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Kusaka Lab
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A lab that captures the light of the Big Bang with telescopes to probe the beginning of the universe.
AboutAbout the lab
Reading the birth of the universe through its background radiation
Kusaka Lab studies the birth and evolution of the universe through observations of the cosmic microwave background.
The cosmic microwave background is the oldest light there is, reaching us from the Big Bang.
The lab makes its observations with radio telescopes on the Atacama Plateau in Chile, and takes part in international collaborative experiments.
It also develops high-sensitivity cameras that use superconducting devices operating at extremely low temperatures, and works on data analysis using computers.
Key terms
- Cosmic microwave background
- Radio waves emitted shortly after the universe was born, which still reach us today from the entire sky. Also called the CMB.
- Polarization
- A state in which the oscillation direction of light is aligned. The polarization of the background radiation is thought to retain traces of the early universe.
- Superconductivity
- A phenomenon in which electrical resistance drops to zero when a material is cooled below a certain temperature. It is used in sensors that detect extremely faint light.
NewsLab news
A doctoral student received the Student Excellent Presentation Award from the Physical Society of Japan
A paper was published in Review of Scientific Instruments
A graduate of the lab received the Encouragement Award in High Energy Physics
A paper co-authored by Assistant Professor Takakura has been released
ResearchResearch themes
The lab's main research theme is elucidating the early universe and its evolution by observing the cosmic microwave background (CMB), the light from the Big Bang. Using millimeter-wave telescopes installed on the Atacama Plateau in Chile, the lab handles everything from telescope development and installation to observation and data analysis.
*Illustrative imageObserving the CMB with telescopes around the world
The lab participates in the international collaborative projects Simons Observatory, Simons Array, and POLARBEAR, and carries out cutting-edge cosmic microwave background observations on a global scale.
*Illustrative imageDeveloping instruments that operate at cryogenic temperatures
The lab develops superconducting sensors that operate at cryogenic temperatures, as well as half-wave plate systems and calibration devices for precisely measuring polarization. Members build state-of-the-art technology with their own hands and carry out measurements that have never been done before.
*Illustrative imageAnalyzing observational data
The lab analyzes the data accumulated by its telescopes to search for traces of the early universe imprinted in the cosmic microwave background. It also develops processing methods for extracting extremely faint signals.
*Illustrative imageSearching for dark matter with magnons
The lab searches for the axion, a leading dark matter candidate, by observing magnons, which are collective waves of electron spins. It develops the detectors jointly with Nakamura Lab in the Department of Applied Physics.
MembersFaculty
The members of Kusaka Lab consist of faculty and students in the doctoral and master's programs.As of 2026
- Associate ProfessorAkito Kusaka
- Assistant ProfessorSatoru Takakura
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: “Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB)” ESA and the Planck Collaboration / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Observing the CMB with telescopes around the world: “Atacama cosmology telescope toco” The original uploader was Ahincks at English Wikipedia. / CC BY 3.0 (cropped)
- Developing instruments that operate at cryogenic temperatures: “XLD Pulse-Tube-Type Large Frame Dilution Refrigerator Cryostat” OJB Quantum / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Analyzing observational data: “Amalka Supercomputing facility” Davidpodhola / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Searching for dark matter with magnons: “Dark matter” United States Department of Energy / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (Suehara Lab): “International Linear Collider main linac cryomodule - exterior” Kane Farabaugh, VOA News / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (Ando Lab): “NS binary merger simulation 323” NASA/AEI/ZIB/M. Koppitz and L. Rezzolla / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (Cannon Lab): “Maya-NR-Simulation-with-Waveform-frame788” Deborah Ferguson ほか、
Georgia Tech MAYA Collaboration / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped) - Related lab (Liang Lab): “NuclideMap stitched 2” NuclideMap.PNG: The viewer derivative work: Neokortex (talk) / Public domain (cropped)
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