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Join us

Nagao Laboratory is currently recruiting graduate students and research students.
We welcome anyone interested in tackling new research in materials, energy, and chemistry. We accept lab tours at any time, so please feel free to contact us.

Contact

Professor　Yuki NAGAO
Email: ynagao(at)jaist.ac.jp
※Replace (at) with @.

Year 2027 research project

  1. Research on fuel cell performance improvement
    a. Proton transport property in polymer organized structure (2012-)
    b. OH– ion transport property in polymer thin films (2017-)
    c. Li+ transport property in polymer organized structure (2022-)
    d. Na+ transport property in polymer organized structure (2023-)
    e. K+ transport property in polymer electrolytes (2024-)
    f. Rb+ transport property in polymer electrolytes (2025-)
    g. Zn2+ transport property in polymer electrolytes for Zn battery and flow battery (2026-)
  2. Development of rechargeable proton batteries
    a. anode materials such as MXene etc.
    b. cathode nanomaterials such as Prussian Blue Ananogues etc.
    c. electrolyte with organized structure
    d. charge transfer modulation for active materials (2025-)
  3. Gas sensors and other sensors
  4. Mechanically Induced Alignment and Ion Transport in Lyotropic Polymer Films (2026-)
  5. Ion switching by coordination compounds (Dr. Aoki, Assistant Professor)
  6. Collaboration: Electrochemical catalysts for fuel cells, water electrolysis, methanation, and CO2 reduction
  7. Collaboration: Flow batteries and Supercapacitors

SCHOLARSHIPS

JAIST scholarship & MEXT (government) special slot scholarship (deadline : early September) etc. : JAIST website For special slot, since this is a program transition year, if accepted the program, a deadline will be set as soon as possible (around Dec-Jan 2027?).
FYI, please see the old Entrepreneurship based Global Energy-Environment-Health Innovation Program. Internal deadline: Already closed for 2026 Oct.
JST Lotus program (for India, 1 year as post graduate students) details are here.

If you would apply these scholarship or fellowship, please send your undergraduate course transcript (not master course), official English score to Prof. Nagao. Only applications from non-native English speakers with scores equivalent to IELTS 6.5 or higher will be considered. In-university English scores are not considered. FYI, the average English score of non-native international students in our laboratory is 780 points on the TOEIC equivalent.

MEXT embassy recommendation
To apply via Embassy Recommendation, please check the website of the Japanese embassy in your country. You can find it here: 🌐 List of Japanese Embassies Worldwide (MOFA)

FAQ

・Do I need Japanese language ability? > No, we use English. You have a chance to learn Japanese through courses.
・Can I contact a professor before applying? > Yes.
・What research topics are available? > Please see above projects.

Postdoctoral Fellowships

JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowships (Standard Program) : JSPS website
JSPS Invitational Fellowships (Short term): JSPS website
Internal deadline is early April and August every year
JST Lotus program (for India, 1- 3 years as postdocs) details are here.

Lab information

For more detail JAIST website

Core time : 9 am – 5 pm
All lab seminars conducted in English
Strong publication record with multiple international collaborations
Alumni thrive globally in academia, industry, and government positions
Financial support available
Photos: http://www.jaist.ac.jp/ms/labs/nagao-www/?page_id=1033

Polymer synthesis, fablication in clean room, in situ measurements, thin film study, electrochemical study
Our main measurements
In situ proton conductivity, In situ IR, In situ QCM, In situ GIXRS, pMAIRS, MAIRS2

Equipments
Impedance analyzer, RH-Temp controlled chamber, Temp controlled vacuum chamber, In-situ IR spectrometer, UV-visible spectrometer, GPC, Electrochemical analyzer, Automatic In-situ layer-by-layer (LBL) machine, RF sputter, Inkjet machine, Hot-press equipment, Fuel cell testing system, Battery test system, Plasma system for surface modification, Electric furnace, Grove box, Xe lamp system, Table-Top type precision universal system, In-situ QCM, Spincoator, Evaporator, Hume foods, TG-DTA in our lab.

Liquid NMR, Solid State NMR, 800MHz NMR, EI-MS, ESI -MS, GC-MS, LC-MS, MALDI-TOFMS, MALDI-TOF/TOF, ICP-MS, FTICRMS, L-SIMS, 1D XRD, 2D XRD, Surface profiler, AFM, XPS, TEM, SEM, STM, Color 3D laser microscopy, White light interferometry, DSC, z-potential analyzer, Fluorescence spectrometer, Raman spectrometer, Ellipsometry, Clean room, machine shop, etc. as common use.
SPring-8, KEK-PF for using synchrotron radiation, J-PARC for newtron reflectometry.