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Message from the Leader
Tetsuo IRIFUNE
Global COE Program Leader
Professor & Director of Geodynamics Research Center, Ehime University
“The Global Center of Excellence (COE) Program” aims at forming world-class research hubs in Japanese Universities with strong financial support by the Japanese government. We, a group of researchers at Ehime University (The Geodynamics Research Center, GRC, and The Geophysics division in the Graduate School of Sciences), together with those of allied laboratories at the University of Tokyo, Japan Synchrotron Research Institute (JASRI), and Stony Brook University (SBU) submitted a proposal entitled “Center for Advanced Experimental and Theoretical Deep Earth Mineralogy” for this highly cutting-throat competition.
This proposal has been selected as one of 3 successful programs in the field of Earth sciences, in which we will advance cutting-edge sciences in deep Earth mineralogy, focusing on the topics represented by the keywords “lower mantle mineralogy”, “core materials”, and “deep Earth water”. We will also conduct interdisciplinary studies, such as solid-state physics, inorganic chemistry, and materials science, utilizing the rich resources of high-pressure and other facilities at the GRC. Moreover, new technologies in experimental and computational sciences relevant to these studies will also be developed in this program.
For instance, we will develop techniques to produce pressures in the Mbar regime in the multianvil apparatus using sintered diamond anvils, while the P, T conditions for precise determination of sound velocities, developed by the program member of SBU, will be extended to those of the lower mantle. Application of the newly produced nano-polycrystalline diamond (NPD or HIME-dia) to various types of high-pressure apparatus will also be pursued in order to realize higher pressure and temperature generation in larger sample volumes as compared to those available in conventional high-pressure apparatus. We will also focus on the development of techniques relevant to the applications of “quantum-beams” in deep Earth mineralogy, particularly those of synchrotron and neutron beams available at SPring-8 and at J-PARC, respectively, in collaboration with the program members of JASRI and Univ. Tokyo.
The new experimental data based on these techniques will be examined with first-principles calculations by the numerical simulation group of the GRC, while the predictions based on the latter studies will in turn guide the experimental exploration of the behavior of Earth's materials at very high pressure and temperature. Moreover, these data are used for realistic computer simulations of dynamics of the Earth, as well as for understanding the seismologically derived structures of the Earth's deep interior in the numerical simulation group.
Another important aim of our program is to train young scientists in deep Earth mineralogy and related fields. We will accept 15-20 PhD students and 20-30 post-doctoral fellows, including those from overseas, in experimental and theoretical deep Earth mineralogy, particularly in the fields of high-pressure mineral physics, quantum-beam applications, and first-principle computations during the period of the program. To this end, we will open a special course exempt of tuition and provide scholarships as well as significant research funds, in the Graduate School of Science of Ehime Univ., and annually invite up to 4 highly motivated foreign and Japanese PhD students at the GRC for this program. We will have special training programs for these young scientists, including internships in the members' and other domestic and overseas laboratories. These laboratories have strong relations with the GRC, such as an official agreement on the collaboration in research and education (i.e. GSECARS, Univ. Chicago; Bayerisches Geoinstitut, Univ. Bayreuth; Mineral Physics Institute, SBU; Laboratoire de Geologie, CNRS-ENS; Institute of Earth Sciences, National Chen Kung Univ.; RSES, Australian National University).
In addition to the above research and training activities, an important goal of our Global COE program is to form an international research/education network of deep Earth mineralogy in the Asian region, in order to enhance international collaborations and exchange of people in this field. Although scientific and technological contributions from the Asian countries to the advancement in deep Earth mineralogy have been quite significant, we do not have any effective network platforms for mutual interaction among the researchers and students in these countries, such as those established in the USA (COMPRES) and Europe (Crust to Core, c2c), in spite of geographically close relations. Thus we plan to form a network (The Asian Network in Deep Earth Mineralogy, TANDEM) to combine unique techniques and facilities in individual laboratories in the Asian region to develop new frontiers in deep Earth mineralogy as well as in training young scientists in this and related research fields.
Matsuyama, where the GRC and the headquarters of the global COE program are located, is the largest city on the southern most main island of Shikoku in Japan. The famous hot spa, Dogo Onsen, and the beautiful Matsuyama castle on the hill are within the walking distances from the GRC office building, and you may also enjoy scenic views of hundreds of islands floating on the calm Seto inland sea near the city. This area is known for its modest climate throughout the year (though a little bit warm in summer), rich nature, low living costs, and it is an ideal place to live. We heartily welcome and invite those who wish to explore the secrets of the Earth's deep interior to our global COE program on Deep Earth Mineralogy. Bon voyage to the center of the Earth!
