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Building a bridge between past and future scholarship A humble, mustachioed theorist combines mathematics and physics

August 20, 2020

500科同利 30s
Up-and-coming young researchers

Of the approximately 5,800 faculty members active at the University of Tokyo, we have selected nine energetic young researchers in their 30s. In terms of their job titles, there is one professor, two associate professors, one project associate professor, one lecturer, one project lecturer and three research associates. What kind of research are they engaged in day to day? And what is their temperament like? Let’s find out.

Theoretical Physics (Theory of Elementary Particles)

Building a bridge between past and future scholarship
A humble, mustachioed theorist combines mathematics and physics

Yuji Tachikawa
Professor,
picture
Against the backdrop of the impressive yellow walls of the corridor of the Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe. “My research does not help the world in any direct fashion. I feel a sense of intimacy with similar research in other fields.” Photo: Junichi Kaizuka

Matter can be broken down to molecules, atoms, electrons and ultimately to elementary particles. String theory considers these not as particles, but strings. Professor Yuji Tachikawa, who was appointed a professor at age 36, has built a reputation as a researcher in Quantum Field Theory (QFT), which is related to string theory. So what is QFT? While it is obviously difficult for the general public, it’s similarly difficult for professional mathematicians.

“QFT is a theory that has prove