Prize Recipient

Jun Akimitsu
Aoyama-Gakuin University

"For the discovery of high temperature superconductivity in non-oxide systems."

Jun Akimitsu received an undergraduate degree from the University of Tokyo in 1965 and a Ph.D. from the University of Tokyo in 1970. From 1970 to 1976 Akimitsu was a Research Associate at the Institute for Solid State Physics at the University of Tokyo. Since 1982 he has been a professor at Aoyama-Gakuin University. Since 1998 he has also been Dean of the Center for Advanced Technology, Aoyama-Gakuin University.

He is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Superconducting Science and Technology Award (1997), the Nishina Memorial Prize (1998), Medal with Purple Ribbon (2001), Asahi Syo Prize (2002), Masumoto Hakaru Award (2002), Superconducting Science and Technology Award (2002); the Magnetics Society of Japan Prize (2002), Bernd T. Matthias Prize (2003) Nishikawa Award (2007).

Akimitsu opened up new chapter of “superconductivity fever” by announcing his surprising discovery of superconductivity in MgB2 (Tc=39K) at beginning of the 21st century. Since the discovery of MgB2, he has found over 10 superconductors in non-oxide systems including unexpectedly high-Tc superconductor Y2C3 (Tc=18K). Recently, he discovered superconductivity in B-doped SiC, of which superconducting properties can be described as type-I superconductor. Now, he is opening up newer chapter of “superconductivity fever” focusing non-oxide systems of which bond transforms into band.

Christopher B. Murray (Chair), B.R. Appleton, A. Epstein, A. Millis, J. Hsu