Tokyo Tech Summer Program 2017

Aaron Tze-Rue Tan

Undergraduate student, Department of Material Science and Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison

I had good exposure to the Japanese working lifestyle, culture, language, etiquette, cities, and many other things.

I have been exposed to another part of the world, one where similar yet different cultures are shown. Being Chinese and being able to read Mandarin (kanji), I can sometimes feel at home in Japan, but then the differences are very apparent, such as the language, how people in Japan do things, and so on. From this Summer Program, I was able to experience it to the fullest. From participating in summer festivals, touring different cities in the Tokyo metropolitan area every weekend, eating lots of new food, to even learning a new language.

Apart from the fun aspect of this program, I've also got a glimpse of how labs are run in Japan, such as the large number of members in each lab, having large lab cleaning sessions, to even having dinner with one another, including the professor. This is something I would not have ever encountered in the US, thus I am glad to have been given the chance to experience this.

(From right) Prof. Tsuyoshi Michinobu, Aaron Tan,
and his mentor Dr. Yang Wang

Tsuyoshi Michinobu

Associate Professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, School of Materials and Chemical Technology

When I decided to accept Aaron into my group, I quickly contacted him by email in order to arrange the research project. I found that he was full of curiosity about new chemistry and materials science. It was actually good timing because the research project of semiconducting polymers started to go well in my group. Therefore, I carefully designed a series of experiments including organic synthesis and transistor fabrication that could be completed within 10 weeks. Aaron was an undergraduate student, but he mastered difficult experimental techniques very quickly under the guidance of his mentor, Dr. Wang. He eventually demonstrated that the semiconducting properties of polymers can be significantly altered by the substituents of the polymer backbone. I hope that the experience at my laboratory will be useful for his future.

Kilian Lieret

Master's student, Faculty of Physics, Technical University of Munich

Specializing in elementary particle physics, but having broad interests, I was very enthusiastic to try myself in a completely new project during the Tokyo Tech Summer Program and to experience research in a different work environment and culture.

Under the guidance of Associate Professor Hideko Nomura, I was working on a project investigating the formation of complex organic molecules in protoplanetary disks. The research centered on a so-called chemical reaction network to simulate the build-up of molecular complexity over time. As part of my project, I tried to investigate the influence of certain physical and chemical parameters based on the results of the simulation. After a steep learning curve at the beginning of the dive into this topic, I was very happy that I could bring in my programming skills to create a framework to make such studies more automated and less time-intensive in the future. A weekly seminar also gave more background on the underlying chemical and physical processes, which was very useful to check and interpret my results. I also very much welcomed the opportunity to join a research seminar in Gotemba City together with many other young researchers of related fields. The project left me with much motivation, many new insights and inspirations, and a lot of fresh research experience! I am also happy that my short talk about my research won the award for the best presentation.

Apart from work, I also really enjoyed the spare time activities at Tokyo Tech, and I was especially glad about the opportunity to try out and play traditional Japanese instruments at an event with local high school students. Staying in Tokyo not only as a tourist, but also as someone who works and lives here for more than two months, really changed the way I look at this magnificent city and I would be very happy to return.

Kilian Lieret (left) and Prof. Hideko Nomura

Hideko Nomura

Associate Professor, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, School of Science

One of the main research topics in our laboratory is evolution of molecules in space. We investigate the relation between the complex organic molecules formed in planet-forming regions and the materials in objects found in our solar system, as well as test theories on planet-formation processes by means of observation of molecular transition lines from astronomical objects.

Kilian joined our laboratory for his summer program with a keen interest in astrophysics. His major is in particle physics, but his inquisitiveness and high academic ability meant that he was fully able to make his stay worthwhile.

During the summer program, Kilian performed model calculations for the formation of complex organic molecules in protoplanetary disks, which is related to the formation of prebiotic molecules in regions where planets are born. By applying his programming skills and unique perspective derived from having a different field of specialization, Kilian made a very constructive contribution to our laboratory’s research.

While Kilian was working with us, he also attended seminars in our group, and I have no doubt that his presence had a positive influence on graduate students from related fields whom he met. Furthermore, I believe that his linguistic ability and preparedness to communicate with domestic students in Japanese had a positive impact on the rest of the lab's international students. Working with Kilian was a pleasure for us all.