The Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology launched the Center of Excellence Program of the 21st Century in 2002. In 2003, our Innovation in Coherent Optical Science project was chosen for the COE program. Under the leadership of Professor Kohzo Hakuta, our COE activities have begun at the Department of Applied Physics and Chemistry of the Graduate School of Electro-Communications in collaboration with the professors and researchers of the Departments of Information and Communication Engineering, Electronic Engineering, and the Institute for Laser Science.
The objective of the COE Program of the 21st Century is to establish leading-edge center of research and education. The Innovation in Coherent Optical Science project was qualified as a COE program based on the renowned research and education efforts at UEC and on our well-organized plan to create a leading-edge center. This means that our research and education activities in optical science have proven to be prominent, in light of international standards, and we have high expectations for further development. Being chosen as a COE is a great honor and pleasure to us all.
UEC aims to contribute to the field of advanced communications by pursuing new types of education and research initiatives to develop comprehensive science and technology as well as human resources related to communication. Our program embraces basic science and applied technologies relating to innovative optical devices that are essential to the foundation of future information transfer and communications. Thus, the COE is expected to make enormous contributions to research and education efforts at UEC.
The COE will also contribute to the educational efforts in the doctoral program. For this reason, the scope of research covered by this program is wide, encompassing the three departments mentioned above so as to realize systematic education in coherent optical science in the newly launched Course of Coherence Optical Science. At the same time, emphasis is placed upon educating next-generation international leaders in this field. Our students are encouraged to give presentation at overseas universities and institutions. In addition, foreign students are accepted into the program. COE funds will be used to employ students in the doctoral program as research assistants in the center after stringent review of their achievements and research plans. We expect that remarkable results achieved by the graduate students in this program will stimulate and inspire students in other departments. We also hope that this success will lead to a substantial increase in the number of students who enroll in the doctoral program.
The entire faculty is dedicated to supporting this COE program, and, at the same time, we endeavor to win COE designation in other fields of research. We would like to ask for your continued support and cooperation.