Many great innovations were driven by collaborations that reached across traditional boundaries. Advanced technologies of scientific pursuits are still growing out of interdisciplinary research and education. Advanced Science and Technology Major has five education courses, which stand on the traditional research fields and immerse in the intersection of disciplines. Continuous research in these major ranges from basic science, through material and devices, to systems and applications. The courses are 1) Applied Chemistry and Biotechnology, 2) Electrical, Electronic and Computer Systems, 3) Mechanical Engineering and Robotics, 4) Environmental and Urban Engineering Course, and 5) Advanced Technology Fusion Programs Course. All course includes Advanced Industrial Technology Program which is conducted in English.

In the field of applied chemistry we try to clarify the structures and functions of materials from the microscopic viewpoint, and conduct education and research regarding the structure and properties of solution, batteries, glasses and ceramics, sensors, nano-materials, liquid crystals, organic molecules and polymers, and enzymes and proteins, which are in the forefront of science and technology. The fields described above will contribute to the manufacture of new materials, appearance of new function, production and conversion of energy, and preservation of the environment.

In the field of biotechnology we conduct education and research on the basis of the ability to explain living things using chemical vocabulary, regarding ecology, environment, resources, biotechnology, bio-supramolecules, and useful biomolecules in the forefront of science and technology.  We have a wide curriculum that is composed of advanced genetic engineering, molecular biochemistry, bioorganic chemistry, microbial ecology and others.

This course offers graduate studies in the following areas:

1. Electrical and electronic materials, devices and systems
2. Communication systems, energy sources based on electronics and photonics
3. VLSI system design

Our graduate students participate in advanced research as part of their educational program. The research areas include the followings, but not limited to:

• Semiconductor materials and devices
• Optoelectronics and electromagnetics
• Power and electronics systems
• Remote sensing and control
• Internet-based education systems
• Photonic crystal
• Fiber optic communication
• Opto-mechanical systems
• Imaging and display devices
• Analog/digital circuit design
• Communication architectures and protocols
• Parallel computing
• Signal processing

These study areas reflect the needs from the rapidly-growing IT industry. They build a solid foundation to solve today’s most pressing problems we encounter in our daily lives, such as how we communicate, find and create information, travel, improve our health, protect our environment, etc. With creative and innovative minds and skills nourished by these programs, students will be able to meet various challenges they will face as leaders. You will find our faculty and fellow students an exciting and stimulating group and interaction with them will be a valuable experience in your professional growth.

Based upon this approach, our mechanical systems course brings together nanotechnology and information science cohesively, providing you the means to acquire the knowledge and technology that will become the basis of your creativity.

In addition to courses covering fundamental fields such as material strength, hydrodynamics, control engineering, electromagnetism, thermodynamics, and machining, we also offer courses designed to produce next-generation engineers and researchers in applied fields such as robotics, bionics, welfare engineering, and microsystems engineering.

Our education and research philosophies promote skills such as problem detection, problem solving, communication, and presentation via concurrent seminar and practicum courses.

The Environment and Civil Engineering Course deals with education and researches in the following innovative, interdisciplinary fields: architectural and landscape design, infrastructure engineering, maintenance engineering, disaster-mitigation urban planning, environmental systems, cost-benefit analysis. These areas are based on informatics, system engineering, sociology, economics, architecture, etc.

There is an urgent need for professionals capable of finding solutions to increasingly large-scale environmental problems from comprehensive viewpoints. Students who have completed this course are playing key roles in environmental management, construction technologies, urban and regional planning, urban architectural design, etc. in private enterprises, research institutes, and public offices, among others.

The Advanced Technology Fusion Programs Course has been established as a course that offers a flexible interdisciplinary education and research system within an advanced discipline. This course will be linked to the research and educational activities of three Ritsumeikan University’s COE Programs assigned by the Ministry of Education and Science.

The Synchrotron Light Life Science Research (SLLS) Program aims to establish new medical care advocacy, new life models, and a new concept of life by using two novel and unique tabletop synchrotron light sources both developed by our Professors at Ritsumeikan University. The SLLS program attempts to fuse quantum mechanics and life sciences, while expanding the new field of life science, which combines biology, chemistry, medicine, physics, and engineering, through a wide range of both hard and soft educational initiatives. The course aims to educate students who understand life science as well the physics and engineering necessary for industries and society in the near future.

Advanced Technology Fusion Programs Course was established in order to offer education and research systems for interdisciplinary area with agility. In this course, the research and education are performed in conjunction with 21 century COE programs that were awarded to Ritsumeikan University. “Micro/Nano Science and Integrated Systems” is one of these COE programs. The objective of this program is to develop a super IC chip (Nano science system LSI) that is realized by integrating MEMS technology, energy and information-communication technology, and intelligent information system technology. Education on the nano science and system technology, which includes the micro system technology, semiconductor technology, and intelligent information system technology, is given in this course.

The Advanced Technology Fusion Course has been established to provide interdisciplinary education and research experience in certain priority fields of advanced technology. In this course, education and researches are conducted in cooperation with the 21st Century COE Program on ”Disaster Mitigation for Urban Cultural Heritage”.

This program aims to graduate disaster-mitigation specialists with good knowledge of cultural heritage and historical cities, and to respond to the many urgent needs for development of appropriate disaster-mitigation technology. Accordingly, this program provides education on Disaster Mitigation for Urban Cultural Heritage, including relevant studies on architecture, civil engineering, natural disaster science, informatics, cultural and social sciences, etc.