Enhancing industrial competitiveness through innovative technologies that lead varying manufacturing

We are contributing to enhancing industrial competitiveness by developing advanced electronic and optical device technologies that enable both performance enhancement and significant energy savings of IT equipment, and innovative manufacturing technologies that enable energy savings, resource savings, and low cost. Moreover, we are building a highly efficient production system by combining innovative manufacturing technologies and sensing technologies based on the advanced devices.

New Research Results

Fast and Direct Antiviral Agent Coating for Fibers and Sheets

Researchers at AIST, in collaboration with Shujitsu University, have developed a fast and direct coating technology of antiviral components on a wide range of substrates, from sheets to textiles.
The demand for antiviral coatings is increasing due to COVID-19 and other influences. However, conventional coating technologies are limited by the physicochemical properties of the surface, which can lead to chemical and/or physical damages to the substrates. The newly developed surface functionalization technology using photochemical surface modification (PSM) enables direct chemical modification (chemical immobilization) on the substrate surface while maintaining the chemical structure of the molecules under mild conditions. This technology enables fast and direct coating of antiviral agents. The results of demonstration tests have confirmed that the inactivation effect against influenza viruses lasts for two months.
This technology can be applied directly to a wide range of materials, from sheets to textiles. Since the antiviral effect is expressed without elution of the agent, it can be safely used in applications where the coating is in contact with mucous membranes or wounds for a long time. In the future, this technology is expected to be applied to textile coatings such as masks and medical gowns, and to building materials such as wallpaper.

Development of antiviral nanocoating technology

Identifying the Origin of Long-period Electrical Instability in Silicon Qubit Devices

Researchers at AIST, in collaboration with Tokyo Denki University, have identified the origin of long-period electrical instability in silicon qubit devices for the first time. It is well known that the electrical characteristic of qubits, which are the basic elements of quantum computers, is not always kept constant and it changes over periods of a few tens of seconds or hours. Indeed, such long-period electrical instability has been observed in commercially available quantum computers. Since the electrical instability induces errors in quantum calculation, a calibration procedure to tune the state of qubits is necessary. The calibration procedure often takes several hours, limiting the available time of the quantum computer. Long-period electrical instability is also observed in silicon qubit devices, but the cause of electrical instability has not yet been clarified. In this research, we have identified that the electron trapping phenomenon at the oxide/semiconductor interface is the origin of the electrical instability in fin-type qubit devices, which is one of the promising hosts for spin qubits to realize highly integrated quantum computers. This achievement provides a guideline for developing qubit manufacturing technology toward the stable operation of silicon quantum computers.

Long-period electrical instability in silicon fin-type qubits and its physical origin
^* Figures from the original paper have been cited and modified.

Other research organizations

Research Laboratory

• Nanometronics lab for structural materials

Open Innovation Laboratory

Since FY 2016, as a part of the “Open Innovation Arena concept” promoted by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), AIST has created the concept of “open innovation laboratories” (OILs), collaborative research bases located on university campuses, and has been engaged in their provision. We are planning to establish more than ten OILs by FY 2020.

AIST will merge the basic research carried out at universities, etc. with AISTʼs goal-oriented basic research and applied technology development, and will promote bridging research and evelopment and industry by the establishment of OILs.

Cooperative Research Laboratories

In order to conduct research and development more closely related to strategies of companies, we have established collaborative research laboratories, bearing partner company names.

Partner companies provide their researchers and funding, and AIST provides research resources, such as its researchers, research facilities, and intellectual property. The loaned researchers of companies and AIST researchers jointly conduct research and development.

By setting up cooperative research laboratories, we will accelerate the commercialization of our goal-oriented basic research and application research with partner companies.