Makoto Suematsu, Founding President of Japan’s new Agency for Medical Research and Development AMED: The situation in Japan is so crazy, but now I will stay in Japan because I have a mission
summary of Professor Makoto Suematsu’s talk by Gerhard Fasol
Medical research in Japan: Fast-tracking medical research and development in Japan
In April 2015 Japan created the new “Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, AMED” inspired by the US NIH (National Institutes of Health), “to promote integrated research and development in the field of medicine”.
Professor Makoto Suematsu was selected as the founding President of AMED, to build up this new Japanese national medical research agency.
Professor Makoto Suematsu is not only an outstanding medical professional and researcher, but he is also extremely outspoken about the many changes necessary to “fast-track” medical research in Japan, and particularly to overcome the fragmentation, “the Balkanization” of medical research in Japan, due to several different competing and overlapping supervising Government ministries and agencies in the past.
Professor Makoto Suematsu also explained the priorities he is setting to set out with relatively modest resources.
At the 8th Ludwig Boltzmann Forum we had intense discussions between Her Imperial Highness, Princess Takamado, Professor Makoto Suematsu, Nobel Prize Winner Shuji Nakamura, Professor Nomura, JST-President Michinari Hamaguchi, and several other Japanese technology and R&D leaders.
Shuji Nakamura’s invention of high efficiency LEDs enable us to reduce global energy consumption by an amount corresponding to 60 nuclear power stations by 2020, for which he was awarded the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics.
Still, a poster child for bottom-up innovation, Shuji Nakamura was sued by his employer, left for the USA, and is now building a company in Silicon Valley which might soon become bigger than his former Japanese employer.
Why does Shuji Nakamura’s bottom-up innovation not fit into top-down innovation narratives?
Why does Shuji Nakamura’s bottom-up innovation not fit into top-down innovation narratives? Would Japan be a better and faster growing place with a better balance between bottom-up and top-down innovation? Does top-down innovation work at all?
Shuji Nakamura came specially from the USA to address many of Japan’s science and technology R&D leaders at the 8th Ludwig Boltzmann Forum, and explain why it makes no sense to try squeezing his bottom-up inventions into a top-down narrative and why its better to overcome established top-down narratives.
The 8th Ludwig Boltzmann Forum brought together Nobel Prize Winner Shuji Nakamura, the leaders of Japan’s two major research and technology R&D funding organizations, Professor Nomura, who is working to overcome gender inequality for Japan’s (too few) medical doctors, and several of Japan’s technology leaders to discuss how to accelerate innovation in Japan.
Her Imperial Highness, Princess Takamado honored us by taking a very active part, and asking thoughtful questions to Nobel Winner Shuji Nakamura and other speakers.
German Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel in Japan March 9-10, 2015
Hopes for Japan and Germany share at least part of the path to renewable energy
Germany’s Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel, Physicist with a PhD (Chancellor Angela Merkel’s PhD thesis is available here) and several scientific publications to her credit, visits Tokyo today Monday 9 March and tomorrow Tuesday 10 March 2015.
Angela Merkel’s official interview preparing for Japan visit
In the official interview commenting on her Japan trip (watch on YouTube here), Chancellor Merkel says: “Wir setzen jetzt sehr auf erneuerbare Energien. Und ich glaube, Japan sollte auch diesen Weg gehen – und geht ihn ja auch. Und wir sollten ihn vor allem in Deutschland und Japan auch ein Stueck zusammen gehen. Das heisst, ich werde dort auch ueber den Ausbau erneuerbarer Energien sprechen.”
Our translation to English: “We put much emphasis on renewable energy now. I think Japan should also go along this path – and indeed goes along this path. We should proceed on this path at least partly together. This means, I will talk about the expansion of renewable energy during my Japan visit.”
Report: Energy efficiency – opportunities for Japan and Europe
The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, a German public policy think-tank financed by German Government funds, recently organized conferences on Energy efficiency in Tokyo, Kyoto and Kobe, and engaged our company to produce a report on “Energy efficiency – opportunities for Japan and Europe”.
Horizon 2020 Japan participation conference at the EU Delegation in Tokyo
Horizon2020 is the world’s largest research program, undertaken by the European Union, and it is open to cooperation with researchers from all countries including Japan.
EU encourages Japan participation in Horizon 2020
Actually, the EU strongly encourages participation from Japan: Maria Cristina Russo, Director for International Cooperation in the Directorate-General for Research and Innovation of the European Commission, pointed out that currently Japan is on 12th rank in the number of joint research programs with the EU – behind Mexico, and Marocco, but one place above Argentina and Egypt.
Yoichiro Matsumoto, Executive Vice President, The University of Tokyo: Japan’s research needs to go global
Anders Karlsson, Vice President for Global Academic Relations, Elsevier, Tokyo: EU-Japan Science collaboration – a “bird’s eye view” on publication patterns & opportunities for collaboration
Maria Cristina Russo, Director for International Cooperation, Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, European Commission: Horizon2020 – the chance to go global
Kazushi Watanabe, General Manager, Business Development, Sumitomo Precision Products, Aerospace & Defense: Experience of international collaboration. FP7 project: Surface heat exchangers for aero-engines
Naoto Kobayashi, Center for Research Strategy, Waseda University: FP7 project and internationalization of research at Waseda University
Yoichi Iida, Director, Aerospace and Defense Industry Division, Manufacturing Industries Bureau, METI: Japan-EU cooperation in civil aeronautics industry
1929: elevated to a degree-conferring university as Tokyo Kogyo Daigaku (Tokyo Institute of Technology)
2004: reorganized as an independent administrative institution “National University Corporation Tokyo Institute of Technology”
Tokyo Institute of Technology – Statistics as of May 1, 2013
Undergraduate students: 4,790 (of which 180 are foreign students)
Graduate students: 3,611 Masters students + 1,512 Doctorate students = 5,123 (of which 943 (18.4%) are foreign students)
Research students: 90
Academic staff: 1,148
Administrative staff: 472
Tokyo Institute of Technology – The mission is to develop a new and vibrant society
produce graduates with a broad understanding of science and technology with both the ability and the determination to take on leading roles in society
create and support innovative science and technology that will lead to sustainable social development
Tokyo Institute of Technology – Detailed mission statements cover three areas
education: produce masters graduates who will thrive globally, and doctorate graduates who will come world’s top researchers are leaders
contributions to society and international activities
research: produce globally recognized results. Reform the research and support systems, in particular multi-step support for young researchers.
Tokyo Institute of Technology aims to become a world class university with greater diversity in faculty and students by 2030
Major educational reform plan (2013-…)
Reborn masters and doctoral courses
Reorganize departments, curriculum, courses
Change from year-based study to credit based study
Increase teaching in English, and numbers of foreign students
Align with world top class universities for student transfers and credit transfers
Enhance professional practice education for industry
A key challenge is that students primarily focus on earning credits to graduate, and lack a sense of mission to develop professional skills or to cooperate in our diverse global society. We need to change this type of behavior to create scientific leaders for the global arena.
We want to create a more flexible curriculum, that can be completed in a shorter time, so that students have more time for personal professional development and international exchange activities and communication skills.
Tokyo Institute of Technology: The Board of Directors decided on three pillars for education reform on September 6, 2013
Build education system to become one of the world’s top universities
Innovate learning
Promote ambitious internationalization
We will move to a new and more flexible curriculum system, where undergraduate schools and graduate schools are blended.
Tokyo Institute of Technology: new initiatives
We are introducing a number of initiatives including active learning, a faculty mentor system where every faculty member mentors 5-10 students, increased numbers of lectures in English, invited top global researchers, provide facilities for foreign researchers, and broaden academic cooperation agreements and mutual accreditation of credits and degrees.
Professor Yoshinao Mishima, President of Tokyo Institute of Technology
Boltzmann constant k, “What is temperature?” and the new definition of the SI system of physical units
(by Gerhard Fasol, CEO of Eurotechnology Japan KK. Served as Associate Professor of Tokyo University, Lecturer at Cambridge University, and Manger of Hitachi Cambridge R&D Lab.)
(in preparing this talk, I am very grateful for several email discussions and telephone conversations, and for unpublished presentations and documents, to Dr Michael de Podesta MBE CPhys MInstP, Principal Research Scientist at the National Physical Laboratory NPL in Teddington, UK, who has greatly assisted me in understanding the current status of work on reforming the SI system of units, and also his very important work on high-precision measurements of Boltzmann’s constant. Dr Michael de Podesta’s measurements of Boltzmann’s constant are arguable among the most precise, of not the most precise measurements of Boltzmann’s constant today, and therefore a very important contribution to our system of physical units).
Boltzmann constant k, the definition of the unit of temperature and energy
Temperature is one of the physics quantities we use most, and understanding all aspects of temperature is at the core of Ludwig Boltzmann’s work. People measured temperature long before anyone knew what temperature really is: temperature is a measurement of the average kinetic energy of the atoms of a substance. When we touch a body to “feel” its temperature, what we are really doing is to measure the “buzz”, the thermal vibrations of the atoms making up that body.
For an ideal gas, the kinetic energy per molecule is equal to 3/2 k.T, where k is Boltzmann’s constant. Therefore Boltzmann’s constant directly links energy and Temperature.
However, when we measure “Temperature” in real life, we are not really measuring the true thermodynamic temperature, what we are really measuring is T90, a temperature scale ITS-90 defined in 1990, which is anchored by the definition of temperature units in the System International, the SI system of defining a set of fundamental physical units. Our base units are of fundamental importance for example to transfer semiconductor production processes around the world. For example, when a semiconductor production process requires a temperature of 769.3 Kelvin or mass of 1.0000 Kilogram, then accurate definition and methods of measurement are necessary to achieve precisely the same temperature or mass in different laboratories or factories around the world.
second: The second is the duration of 9 192 631 770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the cesium 133 atom.
metre: The meter is the length of the path travelled by light in vacuum during a time interval of 1/299 792 458 of a second.
kilogram: The kilogram is the unit of mass; it is equal to the mass of the international prototype of the kilogram.
Ampere: The ampere is that constant current which, if maintained in two straight parallel conductors of infinite length, of negligible circular cross-section, and placed 1 meter apart in vacuum, would produce between these conductors a force equal to 2 x 10-7 newton per meter of length.
Kelvin: The kelvin, unit of thermodynamic temperature, is the fraction 1/273.16 of the thermodynamic temperature of the triple point of water.
mole:
The mole is the amount of substance of a system which contains as many elementary entities as there are atoms in 0.012 kilogram of carbon 12
When the mole is used, the elementary entities must be specified and may be atoms, molecules, ions, electrons, other particles, or specified groups of such particles.
candela: The candela is the luminous intensity, in a given direction, of a source that emits monochromatic radiation of frequency 540 x 1012 hertz and that has a radiant intensity in that direction of 1/683 watt per steradian.
The definitions of base units has long history, and are evolving over time. Today several of the definitions are particularly problematic, among the most problematic are temperature and mass.
SI base units are closely linked to fundamental constants:
second:
metre: linked to c = speed of light in vacuum
kilogram: linked to h = Planck constant.
Ampere: linked to e = elementary charge (charge of an electron)
Kelvin: linked to k = Boltzmann constnt
mole: linked to N = Avogadro constant
candela:
Switch to a new framework for the SI base units:
Each fundamental constant Q is a product of a number {Q} and a base unit [Q]:
Q = {Q} x [Q],
for example Boltzmann’s constant is:
k = 1.380650 x 10-23 JK-1.
Thus we have two ways to define the SI system of SI base units:
we can fix the units [Q], and then measure the numerical values {Q} of fundamental constants in terms of these units (method valid today to define the SI system)
we can fix the numbers {Q} of fundamental constants, and then define the units [Q] thus that the fundamental constants have the numerical values {Q} (future method of defining the SI system)
Over the next few years the SI system of units will be switched from the today’s method (1.) where units are fixed and numerical values of fundamental constants are “variable”, i.e. determined experimentally, to the new method (2.) where the numerical values of the set of fundamental constants is fixed, and the units are defined such, that their definition results in the fixed numerical values of the set of fundamental constants. This switch to a new definition of the SI system requires international agreements, and decisions by international organizations, and this process is expected to be completed by 2018.
Today’s method (1.) above is problematic: The SI unit of temperature, Kelvin is defined as the fraction 1/273.16 of the thermodynamic temperature at the triple point of water. The problem is that the triple point depends on many factors including pressure, and the precise composition of water, in terms of isotopes and impurities. In the current definition the water to be used is determined as “VSNOW” = Vienna Standard Mean Ocean Water. Of course this is highly problematic, and the new method (2.) will not depend on VSNOW any longer.
In the new system (2.) the Kelvin will be defined as:
Kelvin is defined such, that the numerical value of the Boltzmann constant k is equal to exactly 1.380650 x 10-23 JK-1.
Measurement of the Boltzmann constant k:
In order to link the soon to be fixed numerical value of Boltzmann’s constant to currently valid definitions of the Kelvin, and in particular to determine the precision and errors, it is necessary to measure the value of Boltzmann’s current in terms of today’s units as accurately as possible, and also to understand and estimate all errors in the measurement. Several measurements of Boltzmann’s constants are being performed in laboratories around the world, particularly at several European and US laboratories. Arguably today’s best measurement has been performed by Dr Michael de Podesta MBE CPhys MInstP, Principal Research Scientist at the National Physical Laboratory NPL in Teddington, UK, who has kindly discussed his measurements and today’s status of the work on the system of SI units and its redefinition with me, and has greatly assisted in the preparation of this article. Dr Podesta’s measurements of Boltzmann’s constant have been published in:
Michael de Podesta et al. “A low-uncertainty measurement of the Boltzmann constant”, Metrologia 50 (2013) 354-376.
Dr Podesta’s measurements are extremely sophisticated, needed many years of work, and cooperations with several other laboratories. Dr. Podesta and collaborators constructed a highly precise resonant cavity filled with Argon gas. Dr. Podesta measured both the microwave resonance modes of the cavity to determine the precise radius and geometry, and determined the speed of sound in the Argon gas from acoustic resonance modes. Dr Podesta performed exceptionally accurate measurements of the speed of sound in this cavity, which can be said to be the most accurate thermometer globally today. The speed of sound can be directly related to 3/2 k.T, the mean molecular kinetic energy of the Argon molecules. In these measurements, Dr. Podesta very carefully considered many different types of influences on his measurements, such as surface gas layers, shape of microwave and acoustic sources and sensors etc. He achieved a relative standard uncertainty of 0.71. 10-6, which means that his measurements of Boltzmann’s constant are estimated to be accurate to within better than on millionth. Dr. Podesta’s measurements directly influences the precision with which we measure temperature in the new system of units.
Over the last 10 years there is intense effort in Europe and the USA to build rebuild the SI unit system. In particular NIST (USA), NPL (UK), several French institutions and Italian institutions, as well as the German PTB (Physikalische Technische Bundesanstalt) are undertaking this effort. To my knowledge there is only very small or no contribution from Japan to this effort, which was surprising for me.
What is today’s best value for the Boltzmann constant k:
VCSEL inventor Kenichi Iga: hv vs kT – Optoelectronics and Energy
(Former President and Emeritus Professor of Tokyo Institute of Technology. Inventor of VCSEL (vertical cavity surface emitting lasers), widely used in photonics systems)
VCSEL: how Kenichi Iga invented Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers
My invention of vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSEL) dates back to March 22, 1977. Today VCSEL devices are used in many applications all over the world. I was awarded the 2013 Franklin Institute Award, the Bower Award and Prize for Achievement in Science, “for the conception and development of the vertical cavity surface emitting laser and its multiple applications in optoelectronics“. Benjamin Franklin’s work is linked to mine: Benjamin Franklin in 1752 discovered that thunder originates from electricity – he linked electronics (electricity) with photons (light). After 1960 the era of lasers began, we learnt how to combine and control electrons and photons, and the era of optoelectronics.
If you read Japanese, you may be interested to read an interview with Genichi Hatakoshi and myself, intitled “The treasure micro box of optoelectronics” which was recently published in the Japanese journal OplusE Magazine by Adcom-Media.
Electrons and photons
Who are electrons? Electrons are just like a cloud expressed by Schroedinger’s equation, which Schroedinger postulated in 1926. Electrons can also be seen as randomly moving particles, described by the particle version of Schroedinger’s equation (1931).
Where does light come from? Light is generated by the accelerated motion of charged particles.
Electrons also show interference patterns. For example, if we combine the 1s and 2p orbitals around a nucleus, we observe interference.
In a semiconductor, electrons are characterized by a band structure, filled valence bands and largely empty conduction bands. The population of hole states in the valence bands and of electrons in the conduction bands are determined by the Fermi-Dirac distribution. In typical III-V semiconductors, generation and absorption of light is by transitions between 4s anti-bonding orbitals (the bottom of the conduction band) and 4p bonding orbitals (the top of the valence band).
In Japan, we are good at inventing new types of vertical structures:
in 607, the Horyuji 5-Jyu-no Toh (5 story tower) was built in Nara, and today we have progressed to building the 634 meter high Tokyo Sky Tree Tower.
in 1893, Kubota Co. Ltd. developed the vertical molding of water pipes
in 1977 Shunichi Iwawaki invented vertical magnetic memory
in 1977 Tatsuo Izawa developed VAD (vapor-phase axial deposition) of silica fibers
in 1977 Kenichi Iga invented vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSEL)
Communications and optical signal transmission
History of communications spans from 10,000 years BC with the invention of language, and 3000 BC with the invention of written characters and papyrus, to the invention of the internet in 1957, the realization of the laser in 1960, the realization of optical fiber communications in 1984, and now since 2008 we see Web 2.x and Cloud.
Optical telegraphy goes back to 200 BC, when optical beacons were used in China: digital signals using multi-color smoke. Around 600 AD we had optical beacons in China, Korea and Japan, and in 1200 BC also in Mongolia and India.
In the 18th and 19th century, optical semaphores were used in France.
In the 20th century, optical beam transmission using optical rods and optical fiber transmissions were developed, which combined with the development of lasers created today’s laser communications. Yasuharu Suematsu and his student showed the world’s first demonstration of optical fiber communications demonstration on May 26, 1963 at the Tokyo Institute of Technology, using a He-Ne laser, an electro-optic crystal for modulation of the laser light by the electrical signal from a microphone, and optical bundle fiber, and a photo-tube at the other end of the optical fiber bundle to revert the optical signals back into electrical signals and finally to drive a loud speaker. For his pioneering work, Yasuharu Suematsu was awarded the International Japan Prize in 2014.
VCSEL: I recorded my initial idea for the surface emitting laser on March 22, 1977 in my lab book.
Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VCSEL) have many advantages:
ultra-low power consumption: small volume
pure spectrum operation: short cavity
continuous spectrum tuning: single resonance
high speed modulation: wide response range
easy coupling to optical fibers: circular mode
monolithic fabrication like LSI
wafer level probe testing
2-dimensional array
vertical stack integration with micro-machine
physically small
VCSEL have found applications in many fields, including: data communications, sensing, printing, interconnects, displays.
As an example, the Tsubame-2 supercomputer, which in November 2011 was 5th of top-500 supercomputers, and on June 2, 2011 was greenest computer of Green500, uses 3500 optical fiber interconnects with a length of 100km. In 2012: Too500/Green500/Graph500
IBM Sequoia uses 330,000 VCSELs.
Fuji Xerox introduced the first demonstration of 2 dimensional 4×8 VCSEL printer array for high speed and ultra-fine resolution laser printing: 14 pages/minute and 2400 dots/inch.
VCSEL photonics started from minor reputation and generated big innovation. VCSELs feature:
low power consumption: good for green ICE
high speed modulation beyond 20 GBits/second
2D array
good productivity due to monolithic process
Future: will generate ideas never thought before.
em. President of Tokyo Institute of Technology, Professor Kenichi Iga, inventor of VCSELGerhard Fasol (left), em. President of Tokyo Institute of Technology, Professor Kenichi Iga (right)
Start-up Nation Israel 2014 – Israel Japan Investment Funds meeting on March 4, 2014 at the Hotel Okura in Tokyo
Israeli Venture funds introduce Israeli ventures to Japanese investors
Acquisition of Viber by Rakuten draws attention in Japan to Israeli ventures
The recent acquisition of the Israel-based OTT (over the top) communications company Viber by Rakuten for US$ 900 Million has drawn attention in Japan to Israel’s innovative power, however many Japanese companies are already cautiously investing in Israel while keeping a low profile, we learnt at the “Start-up Nation Israel 2014” Israel Japan Investment Funds meeting on March 4, 2014 at the Hotel Okura in Tokyo.
Most of the companies presented at the conference were highly sophisticated computer security, medical equipment, and similar “mono zukuri” type ventures, but also included a “selfie” app for auto-portrait or group photos using iPad or iPhone.
By the way: our company is currently working to sell an Israeli venture company to Japan as an exit for investors, and to accelerate business development in Japan for this company.
Her Excellency, Ambassador of Israel to Japan, Ms Ruth Kahanoff opened the conference:
Her Excellency, The Ambassador of Israel to Japan, Ms Ruth Kahanoff
Economic Minister of Israel to Japan, Mr Eitan Kuperstoch explained that while there is substantial investment in Israel’s ventures by many major Japanese corporations, there is much scope for increases. Japan’s investment added together are on the order of 1% of foreign direct investments to Israel:
Economic Minister to Japan of Israel, Eitan Kuperstoch
Pitches by Israeli Venture Funds
BRM Group: actually a privately held fund, strictly speaking not venture capital
CHIMA Ventures: medical devices, minimal invasive surgery tools.
TERRA Venture Partners: Terra invests in about 16-20 (4-5 per year) for a 1-2 year incubation period, followed by a “cherry picking” process. Terra VP invests in companies surviving the “cherry picking”. Veolia, GE, EDP, Clearweb, Enel are partners.
Giza Venture Capital: 5 funds, US$ 600 million under management, 102 investments, 20 active, 38 exits. Examples are: XtremIO, Actimize, Telegate, Precise, Plus, msystems, cyota, Olibit, Zoran, XTechnology. A particular success story is XtremIO: the team of 21 people (including secretary) turned US$ 6 million investment into a US$ 435 million cash sale to EMC.
StageOne Ventures: Early stage US$ 75 million fund, 17 investments.
Gillot Capital Partners: seed and early stage. Focus: cyber security.
SCP Vitalife Partners: 2 funds, US$ 230 capital under management.
Magma Venture Partners: focus on information and communications sector. Created over US$ 2 billion in acquired company value. Biggest success story: waze (crowd sourced location based services), return on capital investment: 171-times.
OrbiMed Healthcare Fund Management: largest global healthcare dedicated investment firm.
Nielsen Innovate:
Panel discussion of Israeli Venture Capital Fund Managers and the Vice-President of Japan’s Venture Capital Association
Presentations and Panel discussion
Arik Klienstein: Driving innovation in Israel – the 8200 impact
8200 is a unit within the Israeli Defence Forces similar to the US NSA – technology based intelligence collection. 8200 veterans lead many Israeli start-ups including NICE, Verint, Check Point, paloalto.
8200 and the start up culture:
Select the best people out of high school or college
Short first formal training. Most of training done on the job
Flexible dynamic organizational structure
Direct and constant relationship with the end user
“Think out the box” mentality – no assumptions. Hierarchy-less flat structure
Must win attitude!
Tal Slobodkin (Talpiot 18 Graduate): The Talpiot program
Talpiot is Israel’s elite Israel Defense Forces training program, dedicated to create leading research and development officers for the various branches of the Israeli Defence Forces. Program was created in 1979, about 1000 graduates today.
Selection process:
starts with 15,000++ high school seniors
100-150 attend next level of leadership assessment
50-75 reach final selection committee
30-40 enter the program
25-35 graduate
Training and assignment:
three full academic years
full dual degree in Maths and Physics, most graduate additionally in Computer Science or other subjects
military training
significant exposure to all cutting edge military and non-military innovation
develop management skills
graduates pick own final assignment
minimum assignment is additional 6 years, average tenure in Israeli Defense Forces is 10 years
Notable graduates:
Yoaf Freund: Professor at UC San Diego, Goedel Prize winner
Elon Lindenstrauss, Professor of Mathematics at the Hebrew University and winner or 2010 Fields Medal
Marius Nacht, co-founder of Check Point Software
Eli Mintz, Simchon Faigler, Amir Natan, founders of Compugen Ltd
Founders of XIV, sold to IBM for US$ 400 million
Eviatar Metanya, head of National Cyber Bureau
Ophier Shoham, head of Israel’s Defence R&D Agency (Israel’s DARPA)
Elchana Harel (Harel-Hertz Investment House): Japanese investments in Israel
94 Japanese investments in Israeli High-tech during 2000-2014:
ICT: 41 investments
Semiconductors: 25 investments
Life sciences: 11 investments
VC funds: 17 investments
Characteristics:
Most investments are strategic, not financial, not exit driven
Most investments are direct into target companies, and relatively small by global standards: up to US$ 3 million
In many cases “silent investments”: e.g a Japanese electronics company does not want their Japanese competitors to know that they invest in Israel
Japanese investors mostly follow Israeli or US lead investors. Japanese investors seldom lead.
Japanese acquisitions in Israel:
Nikken Sohonsha: NBT
Yasukawa Robotoics: Yasukawa Israel (Eshed), Argo Medical Robotics
David Heller: cooperation of Israeli investment funds with Japan
Israel’s venture capital fund industry was created by Israel’s Government creating the Yozma Fund of Funds: Israel’s Government invested a total of US$ 100 million in 10 VC funds (US$ 10 million per fund) under the condition that these funds had to attract much larger non-Government investment. In total the Yozma Fund of Funds invested US$ 100 million and resulted in a VC fund industry with a total of US$ 17 Billion of VC funds raised since 1993.
There is a relatively large number of Japanese investments in Israeli funds, however, the combined total investment is rather low, approximately 1% of all foreign investments in such funds. Thus there is much scope for increased Japanese investments in Israeli funds and ventures.
Excellent science in Japan, for example Shuji Nakamura’s GaN LEDs and Lasers
Fasol mentions that there is excellent science in Japan, for example Shuji Nakamura’s invention and development of blue and white GaN based LEDs and Lasers (see: Nakamura and Fasol: the Blue Laser Diode).
Transition from “old Japan” to “new Japan” needed
Fasol also mentions the necessary transition from “old Japan” to “new Japan”. “Old Japan” is run by a tightly knit group of older men, without space for women or foreigners. Shuji Nakamura escaped this “Old Japan” for Santa Barbara in California.
Japan needs to transition as soon as possible from an “old Japanese men” controlled society, to a Japan that embraces diversity, engaging the power of women and people with different backgrounds and ideas, not just inbreeding by old men from the same schools of thought.
With the right know-how, foreign companies can take advantage of Japan’s excellent human resources
Fasol also mentions that Japan has excellent human resources, and foreign companies can today take advantage of opportunities in Japan, which did not exist, or were unaccessible for foreign companies 50 years ago.
Japan needs to encourage spin-out companies from Universities and research labs
When Fasol was Faculty at Tokyo University, Faculty essentially did not register almost any inventions for patents, and there were essentially no companies started at Japan’s No. 1 Elite University. To stimulate innovation and growth is it necessary to change the mind-set at Japan’s elite Universities, encourage commercialization of inventions through spin-out companies.
Gerhard Fasol was one of the invited speakers of the “Device Applications of Nanoscale Materials Symposium” at the 1998 National ACS Meeting in Dallas, Texas, which was organized by John St. John of Texas Christian University.
Gerhard Fasol’s talk: “Selective Electrodeposition of Magnetic and Metallic Nanowires: A New Approach to a Fundamental Technology”
Symposium purpose: The two main purposes of this symposium are (1) to demonstrate current, innovative applications of chemistry in the nanometer size regime for use in optoelectronics and (2) to identify potential areas for partnerships between industry and academia where research in nanoscale chemistry can be applied to emerging technologies. It is hoped that this symposium will benefit chemists working in nanotechnology by providing a forum for discussing applications with leading industries.
Press Conference participants:
James R. Von Ehr II, Zyvex LLC;
Howard E. Katz, Bell Laboratories-Lucent Technologies;
Jie Han, NASA Ames Research Laboratory;
Gerhard Fasol, Eurotechnology Japan K. K.;
Technical program
8:00 am: Marye Anne Fox , University of Texas, Austin; Imaging With Chromophore-Modified Self Assembled Monolayers
8:40 am: Howard E. Katz, Bell Laboratories-Lucent Technologies; Chemical Structure, film Morphology, and Deposition Process Optimization of Organic Transistor Semiconductors
9:20 am: James R. Von Ehr II, Zyvex LLC; Building a Molecular Nanotechnology Industry
10:00 am: William Hinsburg, IBM Research Division; Resist Requirements for Sub-100 nm Microlithography
10:30 am: Gerhard Fasol, Eurotechnology Japan K. K.; Selective Electrodeposition of Magnetic and Metallic Nanowires: A New Approach to a Fundamental Technology
11:10 am: Alan J. Heeger, IPOS, UCSB, and UNIAX Corp.,.; Polymer Light Emitting Electrochemical Cells: A Device Application of Nanscale Chemistry
11:50 am: Jie Han, NASA Ames Research Laboratory; Exploring Carbon Nanotubes for Nanoscale Devices
2:00 pm: Richard BrotzmanNanophase Technologies Corporation; Nanoscale Materials for Optoelectronics
2:30 pm: Louis Brus, Columbia University; Spectroscopy and “Blinking” of Single Semiconductor Nanocrystals at Room Temperature
3:10 pm: Jeffery L. Coffer, Texas Christian University; Nanophase Silicon as an Optoelectronic / Biocompatible Material
4:00 pm: James M. Tour, University of South Carolina; Molecular Scale Electronics
4:40 pm: Tapesh Yadav, Nanomaterials Research Corporation; Device Applications of Nanoscale Materials
Gerhard Fasol and Katharina Runge: “Selective Electrodeposition of nanometer scale magnetic wires” Applied Physics Letters, 70, p. 2467-2468 (5 May 1997)
G. Fasol, “Spontaneous Spin Polarization in Quantum Wires”, Proc. 22nd International Conference on the Physics of Semiconductors (ICPS), edited by D. J. Lockwood, (World Scientific, Singapore, 1995), p. 1739-1742.
G. Fasol and H. Sakaki, “Spontaneous Spin Polarization due to Electron- Electron Interaction in Quantum Wires”, in “Nanostructures and Quantum Effects”, edited by H. Sakaki and H. Noge, [Proceedings of the JRDC Int. Symposium on Nanostructures and Quantum Effects, 17—18 Nov. 1993, Tsukuba (Japan)], Springer-Verlag, Berlin, p. 121-130 (1994).
G. Fasol and H. Sakaki, “Spontaneous Spin Polarization in Quantum Wires”, Philosophical Magazine, 70, 601-616 (1994).
G. Fasol and H. Sakaki, “Prediction of Spin-Polarization Effects in Quantum Wire Transport”, Japanese Journal of Applied Physics, 33, 879-886 (1994).
G. Fasol, Y. Nagamune, J. Motohisa und H. Sakaki, “Determination of Quantum Wire Potential and Hot Electron Spectroscopy Using Point Contacts”, Surface Science, 305, 620-623 (1994).
G. Fasol, “Calculation of Electron Coherence Lengths for Quantum Wires”, in: 21st International Conference on the Physics of Semiconductors, ed. by Ping Jiang and Hou-Zhi Zheng, World Scientific, (Singapore, 1992), p. 1411.
G. Fasol and H. Sakaki, “Electron-electron Scattering in Quantum Wires and its Possible Suppression due to Spin Effects”, Physical Review Letters, 70, 3643-3646 (1993).
G. Fasol and H. Sakaki, “Spontaneous Spin-Polarization of Ballistic Electrons in Single Mode Quantum Wires Due to Spin Splitting”, Applied Physics Letters, 62, 2230-2232 (1993).
G. Fasol and H. Sakaki, “Electron-Electron Scattering in Quantum Wells and Wires”, Proceedings of the 19th Int. Symposium on Gallium Arsenide and Related Compounds, (Karuizawa 1992), Institute of Physics Conference Series No. 129, p. 311 (1992).
G. Fasol, “Absence of Low Temperature Saturation of Electron–Electron Scattering in a Single Mode Quantum Wire”, Applied Physics Letters, 61, 831-833 (1992)
G. Fasol, “Electron Dephasing Due to Coulomb Interaction”, Applied Physics Letters 59, 2430-2432 (1991)
