Overview of KARC
Mission of Kobe Research Laboratories
Kazuhiro Oiwa
Is acting as a base for basic research that plays an important role in the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, Incorporated Administrative Agency.
Information and communications technology supports our society,but it have some issues; an energy issue with explosive amounts of information, new creating ICT issue and security issue.
We face the challenge of incorporating the new approaches to innnovative technologies: biotechnology,nanotechnology, brain information technology, superconduct technology and quantum information technology, and applying them to future information and communications technologies.
In addition to purely academic contributions, we would like to promote R&D in which practical applications have been kept in mind, based on info-communication materials, device manufacturing technology and various measurement technologies that we own in cooperation with researchers from related companies and universities.
Kobe Research Laboratories is divided into two main projects: the Nano ICT Group and the Biological ICT Group.
The Nano ICTgroup is carving out new research and development fields to break through current materials and ICTtechnology mechanisms, and addressing the development of device technology by taking advantage of ultimate information processing devices with molecules and cutting-edge superconductivetechnology. For example, we are able to expect that efficient information-communication and low power energy will be dramatically promoted by using efficient signal processing and controldevice with the fusion of molecules and optical technology. Also, highly precise technology of superconductive device will accelerate comfortable and realizing low power energy with high speed.
Living organisms have diverse and unique information-processing system. For example,a brain performs advanced and high-density information processing; cells practice advanced information processing to respond to changes in the external environment; and small biomolecules exercise highly specific catalytic reactions and energy conversion. These and other biological systems of information processing are marked by superior characteristics that cannot be reproduced by manufactured machines. Understanding the mechanisms of these biological functions and incorporating the knowledge in the development of information and communication technologies will enable us to actualize future communication systems that are user-friendly and comfortable to use. The Biological ICT Group is studying three basic themes: "Brain information technology", "Molecular communication technology", and "Network technology using biological algorithms".