AIMR Joint Research Center established at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa)
On May 27, 2025, AIMR and the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) held a signing ceremony at Empa in Switzerland to establish a new AIMR Joint Research Center (JRC). The overseas satellite agreement was signed by Dr. Nathalie Casas, Head of Department Energy, Mobility, and Environment, Dr. Patrik Soltic, Deputy Head of Division Chemical Energy Carriers and Vehicle Systems at Empa, and Prof. Shin-ichi Orimo, Director of AIMR.
AIMR has established JRCs in several regions based on these overseas satellite agreements to facilitate bidirectional exchange in multidisciplinary fields. JRCs employ local JRC Scientists and promote intensive collaborative research with leading materials science institutions in each region.
The new JRC joins AIMR’s existing JRCs at the University of Cambridge (U.K.), The University of Chicago (U.S.), and Tsinghua University (China). The establishment of this fourth JRC aims to strengthen connections with continental Europe and enhance international cooperation in energy materials research.
Moving forward, AIMR will serve as the central hub for expansion through Tohoku University’s Core Research Cluster for Materials Science (CRC-MS)*, while Empa will function as the hub connecting to the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in Germany and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETH Zurich), both of which have strengths in energy materials research. By establishing a hub-to-hub collaboration rather than one-to-one type, we expect to promote joint research and academic exchange across the European continent with Empa as the base.
At the signing ceremony, Director Orimo and Prof. Maki Suemitsu, Director of the Research Support Division, delivered presentations. All participants discussed the future direction and potential of the new European JRC.
*CRC-MS
brings together seven graduate schools/institutes/centers within the university in the material science field where the university has particular strengths and serves as a platform for all materials scientists at Tohoku University. AIMR is one of the constituent departments of CRC-MS and also serves as its secretariat.
Related Information
- Empa website
- New AIMR Joint Research Center established at Empa (Empa website)
- Collaborating Organizations Overseas
- [8/27] AIMR Intensive Workshop on Energy-Related Materials: Toward AIMR’s JRC in Continental Europe
- Scenes from the “AIMR Intensive Workshop” (AIMR Facebook)
Contact
Strategic Public Relations Office
Advanced Institute for Materials Research (AIMR), Tohoku University
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