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Mimura-Hosobata Lab
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A lab whose ultra-precision manufacturing supports science from outer space to the cell.
AboutAbout the lab
Precision machining supporting cutting-edge science
The Mimura-Hosobata Lab studies manufacturing at extreme levels of precision.
At the SPring-8 large synchrotron radiation facility and the SACLA X-ray free-electron laser, the lab develops microscopes, and with researchers in astronomy it makes telescope mirrors for observing the Sun.
The lab also analyzes machining phenomena such as cutting, grinding, electrical discharge machining, and laser machining by high-speed imaging with synchrotron radiation X-rays.
The lab designs and builds most of its precision machining equipment, measurement instruments, and microscopes itself.
Key terms
- Synchrotron radiation
- Synchrotron radiation: very bright light emitted when electrons traveling at nearly the speed of light are bent. It includes X-rays and is used to examine the fine internal structure of objects.
- X-ray free-electron laser
- X-ray free-electron laser: a device that emits intense light with aligned waves, like a laser, in the X-ray range for only an extremely short time.
- Grinding
- Grinding: a machining process that gradually removes material from a surface with a rapidly rotating grinding wheel to finish its shape or surface.
NewsLab news
A doctoral student received the FY2025 Paper Award from the Japan Society of Electrical Machining Engineers
The lab opened its laboratories to visitors at Komaba Research Campus Open House 2026
A student received the Best Presentation Award at the Japan Society for Precision Engineering (JSPE) Spring Meeting
A student received a Company Award at the JSPE Spring Meeting
Prof. Mimura and colleagues, together with Natsume Optical and others, received an Excellence Award at the 10th Monozukuri Nippon Grand Awards
ResearchResearch themes
The lab aims to support a wide range of cutting-edge science, from astronomy and space science to cell biology, through its own precision manufacturing. Its research themes fall into four areas: development of ultra-precision machining methods, development of processes for manufacturing high-precision mirrors, development of X-ray microscopes and telescopes, and analysis of machining phenomena using X-rays.
*Illustrative imageAtomic-level ultra-precision machining
The lab develops ultra-precision machining methods at the atomic scale, using physicochemical phenomena that remove atoms one layer at a time. Recently, it has been working on a low-cost polishing method with a small environmental burden that flattens surfaces using only an acrylic plate and water.
*Illustrative imageHigh-precision mirrors with complex shapes
The lab develops processes for making high-precision mirrors with complex shapes, such as freeform surfaces and cylinders. It has also developed techniques for precisely measuring shape with light and for replicating shape through electrochemical reactions, achieving nanometer-scale accuracy.
*Illustrative imageDevelopment of X-ray microscopes and telescopes
The lab develops soft X-ray microscopes for use at SPring-8 and the X-ray free-electron laser. The microscopes use high-precision mirrors the lab makes itself, and have made it possible to do things such as image the chemical state of cells.
*Illustrative imageSeeing how machining works with X-rays
The lab analyzes the process by which material is removed in cutting, grinding, electrical discharge machining, laser machining, and other processes, using high-speed imaging with the intense X-rays of SPring-8. It conducts joint research with machining specialists and with manufacturers of machine tools and cutting tools.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Mimura-Hosobata Lab consist of faculty, technical staff, academic specialist staff, and doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students.As of 2026
- ProfessorHidekazu MimuraPublications ↗
- Associate ProfessorTakuya Hosobata
- Project Associate ProfessorAmani Reza
- Project LecturerMotoyama HirotoPublications ↗
- Assistant ProfessorSatoru Egawa
- Assistant ProfessorJianli Guo
VoicesStudent voices
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “SPring- img pano” en:User:Artorius / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Atomic-level ultra-precision machining: “Silicon2” W. Oelen / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- High-precision mirrors with complex shapes: “Newton interference rings” Alexander Penn / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Development of X-ray microscopes and telescopes: “ASTRO-H soft X-ray mirror” NASA / Public domain (cropped)
- Seeing how machining works with X-rays: “Small hole drilling EDM” Qw5646 / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (高橋・
道畑研究室): “Mechanical delay stage in an optical setup 01” Aksy88 / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped) - Related lab (木下研究室): “Greenville Public Works, ECVC Recycling Sorting facility - 14” Greenville, NC / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (新野研究室): “Laser Sintering - Entnahme eines Modell aus dem Baumaterial” i.materialise（YouTube） / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (音響創成工学研究室): “Levitación acústica” Richard Haberkern / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
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