku University ■Research Institute of Electrical Communication

1. Radionuclide 2. Chemical separation 3. Automated systemKeyword

Katsuyuki Takahashi Associate Professor

Yasunori Okamoto Assistant Professor

Belongs/Iwate University ■Faculty of Science and Engineering, Systems Innovation Engineering

Belongs/Tohoku University ■Frontiner Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences

Applications utilizing high-density radicals produced in theplasma generated by the pulsed power technology for
agriculture and food industries, such as an environmental
management system for plant growth and keeping freshnessof fruits and vegetables, are investigated.

Artificial metalloenzymes (ArMs) are constructed byintroduction of a synthetic catalyst into a protein scaffold.
The current challenge is the concurrent use of ArMs withvarious catalysts, such as synthetic metal complexes andbiocatalysts, leading to systems catalysis.

1. High voltage 2. Plasma 3. Collaboration of agriculture and engineering

Keyword

1. Artificial metalloenzyme 2. Protein Engineering 3. Biofunctional Chemistry

Kentaro Murata Assistant Professor

Yuanyuan Guo Assistant Professor

Toward the practical application of microwave wirelesspower transfer technology, in addition to improving transfer
efficiency, we aim to break multifaceted barriers, such asdetecting the location of dead-battery devices and avoiding
radio interference with human and existing wireless systems.

I am interested to bridge the gap between engineeringand biology by developing multimodal fibers andbiosensors to study complex biological systems,
particularly the brain.

Belongs/Iwate University ■Faculty of Science and Engineering, Systems Innovation Engineering

Keyword

1. Computer science 2. Neural networks 3. Simulated annealing

Belongs/Tohoku University ■Frontiner Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences

1. Wireless power transfer 2. Wireless communication 3. Radar

Keyword06

1. Neurotechnology 2. Bioelectronics 3. Multifuntional fibers

Joji Kusuyama Assistant Professor

Takao Oto Assistant Professor

My hypothesis is that the placenta is a transducer thatconveys maternal information to their children. I try toutilize placental func tion for the prevention oflifestyle-related diseases and congenital diseases in thenext generation.

In this research, by deeply understanding optical characterizations
for nanolasers fabricated by the introduction of semiconductor
and/or metal nanostructures, we will develop nanolasers with low
threshold power and multi-functionality and promote their newapplications for various research fields.

Belongs/Tohoku University ■Frontiner Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences

Keyword

Belongs/ Yamagata University ■Graduate School of Science and Engineering

1. Endocrinological Metabology 2. Exercise Physiology 3. Epigenetics

KeywordYuta Nakayasu Assistant Professor

Hiroyuki Matsui Associate Professor

I use the green processes to convert the wood resources
into various carbon materials and apply them to energy
device materials that contribute to electricity storageand electricity creation. The goal is to incorporate thesedevices into our lives and create an eco-friendly lifestyle.

We develop ultraflexible electronic devices usingorganic semiconductors and digital printing such asinkjet. Such devices can visualize the distribution oftemperatures, pressures and electric fields on soft andcurved surfaces.

Belongs/Tohoku University ■Frontiner Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences

Keyword

Belongs/ Yamagata University ■Graduate School of Organic Materials Science

1. Woody biomass 2. Green devices /Green processes 3. Eco-lifestyle creation

Keyword

Daitaro Ishikawa Associate Professor

My research interest is a development of a cell culture
platform to engineer organ-mimic models. In TI-FRIS
project, we develop electrochemical sensors andscanning probe microscopy for the new cell culture
platform.

The aim of this study is to develop the evaluation method of structural state offood /material polymers due to the effects of external perturbations in theprocesses using spectroscopic technology and complementarily X-ray
analysis, thermal analysis and component analysis. The results of this study willlead to propose new spectroscopic technology and to develop new materials.

Belongs/ Fukushima University ■Faculty of Food and Agricultural Sciences

1. Microphysiological system 2. Scanning probe microscopy 3. Microfluidic device

KeywordShogo Nishiyama Associate Professor

The research involves theoretical and computer simulation studies of
biomolecular and materials systems. Current research activities span
both development of new computational methods and theoreticalcharacterization of proton/hydroxide transport and protein/polymer
phase behavior in biomolecular and polymer materials systems.

My primary research is in observational astronomy
and astrophysics. By observing stars, star clusters andgalaxies, I want to understand how they formed, how
they evolved and what physical laws govern theformation and evolution of them.

Belongs/ Miyagi University of Education ■Faculty of Education

1. Molecular simulations 2. Ion transport 3. Self-assembly of proteins /polymers

Keyword

Kazutoshi Haga Associate Professor

Belongs/Akita University ■Graduate School of International Resource Sciences

I am conducting research on the separation technology
of valuable metals using mineral processing for unused
resources. Combination of sur face analysis andinformation technology with mineral processing
technology is also investigating.
キーワード
Keyword

1. Spectroscopy 2. Imaging 3. Structure-property relationship

Takuya Mabuchi Assistant Professor

Belongs/Tohoku University ■Frontiner Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences

Keyword

1. Organic transistors 2. Organic electronics 3. Applied physics

Yuji Nashimoto Assistant Professor

Belongs/Tohoku University ■Frontiner Research Institute for Interdisciplinary SciencesKeyword

1. Nanolasers 2. Nanostructure physics 3. Semiconductor optical devices

1. Mineral processing 2. Extractive metallurgy 3. Surface analysis

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1. Infrared astronomy 2. Black hole 3. Stellar spectroscopy

Access Map
Seiryo Campus
Sendai Municipal Subway Tozai Line :Get off at Aobayama Station andwalk 4 minutes from North Exit 1Tohoku University Hospital

Hirose RiverCars and taxis :Approximately 15 minutes fromSendai Station

Sendai Nishi Road
(Aobayama Tunnel)

Kita-Yobancho Station
Sendai City Hall
Sendai Civic Auditorium

Miyagi Museum of ArtayLi

Kotodai Koen Station
Mitsukoshi

Kawauchi Station

neKawauchi
CampusHirose-Dori Station
International Center Station
Aoba-dori Ichibancho Station

Omachi Nishikoen Station

Aobayama Campus

SendaiSubway Station
Site of Sendai Castle

SS30

Map around Tohoku University Aobayama Campus(West Area)
Frontier Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences,
Tohoku University

Tohoku Initiative for
Fostering Global Researchers forInterdisciplinary Sciences

JR Sendai Station

Sendai International Center

Aobayama Station

Subway Namboku LinebwSuizaTo

Miyagi Prefectural Government

KatahiraCampus

ArchitecturalLaboratory
Aobayama
Gymnasium

Cyberscience CenterNorth1Tohoku University Frontier Research Institute forInterdisciplinary Sciences

Graduate School ofInformation Science
International Research Institute ofDisaster Science

Sendai Municipal Subway
Tozai Line Aobayama Station

Graduate School ofEnvironmental Studies

South1Tohoku Initiative for Fostering Global
Researchers for Interdisciplinary Sciences
6-3 Aramaki-aoba, Aoba, Sendai 980-8578, Japan
TEL : +81-22-795-5755 ／ E-mail : ti-fris@fris.tohoku.ac.jp

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