Report of the Review Committee on theInstitute for Solid State Physics, the University of Tokyo(ISSP)
Executive Summary
Detailed Report
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.

Preface
Purpose of the Review
Historical context
The ISSP as part of the University of Tokyo
The ISSP within the science community
The Research Divisions and Research Facilities
The Research Divisions
Division of New Material Science
Magnetism and superconductivity
Organic conductors
New materials under high pressure

Division of Condensed Matter Theory
Division of Nanoscale Science
Mesoscale systems
Surface science

Division of Physics in Extreme Conditions
Ultra-low temperature group
High magnetic field studies
High-pressure group

Division of Advanced Spectroscopy

The Research Facilities
Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory
Neutron Science Laboratory
Soft condensed matter

Materials Design and Characterization Laboratory
Materials groups
Supercomputer Center

VII. General aspects and summary
Appendix: Time schedule of the visit

Executive Summary
After the Institute for Solid State Physics, the University of Tokyo (ISSP) has been operating for 5 years on
the new Kashiwa campus, the activities of the Institute during that time should be reviewed andrecommendations for its future should be made.
The review process and planning for the future has become more urgent due to the recent changes in theuniversity system in Japan, which will also have lasting consequences for the ISSP.
The review was done by an International Review Committee which visited Kashiwa campus from
November 14 – 16, 2005. During the two and a half days the Institute presented itself through a number oftalks, laboratory tours and a poster session. Detailed discussions with the Director of the Institute and anumber of research leaders took place so that the Review Committee could obtain a rather complete overall
view of the past and the present character of the scientific work, working conditions and the budget situation.
Restructuring the University system in Japan has had an immediate consequence for the financing of the
ISSP which is affiliated now more than before with the University of Tokyo. In the past the Institute had
negotiated directly with the Ministry of Education, Culture, Science, Sports and Technology (MEXT) for thepart of the budget which concerns facilities serving the science community of Japan as whole while thebudget for educational purposes was determined by the President of the University. In the future this
distinction may no longer be made. Instead the total budget of the ISSP, including the one for large facilities(neutron scattering, synchrotron radiation etc.), will be carried by the University of Tokyo. One early
consequence of these changes has been that the plans for the construction of a High-Brilliance Light Source
Facility (Super SOR) at Kashiwa campus had to be given up for the time being, on the reason that theywould overstrain the financial resources of the University of Tokyo. The Review Committee understands
and accepts this decision by the University. It should be kept in mind though, that the possible constructionof a High-Brilliance Light Source was a prime argument for moving the ISSP from its location in Roppongi
to Kashiwa campus. A possible compensation for the cancellation of the ring construction would be very
desirable, as mentioned later.
When the budget requests from the ISSP are negotiated with the office of the President of the University ofTokyo in the future, a clear distinction should be made between those for educational duties and the ones
required to ensure the leadership of the ISSP in the condensed matter community of Japan through its own
research activities and the service to the whole community.
Basic research pursued on the highest international level as should be true for the ISSP requires stablefinancial support over long periods of time. Nothing is more damaging to high quality work than large
fluctuations in the budget. The Review Committee trusts that the University of Tokyo and MEXT will bewell aware of this fact in the future as they have been in the past. It also trusts that it is understood that for an
institution like the ISSP to provide facilities that will adequately serve the scientific community of Japan,
extra support for major investments of the order of ¥ one (or even several) billion will be required from time
to time.

Present standing of the ISSP
The 3rd generation period of the ISSP started after a review of the Institute in 1995 and included the move toKashiwa campus which was completed in the year 2000. The goal of the Institute has been to become aninternationally recognized research institution of the highest level. This has been achieved by now. The

2

Institute belongs presently to a small group of worldwide leading research institutes in condensed matterphysics. This statement is substantiated by a detailed description of the accomplishments of the five
Research Divisions and the three Research Facilities in the main part of this report. This description is
supplemented by a number of recommendations for the different groups. In the following we list the mostimportant of them.

Future of the ISSP as a leading research institution
The landscape of Solid State and Condensed Matter Physics is constantly changing. In order to retain its
leadership role in Japan and internationally the ISSP must not only maintain and revitalize its outstanding
research groups and facilities but also seek out and establish a leadership role in emerging areas ofcondensed matter physics. To meet those challenges the Review Committee is making the following
recommendations:Concerning the research program as an Institute within the University Tokyo and as an
Institution serving the needs and demands of the scientific community of Japan:•

The staff which was involved with the planning of the Super-SOR in the Accelerator Physics Groupshould be transferred to other institutions where its expertise and its experiences are required andcan be used. The positions which then become available for the ISSP should be used to install a newgroup in one of the emerging new fields in condensed matter physics. We advise to consult in thedecision making process also colleagues from outside and to consider possible interfaces with otheractivities at the Kashiwa campus.

•

The division of Nanoscale Science should be asked to work out a plan for its future development.

•

The Materials Design and Characterization Laboratory are very inhomogeneous in its (widely
recognized) research activities and therefore should be restructured. The excellent activities inphysical chemistry deserve special recognition with the possible consequence of creating achemistry division. The supercomputing facility is first-rate, and should continue to provide an
extremely valuable service to the condensed matter community in Japan.

•

New beamlines in the soft X-ray regime should be built up at existing low-energy synchotron
radiation facilities either in Japan or abroad.

•A beamline within the pulse neutron source project (JPARC) should be implemented.

•

The investment for a 100 Tesla and 100 milliseconds long pulse magnet is endorsed.

Concerning the interaction of the ISSP with the international science community:•

The Institute should compete for good foreign Ph.D. students. In order to be competitive, tuition feesfor Ph.D. students should be waived and student support should be made competitive with otherinstitutions internationally. Otherwise it will be very difficult to link the ISSP to other centers ofscience and research outside Japan more strongly than in the past. For the moment this may be3

achieved on a practical basis, e.g., by employment as a Research Assistant, but on a long term amore solid basis is required with the involvement of MEXT.
•

The program for foreign guests at the ISSP should be increased.

•

The program of international workshops could be extended.

•

Exchange of Ph.D. students with foreign Universities may be a step to improve international
contacts.

Concerning the embedding of the ISSP in the Japanese science community:•

The ISSP should make greater efforts to ensure that the opportunities it offers Japanese science
students become more widely recognized.

•

By creating the new beam lines of synchrotron radiation and neutron recommended above and thepulsed high magnetic field laboratory that the ISSP is going to build, the services to other research
institutions will increase. It is recommended that this trend will be continued.

•

Offering undergraduates the opportunity to work at the ISSP during summers early in theirundergraduate carriers would increase their interest in the Institute. They might be more likely toconsider condensed matter physics as their future field, and for their graduate study.

Concerning the role of the ISSP within the University of Tokyo:•

The cooperation with the “Graduate School of Frontier Sciences” on the same campus should beenhanced as much as possible. In conjunction with the graduate school, the ISSP can substantiallyextend its possibilities, including work in emerging fields. The Review Committee encourages the
ISSP to use these opportunities.

•

Better opportunities should be made available for ISSP members who are willing to lecture at the
Hongo campus. ISSP members are encouraged to make efforts on an individual basis for good Ph.D.
students.

•

Other outstanding groups at the University of Tokyo should be encouraged to use more than in thepast the unique facilities of the ISSP.

Concerning general aspects:
It is recommended that the ISSP continue to look actively for especially qualified women
researchers in physics and related fields. At the same time, the Review Committee realizes also that
this is difficult due to the limited number of female physics students. Quality standards should not belowered in this search as this would be counter productive.
In conclusion, the high international standing of the ISSP is reconfirmed. The Review Committee
considers it a pearl in the crown of the University of Tokyo, and expects it to remain a central figure4

in research within the University, throughout Japan, and within the world scientific community for
years to come.

Detailed Report
I.

Preface

The Review Committee was invited by the director of the ISSP Prof. K. Ueda and by the chairman of
the Preparation Committee Prof. Y. Iye to evaluate the Institute by visiting it on Kashiwa campus. The
members of the Review Committee were:
Prof. Paul M. Chaikin, New York University/Princeton University, USA
Prof. Jacques Flouquet, CEA Grenoble, France
Prof. Peter Fulde (chairman), Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, Dresden, Germany
Prof. Steven G. Louie, University of California, Berkeley, USA
Prof. Kazumasa Miyake, Osaka University, Japan
Prof. Douglas D. Osheroff, Stanford University, USA
Prof. Kazuhiko Seki, Nagoya University, Japan
Prof. Charles V. Shank, Berkeley National Laboratory, USA
The visit took place from November 14 – 16, 2005. The schedule of the visit is found in the Appendix of
this report. It consisted of nine oral sessions in which the Director of the ISSP the five Research
Divisions and the three Research Facilities of the Institute reported on their scientific programs andplans for the future. In addition two tours of the Laboratories and a poster session took place. The
Activity Report 2005 was sent before the meeting to the Review Committee members. So an adequate
preparation of the meeting was ensured.

II.

Purpose of the Review

The purpose of the review was stated in the invitation letter: to asses the activities of the ISSP, to makerecommendations and to evaluate the plans for the future development of the Institute after moving toKashiwa campus with particular emphasis on points of success and points to be improved.
The Institute consists at present of five Divisions:
Division of New Material Science
Division of Condensed Matter Theory
Division of Nanoscale Science
Division of Physics in Extreme Conditions
Division of Advanced Spectroscopy
and three Research Facilities
Synchotron Radiation Laboratory
Neutron Science Laboratory
Materials Design and Characterization Laboratory.

5

III.

Historical context

The ISSP was founded in 1957 as part of the University of Tokyo. During the first twenty years ofexistence (“First Generation”) it served as a well equipped laboratory of materials which helped to bringin Japan science in this field to a respected international level. A restructuring of the Institute, starting its“Second Generation” aimed at establishing most advanced experimental techniques in order to enter new
territories. That included creation of a Division of Physics in Extreme Conditions, construction of a
Neutron Scattering Laboratory and building a Synchotron Radiation Laboratory. Also a Division ofMaterials Development was started.
The review of the ISSP in 1995 by an external Review Committee served as a start into the “Third
Generation” of the Institute. The goal was to become an international center of materials sciences and toopen new frontiers in that field. This has been achieved by searching for new physical phenomena
through combinations of different extreme external conditions and by artificially designed materials. In
the year of 2000 the ISSP moved from Roppongi to the Kashiwa campus and reorganized itself. At
present it consists of the five Research Divisions and three Research Facilities listed above. There arealso by now three Visiting Staff Divisions existing. The originally set goals have been successfully
reached to a large extent.
With the transformation of the University of Tokyo into a national university corporation the ISSP has torespond to the new situation. It also has to consider its future role as one of the world leading institutes
in condensed matter physics.

IV. The ISSP as part of the University of Tokyo
The restructuring of the University system in Japan has a number of direct consequences for the ISSP.
Although it has always been part of the University of Tokyo, the Institute has in the past negotiateddirectly with the Ministry of Education, Culture, Science, Sports and Technology (MEXT) the part of its
budget which concerned facilities serving the science community of Japan as a whole. These facilities
deal with neutron scattering, synchrotron radiation, running a supercomputer etc. and are a basis of thestrong international standing of the ISSP. On the other hand, the budget of the Institute for educational
purposes has been determined by the President of the University. This has changed now. In the future thetotal budget of the ISSP will be carried by the University of Tokyo and the distinction made in the pasthas become obsolete. One immediate consequence of that change has been that the construction of aHigh Brilliance Light Source Facility (Super SOR) at Kashiwa campus, a prime reason for the ISSP to
move from Roppongi to Kashiwa campus has been cancelled. It would have overstrained the financial
resources of the University of Tokyo. The Review Committee understands and accepts this decision.
Basic research pursued on the highest international level requires stable financial support over long time
periods. Large fluctuations in the budget are deadly for high-quality work. An institution like the ISSP
providing facilities which serve the scientific community of Japan needs extra support from time to time
for major investments of the order of ¥ one (or even several) billion. Otherwise it will loose its position
in international competitions. The Review Committee trusts that the University of Tokyo and MEXT
will be aware of this fact in the future as they have been in the past. It suggests that in the future whenbudget requests are negotiated with the office of the President of the University of Tokyo a clear
distinction should be made between requests for educational duties and those to ensure the leadership6role of the ISSP in condensed matter physics in Japan through its own research activities and services forthe whole community.
Distinct from economical questions is the embedding of the ISSP as an academic institution within the
University of Tokyo. The Review Committee feels that better opportunities should be made available formembers of the ISSP who are willing to teach at the Hongo campus. It encourages ISSP members tomake efforts on an individual basis for good PhD students. There is a great opportunity to strengthen
cooperations with the Graduate School of Frontier Sciences on Kashiwa campus. They should result in
joint research efforts in new emerging fields.

V.

The ISSP within the science community

The goal of the “Third Generation” of the ISSP was to become an internationally known center of materials
sciences. This goal has been reached. The Institute belongs by now to a small number of world leading
institutes in solid-state physics. The Review Committee recommends doing undertaking now the next step
towards larger internationalization. It implies educating and exchanging foreign students, hiring foreign postdocs and sending the best young researchers of the ISSP for some time abroad. It also implies extending theguest program for foreign visitors. The importance of an institution like the ISSP as a center of the community
has increased after the conversion of national universities into national university corporation. Since the "selectand focus" policy will make research at small or local universities more difficult, it is important for the active
people in these universities to have a place where they can pursue high quality research and interact with otheractive researchers.
As regards competition for good foreign students the tuition fees for PhD students should be waived.
Otherwise it will be very difficult to link the ISSP more strongly than in the past to other high-quality
centers of science outside Japan. For the moment this may be achieved, for example, by employment as
Research Assistants within the different projects. On a long term though this matter should be dealt within a more systematic way with the involvement of MEXT. Furthermore, the program of international
workshops should be extended. It would increase the visibility of the ISSP and more important it would
bring the results of the Institute earlier to the attention of the international community than it is presently
the case.

VI. The Research Division and Research Facilities
In the following an assessment of the five Research Divisions and the three Research Facilities is given.
Recommendations have been added at appropriate places.

Division of New Materials Science
The work on advanced materials of ISSP has lead to important discoveries with an excellent interplay
between new materials, macroscopic and microscopic measurements and theoretical development.
Magnetism and superconductivity
The data published by the Takigawa group (NMR) and Sakakibara group (thermodynamic
measurements) are known to be very sound and thus are an important basis for theoreticians. A
recent example is the study of the frustrated quasi-two-dimensional dimer system SrCu2(BO3)2 withthe highlight of the study of the high magnetic field 1/8 plateau phase. There is clear evidence for a7

symmetry breaking spin superstructure. In the same spirit, i.e., to discover new order parameters,
experiments on PrPb3 by neutron scattering with the proof of modulated quadrupole ordering are
considered a major break through.
The observation of exotic superconductivity at the borderline of charge ordering or magnetic
instabilities is still a rich domain of research with quite different interplays. Different studies wererealized on the new 1,1,5 cerium family and notably on CeCoIn5 suspected to be at zero pressurenear an antiferromagnetic instability. An important discovery is the clear evidence of a first-ordertransition seen in the upper critical field line for H/HC2 > 0.8 and the occurrence of strong
anisotropies in the angular dependence of the magnetic-field response relative to the crystal axes
measured either by thermal conductivity or specific heat. For this last measurement, a dxy orderparameter has been favored in agreement with the proposal of superconductivity induced by valencefluctuations. Extensions of the experiments to lower temperatures will be worthwhile notably toclarify the discrepancy
between the two probes used until now.
Organic conductors
ISSP is fortunate to have Prof. Mori on its faculty. She has been involved in some of the mostimportant discoveries in the field of organic superconductors and continues to innovate and discover
remarkable materials.
The Mori group has recently worked on two major problems in organic conductors, control of theband filling of a series of organic charge transfer salts, and structural control using designed sterichindrance. The materials produced in this group fit perfectly with the expertise of several othergroups at ISSP and together result in first-rate science. The organic conductors are strongly
correlated systems, with high compressibility, high crystalline perfection and long mean free paths.
As such they are ideal systems for high pressure and high magnetic field studies. In fact, the phase
diagrams produced by these variations are a virtual textbook for modern solid state physics. A
typical example is the newly discovered beta-(meso-DMBEDT-TTF)2PF6 system which shows acompetition between checkerboard charge ordering and superconductivity. The determination of the(P, T) phase diagram is an excellent example of a successful merger between the realization of a
new material and its subsequent study under pressure and magnetic field. Higher applied magnetic
fields are expected to lead to new superconducting phases and also to a strong variation ofsuperconducting and charge ordered states. Transport measurements on charge-transfer complexes
composed of inorganic anions (with localized moment) and molecular donors are particularlyinteresting and so are studies on electroluminescence spectra of bimolecular light emitting diodes.
Some of the new capabilities of the ISSP should make studies of these materials even more profoundand exciting. For example, the new ability of the photoemission group to probe the bulk (rather than
the surface) electronic structure will make detailed electronic studies of organic conductors possible
for the first time. This should provide insight into the nature of the correlated states and challenges
for the theory group.
Observations:This is a core research activity at ISSP and in Japan. The presence of a first rate chemical synthesis
group with close contact to the experimental and theoretical physicists is ideal.
Recommendations:8This group operates excellently in the ISSP context and should continue at least at the present level.
The departures of M. Ishikawa (retirement) and Y. Matsuda (for Kyoto University) demand toopen at least a new position for an experimentalist (transport and/or optic).

New materials under high pressure
The exploration of new materials under pressure oriented to earth science is obviously a large fieldof research. With the combined use of diamond anvil and laser heating different materials undervarious conditions can be obtained. Furthermore the group succeeded in the determination of many
crystallographic structures as well as precise phase equilibrium studies. Its interaction with other
ISSP researchers appears to be very successful.
Recommendations:•

Reinforce the interaction with the high pressure user facility.

Division of Condensed Matter Theory
From the beginning, members of the Division of Condensed Matter Theory of the ISSP have madeoriginal, lasting contributions to condensed matter physics. For examples, essential advances to the
Kondo effect, itinerant magnetism, and transport properties in two-dimensional electron systems weremade at the ISSP. After the discovery of high-Tc superconductivity in the mid '80, much high quality
work in strongly correlated electron systems have been produced. Theoretical studies at the highest
international level have also been carried out on the electronic, structural, transport, optical, andmagnetic properties of a variety of materials and nanostructures. The works of the Ueda group and the
Imada group, for examples, have attained international distinction; also the work of some of the young
people such as Sugino are first-rate.
A tradition of the theory group of the ISSP has been a good balance between many-body theory onmodel systems, including exact solution in one dimension, and theories of realistic systems based on
first-principles calculations or cluster analysis taking into account characteristic properties of individualmaterials.
During the third generation that started in the '95, the quality and quantity of the research continued tomaintain at a high level. However, two senior faculty members, Fukuyama and Kotani, retired two years
ago, and another two senior theorists, Takayama and Takahashi, are expected to retire in a couple ofyears. Moreover, Imada is now moving to another institution. This transition provides a major challenge
and also a tremendous opportunity for ISSP to recruit several exceptional theorists in the near future,
either senior faculty members with international distinction or promising young faculty at the juniorlevel.
Recommendations:
The Review Committee feels that a number of important considerations need to carefully enter into thehiring process. The personnel transition in the theory division provides a unique opportunity for thedivision and ISSP to move into new research directions. A new frontier in theory is the exciting recent
development of combining ab initio electronic structure methods with many-body theory to attack real9materials systems with strong electron correlations. Links to experiment and experimentalists in theInstitute should also be stressed from the viewpoint of synergetic effect in the ISSP. Thus, first-principle
calculations in strongly correlated systems including f- or d-electrons are an area to be strengthened inview of the high-level experimental activities in this field at the ISSP. Another need is to find someone
with broad background and interests in a range of phenomena, someone like Fukuyama, who will able tointeract with many groups and provide leadership and vision for the division. Moreover, with the strong
future growth of soft matter and nanoscience here in Japan and worldwide, it would also be wise toconsider the possibility of adding to the division of a first-rate researcher in the area of the theoretical
study of the structure, properties and dynamics of soft matter systems.

Division of Nanoscale Science
Nanoscience consists of many subfields interrelated by an attempt to understand the crossovers fromsingle atom/molecule to more complex structures and from quantum to classical behavior. Aside fromthe fundamental questions of electronic coherence and dynamics of few spin systems a large driving
force for this field lies in its potential applications to fast, high density and novel information storage andprocessing and for biological and chemical sensing and activity. More traditional areas of nanoscience
deal with electron coherence, charging and interference effects for one and two dimensional structureson the 0.1 - 10 micron scale. Forefront areas include spin interactions, dynamics, and coherence on
similar and smaller scales (spintronics), electronic, optical and transport properties of structures on the 1- 100 nm scale (nanoparticles) and organic nanoscale particles from biology (e.g., proteins) and novel
chemistry (e.g., dendrimers). Forefront areas also include novel lithography to produce patterns on a sub
100 nm scale by writing, imprinting or self-assembly.
The Division of Nanoscale Science is a rather new organization in the history of ISSP, which wasformed at the reform of the University of Tokyo in 2004 into the university corporation by unifying the
research area of Surface Science and the mesoscopic physics part of Condensed Matter Experiment. The
activity of the group can be also classified according to the former organization,(1) the construction and characterization of nanoscale systems based on semiconductors and oxides,
and(2) the surface science on well-characterized surfaces.
Mesoscale systems
At ISSP there is first-rate research in mesoscale physics in the groups of Iye and Katsumoto. Using
the in house molecular beam epitaxy and electron beam lithography on semiconductor
heterostructures they have structured two dimensional electron systems to form periodic arrays ofdots and wires. Novel interference effects have been seen involving commensurability of cyclotron
orbits and periodic arrays and separately interference from coupling to spin-degrees of freedom.
Spintronics is being ably pursued by both Katsumoto’s group and the newer Otani group.
Surface science
As for the surface scientific studies 3 associate professors are working. The subjects span the
exploitation of experimental methods such as atomic-resolution AFM at low temperatures, nanostructure fabrication, and manipulation of the surface by various means such as career injection,
adsorption and surface reaction with molecules. Hasegawa’s Group is working on the exploitation of
the use of STM techniques at atomic resolution for examining interesting systems realized on clean

10and well-defined surfaces, with control of conditions such as low temperature, high magnetic field,
and irradiation by synchrotron radiation. For example, they were able to observe Friedel oscillations
near a step at the surface by a periodic variation of the surface potential by scanning tunnelingspectroscopy (STS). Komori’s group is working on nanostructures formed on surfaces, e.g., byadsorption of nitrogen atoms on Cu(100) surfaces. Such surfaces could be further used for getting
nanostructures by subsequent deposition. Also they succeeded to manipulate the Ge(100)reconstructed surface by injecting charge careers into the π and π* surface bands. Yoshinobu’s groupis working on molecule-related aspects, e.g., the migration of adsorbed molecules on metal surfaces
examined by the space distribution of adsorbed molecules by STM and the unique covalent bondformation reaction discovered by him between unsaturated molecules on reconstructed Si(100)surfaces. The latter are examined by various tools.

Observations:
The current subjects are interesting, with active publications and appreciable amount of joint
research. At the same time the committee feels that work on inorganic and organic nanoparticles is
missing. Electronic, magnetic, optical and transport properties of inorganic nanoparticles would fit
well with the expertise and interests of the present groups.
Recommendations:
Efforts should be made to further reduce the length scale of the structures and the range of materials
studied by adding a group headed by a chemist or physicist specializing in nanoparticles (e.g., along
the lines of the Lieber Group at Harvard, or the one of Alivisatos at Berkeley).
This possible extension should distinguish the ISSP activities from those of competing centers. For
accomplishing this, it is recommended(1) to promote the interaction among the groups in the Division and with other groups in the ISSP,(2) to consider the incorporation of an increased variety of methods to form various types of unique
nanostructures utilizing various methods including chemical and biological aspects, possibly throughthe appropriate involvement of the expert researchers in these related fields,(3) to increase the contact with people working on practical applications.

Division of Physics in Extreme Conditions
The work in this Division includes research at ultra-low temperatures, in high magnetic fields and underhigh pressure.
Ultra-low temperature groupJapan has long been a world leader in studies at ultra-low temperatures (ULT). This effort is carriedout by Hidehiko Ishimoto and Minoru Kubota of the ULT group. The facilities supporting this work
include four copper nuclear demagnetization cryostats and two rotating cryostats, both of which arerecent additions to this effort. This is a large number of cryostats for just two people to operate, but
this number makes it possible for the ISSP to undertake long-term collaborations both with Japaneseand foreign scientists without having to repeatedly change the sample chambers on these complex
cryostats.

11

The ULT group has long been active in studies of nuclear magnetism in solid 3He and 3He films
localized on graphite surfaces. These studies have involved other researchers in Japan and beyond.
Recent studies of the 4/7 registered second layer of 3He atoms on graphite down to 10 µK havestrongly suggested that this is a spin liquid at very low temperatures, owing to both geometricalfrustration and a combination of ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic spin interactions. This is avery impressive piece of work and one that has had broad impact. David Ceperley at the University
of Illinois has shown repeatedly that he can calculate the frequencies for various ring exchanges insuch systems with ~10% precision. In addition, the dipole-dipole, exchange and lattice energies inthese systems are well separated. These factors all make solid 3He an excellent model magnetic
system. Recent studies of superfluid 3He A under rotation have shown a surprising difference of thecritical velocity for vortex generation in narrow cylinders when the magnetic field is applied parallelvs. antiparallel to the sense of rotation. This work has provided the first experimental evidence of
how much the angular momentum of 3He Cooper pairs contribute to the angular momentum of therotating fluid. This is another example of very impressive work by the ISSP group, which has
created some of the most powerful and unique cryostats in the world, and is using them very
productively.
Copper demagnetization cryostats are, in principle, general purpose devices that can be used to study
almost any system at temperatures well below 10-3 Kelvin. The rotating cryostats, however, arespecifically designed to study fluids under rotation. While this generally means superfluid 3He andsuperfluid 4He physics, plans are underway to better characterize the apparent ‘supersolid’ state of4
He recently discovered by Moses Chan. This is an excellent idea, and has the potential to make animportant contribution to this very intriguing discovery. Quite generally the ULT effort at ISSP has
made many important contributions to the field of ULT physics, and as the ordered phases of solidand liquid helium serve as important model systems for understanding similar order in systems
which are more complex and difficult to control and understand (such as the unconventional
superconductors), these studies benefit condensed matter physics quite generally.
Professor Ishimoto will be retiring in a few years, and the ISSP needs to begin considering the futureof this facility. While Kubota is far from retirement, it is hard for a single individual to support sucha large and rather complex set of facilities. Over the past three decades Japan has been a world leader
in studies of solid 3He and the many types of magnetic phenomena exhibited by its solid films andcrystals. Japan has not played such an active role in studies of superfluidity in 3He, but could easily
do so using one of their rotating cryostats. However, ISSP’s human resources are limited, and one
must consider supporting other areas of research as well. It is our opinion, given the value of thepresent research program and the facilities available, that it would be advantageous for ISSP to hire a
ULT person to replace Ishimoto, provided his or her research interests extend beyond quantum fluids
and solids to include other topics in low temperature physics, such as studies of 2D electron gases(fractional quantum Hall states), low temperature glassy behavior, or specific aspects of nanoscience. While such studies will not benefit from the very lowest temperatures attainable by the ULTgroup, they all present refrigeration challenges of comparable magnitude.
High magnetic field studies
This group has traditionally been a world leader in the area of non destructive and destructive pulsed
magnetic fields and remains as such today. The group was built under the directorship of Prof. Miuraand later Prof. Goto who developed the materials, magnet designs, magnets and instrumentation to
produce some of the highest magnetic fields ever attained on the planet. These included
nondestructive solenoids powered by large capacitor banks in the 40 - 50 Tesla 10 millisecond range;similarly powered explosive single turn loops in the 100+ Tesla several microsecond duration ranges
which preserved the sample and 200+ Tesla microsecond range implosive magnets which destroyed

12both magnet and sample. The facilities were heavily used by both internal research groups and incollaboration with groups from within Japan and internationally. The most heavily used facilities
were the robust 40 Tesla nondestructive fields conveniently set up in multiple banks. The highest
field-record setting magnets were used primarily for optical studies.
With the retirements of Miura and Goto and the transfer from Roppongi to Kashiwa the lab has
passed into the able hands of Profs. Takeyama and Osada. A new more powerful, better controlled
capacitive power supply was commissioned. The pulse magnets are operational in the new facility
and already improvements have been made to the destructive coils by innovative design changes
resulting from collaboration with international visitors. Field capabilities now range to 300 Tesla for
explosive and 600 Tesla for implosive. Importantly an effort was made to extend the number ofdifferent physical measurements which could be performed. Instrumentation and microfabrication
improvements now allow a host of transport and magnetization measurements to be done in the
microseconds that a sample spends in megagauss fields. Scientific accomplishments of this lab
include: advanced studies of the II-VI and III-V semiconductors with their interacting optically
excited excitons, high field properties of carbon nanotubes, magnetic nanocomposites, and two
dimensional electron systems coupled coherently or incoherently.
The addition of Prof. Kindo to the lab has presented new capabilities and new opportunities. Kindo’s
group has innovated a new type of reinforced nondestructive solenoid reaching a world record 80+
Tesla repeatably. Using the technology developed in these magnets the group has proposed andreceived University and MEXT support for the creation at Kashiwa of a 100 Tesla, 10 millisecond,
long pulse magnet. This magnet will put ISSP on an even footing with groups in Germany and theUnited States in this forefront area. Such a magnet will greatly simplify a host of experiments
conventionally performed in DC fields or with great effort in destructive short pulse fields and will
enable sets of experiments with thermal and optical measurements that could not previously havebeen done. The guess in the magnet community is that these long pulse magnets will be widely usedcollaboratively with outside groups.
Observations:This group has traditionally been a world leader and a resource for Japanese science. They are now
challenged by the increased capabilities of DC magnets in individual labs and by the large magnet
facilities internationally. As a result some of the service role has declined for the under 50 Tesla
magnets. On the other hand they have kept a role as world leaders in the highest pulsed fields.
Recommendations:
The main future project for this group is a long pulse magnet with an aim of 100T and 10 milliseconds. We endorse the investment in this world class facility which will enable a new dimension
to high field research in Japan.
High-pressure group
The high pressure group has two goals: being open to high pressure users and the development ofhigh pressure technology and its application to various scientific fields. The realization of highpressure experiments is often a difficult task even though the principles are well known. The group
has improved considerably the reproducibility of high-pressure experiments as well as the range oftechniques (NMR, specific heat). It has also extended the limits of other parameters (temperatures
down to 30 mK, magnetic field up to 15 T) which enter high-pressure experiments. The main targetsof research concern

13a) the appearance of superconductivity under pressure:-

ZrTe3 with the interplay of the formation of a charge-density wave,
organic conductors with the interplay of charge ordering,
low dimensional systemsb) valence- or spin instabilities in different materials notably in YbInCu4 and other heavy
fermion materials.
Due to the high demand of users, the development of new instrumentations towards new highpressure limits has been difficult since it requires time and freedom. Despite the constraints, theReview Committee appreciated the attempt towards small sample experiments including diamondanvil and detection techniques.
Recommendations:•••

Try to reduce the services regarding high-pressure experiments.
Find some freedom to develop really new high-pressure instrumentation.
Select few materials where extensive studies will be especially worthwhile.

Division of Advanced Spectroscopy
This Division has a rich history of accomplishment that has contributed enabling technologies for themeasurement of processes important to the work of the ISSP. We find today, the Division is firmly
positioned to continue this work into the future. The new laboratory is well equipped and the technologies
pursued are at the cutting edge. The ISSP has a state of the art laboratory that is developing new sources
for spectroscopy that extend measurement capability to higher phonon energies and enhanced temporal
resolution.
The Committee was impressed with the work presented on ultrahigh-resolution photoemission
spectroscopy. This group achieved energy resolution well under a millivolt by using a newly developed
laser source and an advanced electron spectrometer. The novel laser source generated a quasi-CW photon
beam with 7 eV energy. The CW nature the source was key to minimizing the effects of space charge.
Combined with a new spectrometer a world record resolution of 360 µeV was achieved. In addition thisapproach permits bulk sensitively at low temperature and small spot size. The work is a clear example ofthe benefit of having a world class laser group supporting the mission of the ISSP.
There was also work on the development of a T-shaped GaAs quantum wire laser presented to theCommittee. The goal of the work was to study the quantum wire laser to develop a very low thresholdlaser and to study the 1D confined system in a well defined geometry. A new annealing techniquedramatically improved the interface quality. Laser action was achieved and gain was measured. The gain
spectrum could not be defined by the 1D density of states alone but also required the inclusion of
Coulomb effects. Future work will include current injection and the study of quantum wire laser theory. It
remains to be seen whether this work leads to a useful low threshold laser or creates new physics
understanding.
Prof. Watanabe, the senior member of the group, is approaching retirement age. Within the next few years
it will be important to develop new leadership.

14

The following observations and recommendations are made:•The work of this division clearly demonstrates the value of these efforts today and theimportance of maintaining support for the future. Optical techniques are expected to be quite
relevant for future ISSP efforts.

•

The lab is well equipped today but will require continued investment in the future to keep it at
the cutting edge.

•

The ISSP is planning to build new synchrotron beamlines in the near future. The laser expertisein this division should be encouraged to contribute to beam lines in which lasers aresynchronized to the synchrotron.

•

The new 7.0 eV photon source should be explored for possible applications in imaging.

•

Priority should be given to identifying, recruiting and training leadership to assure continuity
into the future.

The Research Facilities
Three large research facilities of the ISSP with their own Steering Committees serve the physics
community of Japan as a whole.

Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory
The synchrotron radiation group has had a long and proud history of contribution to synchrotron science.
After the closure of the SOR-RING, construction of beam lines at the Photon Factory and the movementof the ISSP to Kashiwa, the reorganization of the Japanese university system has created a set of barriers
to building a new synchrotron at ISSP that appear to be insurmountable at present.
The Photon Factory and Spring 8 are both optimized for high energy photons. Japan does not have ahigh-brilliance low energy facility. The committee proposes to build VUV and Soft X-ray beamlines atfacilities either domestic or abroad. The plan is to build beam lines for scientific fields such as
microscopy and electronic structure. The decision not to build a new synchrotron will leave theAccelerator Physics Group without a clear path to contribute to the ISSP mission.
The following observations and recommendations are made:•We understand that the cost of construction of a new synchrotron is at present outside the rangeof possibility for the ISSP as part of the University of Tokyo.

•

We support the plan to build beam lines at low energy facilities either in Japan or abroad. In
addition, broader plan of the future of synchrotron-related activities at the ISSP should bedesigned by interaction with the community.

•

When it becomes clear that the services of the Accelerator Physics Group are no longer required,its members should be transferred to other institutions where their work would be relevant. The

15

resultant open positions can possibly be used for starting new groups at the ISSP for emerging
fields of condensed matter physics.

Neutron Science Laboratory
The neutron scattering group of ISSP continues to play a leading role in the successful application ofneutron scattering to different fields of condensed matter. This achievement is quite unique as the user
community in Japan is very eager to use the neutron facility but also likes to combine that use withexperiments on other neutron spectrometers in the world. This requires maintenance and further
development of the spectrometers. A continuous training of newcomers to neutron facilities should beguaranteed. Moreover, it is important that the ISSP implements a beamline within the pulse neutron
source project (J-PARC).
In parallel to this key role ISSP researchers are very successful in their own research which is often
including material preparation. As shown in the Activity Report, quite different areas are studied:crystallographic and magnetic or exotic multipolar structures, spin dynamics (high-Tc superconductors,
quantum magnets, quasicrystals) phonons (nanoscale spectral structure in relaxors), complex condensed
matter (glasses, various liquids) and vortex matter in superconductors. The work on soft matter isdiscussed separately below.
The strength of the ISSP is a strong interplay between the achievement of excellent materials (grownwithin the ISSP or obtained via different collaborations) clever and deep neutron scattering studies plus
direct contact with theory. It is a successful example for many laboratories in the world. Despite theheavy service demands, the group maintains its high research level. It perpetuates the spirit of a groupwhich is open minded for a large diversity of problems in physics and solid state chemistry.
Recommendations:•••Continue to be the leading group in Japan for the use of neutron scattering.
Concentrate on one or two major interdivision ISSP studies.
Choose your project for J-PARC (see below).

Soft condensed matter
Soft Matter at ISSP at largely being conducted by the Shibayama lab, which at the same time is
responsible for the operation of the Small Angle Neutron Scattering (SANS) facility at Tokai. Thisfacility serves the condensed matter community with about 2/3 of the use in solid state physics and1/3 in biology/ soft matter research.
Prof. Shibayama’s research is centered on the properties of polymer gels and especially on the roles
played by inhomogeneities in the swelling and elastic properties. Using static and dynamic lightscattering and the SANS facility they have demonstrated the effects of conventional cross links andnovel slide-ring cross links in the deformability and local structure of gels. This is an old andcontinuing fundamental problem in polymer science and the contrast between the sliding and fixedcrosslink’s provides needed insights. There are as well both proven and potential applications.
Research in this general area is to be encouraged. It is by its nature interdisciplinary, fundamental,
yet connects with and supports industry. For example Prof. Shibayama’s teaches and has
collaborations with soft matter and biology groups in the Institute for Fundamental Education in the16building neighboring ISSP at Kashiwa, has students from that institute and has external industrial
support for his research. In times of decreasing budgets and students this represents a means to
expand both support and the number of students involved in research.

Observations:Innovative fundamental work on gels. Good service to community in SANS facility. Good
collaborations with nearby neighboring institute but the work is isolated in ISSP
Recommendations:•

Install a beamline within the pulsed neutron source project (J-PARC).

•

Define the specific preference for the new generation of spectrometers.

•

By direct interaction with other groups focus on particularly interesting problems.

•

The area of soft condensed matter should be enhanced with additional faculty in experiment, andin theory. Connections to neighboring Institutes and to industry should be encouraged. The new
faculty should serve as a seed for further expansion.

Materials Design and Characterization Laboratory
This facility consists of groups with quite different goals and backgrounds. There is one group on
Material Design and another on Materials Synthesis and Characterization and there is a Supercomputer
Center.
Materials groups
The incorporation of solid state chemistry at the ISSP is certainly one of the greatest
accomplishments of the ISSP which needs to be reinforced.
SrCu2(BO3)2 has been a remarkable success which has led to important research inside the ISSP,
notably microscopic studies by neutron scattering and NMR (including the field study of the socalled plateau phase in the magnetization) but also outside the ISSP especially by different neutron
scattering groups. By themselves NaV2O5 systems are also very interesting research objects with
their Devil’s-Flower phase diagram. But also the discovery of superconductivity in β – A0.33V2O5 (A= Li, Na, Ag) at the fraction of a charge ordered phase.
In the same spirit, the discovery of β-pyrochlore oxide superconductors opens new roads and new
phenomena like a structural transition below Tc in KOs2O6 are nice puzzles for experimentalists. A
large variety of frustrated systems can be realized. The challenge is, of course, to combine
frustration with doping. Photo-carrier injection into transition metal oxides is an interesting path.
It is apparent that the solid-state chemistry groups are strongly interacting with the Division of New
Material Science.
Supercomputer Center

17

The Supercomputer Center of the ISSP (SCC-ISSP) is world class among computer facilities of its
kind, with 13.5 TFlop capability and 4.1TB memory dedicated to condensed matter physics
calculations. It is well set-upped and efficiently run by two technical staff members and 3 research
associates on a part time basis. The recent decision of acquiring two systems of different
characteristics was excellent and appropriate for the mission of the Center. The Hitachi SR1100/48
vector machine is powerful and best suited for projects that required high speed single nodeoperations and fast communications. The SGI Altix3700/1280 machine is most suitable for scalable
calculations that can take advantage of massive parallelism and multiple nodes. However, in view ofthe general rapidly development of computer hardware technologies, a five-year lease of the twosystems seems too long of a commitment for any supercomputer facility.
The SCC-ISSP’s mission since 1995 has been to supply timely and steady computer cycles to thecondensed matter physics community in Japan for the purposes of large-scale
simulations/computations and development of codes and algorithms. The projects are first refereed
by the Supercomputer Project Advisory Committee, and the final approval and resources allocations
are made by the Steering Committee composed of researchers inside and outside of ISSP. SCCISSP has filled its mission admirably well. Of the over 150 projects currently at the SCC-ISSP, only
about 10 % are in-house ISSP research projects and the projects are divided among the three
categories: first-principles calculation of materials properties (36 %), strongly correlated quantum
systems (39 %) and cooperative phenomena in complex macroscopic systems (25 %).
The SCC-ISSP is aspired to be an international center of computational materials physics. It ismaking plans to further enhance their service to the condensed matter physics community. Amongthese are: development of optimal allocation scheme to support meritorious large-scale computations,creation of data base of calculations results, formation of a depository of state-of-art computer codes,
and start of international cooperative research activities. These are all valuable services andadmirable goals. In particular, our committee feels that a scientific merit and computational needbased allocation policy would be of great value. The concern is that sufficient technical staff support
must be provided for carrying out such a program.
Advances in theoretical methods and simulations techniques have now made computer facilities such
as SCC-ISSP an indispensable tool for research in condensed matter science. Computations now not
only provide quantitative understanding and prediction of properties; they are means for discovery of
new phenomena and concepts. Thus the continued existence and success of computational facilities
such as the SCC-ISSP dedicated to condensed matter physics research with its resources under peer
management is vital to the health of the field.
Recommendations:
The Materials Design and Characterization Laboratory does excellent work but is very
inhomogeneous. Therefore it should be restructured.

VII. General aspects and summary
There are efforts worldwide to improve the situation for women in sciences. Traditionally their number
has been especially low in natural sciences and particular in physics. The ISSP should keep its eyes open
and try to identify highly-qualified young women. Quality standards should not be lowered in this searchbut one should search with an open mind. The majority of the staff of the ISSP graduated from thephysics and applied physics departments of the University of Tokyo. Most of the members have18

experienced the work at other institutions. An enhancement of the diversity and heterogeneity of staff
members will in long terms be the benefit to the Institute.
The Review Committee reconfirms the high international standing of the ISSP. It has maderecommendations how to solidify its position in the future. In accordance with its standing the Instituteshould strengthen its efforts towards internationalization. Practical steps have been suggested by theCommittee. The University of Tokyo can be proud to count the ISSP among its Institutes. The Review
Committee expects that the ISSP will remain one of the great research Institutes within the world
scientific community for the years to come.

19

Appendix: Time schedule of the visit
The following time schedule was followed during the visit of the Review Committee on Kashiwa campus.

ISSP International Review On-Site Meeting Schedule
Monday (14th)

Tuesday (15th)

Wednesday (16th)

Meeting(Reception Room)
Session 1 [Iye]K. Uedacoffee break

Session 5 [Yoshizawa]
M.Shibayama
K. Hirota
A. Kakizaki
coffee break

Session 8 [Y.Ueda]
Z. Hiroi
H. Moricoffee break

Session 2 [Watanabe]
Y. IyeSession 3 [Suemoto]S. Shin
H. Akiyama

Session 6 [Takeyama]
H. Ishimoto
K. Kindo

9:00

10:00

11:00

12:00

Session 9 [Takigawa]T. Sakakibara
T. Yagi
free discussion

lunch
lunch

lunch

13:00
Lab TourCommittee Meeting
14:00

Lab Tourcoffee break

break

Session 7 [Imada]Y. TakadaN. Kawashima
break#
free discussion

Committee Meeting

15:00

coffee break

16:00

Session 4 [Komori]S. Katsumoto
J. Yoshinobu
break*free discussion

Committee Meeting

Committee Meeting

leave for the hotel

17:00

short presentations# Neutron Sci. Lab# High Mag. Field Lab
short presentations* MDCL* Synch. Rad. Lab

18:00
Poster Session
6F Lobby

Party
Crest Hotel

19:00

20