The research group led by Professors Shin-ichiro Iwai and Sumio Ishihara, Graduate School of Science of Tohoku University, Professor Takahiko Sasaki, Institute for Materials Research at Tohoku University, then Chief Researcher Shingo Saito and Director Iwao Housako, Advanced ICT Research Institute at the National Institute of Communications Technology (NICT) discovered a new quasiparticle that is propagated as a collective motion of electric dipoles in a dielectric compound made of organic molecules. Furthermore, using a light pulse with an extremely short duration of ten-trillionth of a second (100 femtoseconds), the group succeeded in multiplying these quasiparticles. Through controlling pulse width, wavelength, intensity of the light, realizations of non-polar to ferroelectric conversion (photoinduced ferroelectricity) and/or the hybrid control of ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism (optomultiferroics) are expected to be achieved based on the results of this research.

More information (Japanese)

[Contact]
Professor Shin-ichiro Iwai
Graduate School of Science, Tohoku University
TEL: +81-22-795-6423
E-mail: s-iwai*m.tohoku.ac.jp (Replace * with @)

Professor Sumio Ishihara
Graduate School of Science, Tohoku University
Tel:+81-22-795-6436
E-mail: ishihara*cmpt.phys.tohoku.ac.jp (Replace * with @)

Professor Takahiko Sasaki
Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University
TEL: +81-22-215-2027
E-mail: takahiko*imr.tohoku.ac.jp (Replace * with @)