Magnetic Materials Engineering Lab

AboutAbout the lab

New materials start from the foundations of physics

The Takenaka-Hirai Lab conducts research with the goal of creating new functional materials from the physics inside matter.
In transition metals such as manganese, iron, and copper, electrons interact strongly with one another and form various kinds of order called “electronic phases.”
Building on the idea of controlling these electronic phases, the lab has developed new material functions, such as giant “negative thermal expansion,” in which a material shrinks when heated.
The lab welcomes students from a wide range of fields, including not only physics but also chemistry and materials science.

ResearchResearch themes

The lab finds the principle for developing new materials in controlling the diverse “electronic phases” formed by d electrons in transition metals. While valuing the fundamentals of physics, it aims to demonstrate new functional materials as concrete, tangible “materials.”

*Illustrative image

Negative Thermal Expansion Materials and Control of Thermal Expansion↗

Using the idea of “electronic phase control,” which exploits the melting and transformation of electronic phases, the lab has developed new material functions, such as giant negative thermal expansion, in which a material shrinks when heated, and electrical resistance that hardly changes with temperature.

VoicesStudent voices

Compiled from answers by students who were in the lab. Ratings and reviews reflect individual students' experiences, not the lab's official views.

Students who take part in an interview may receive a thank-you gift worth ¥1,000, regardless of what they say.