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The National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT, President: TOKUDA Hideyuki, Ph.D.) developed a hybrid signal processing method that integrates an annealing-based quantum computer with classical computing for next-generation mobile communication systems. By implementing this method into a base station, simultaneous communications with 10 devices were successfully demonstrated through outdoor experiments, addressing the massive connectivity requirements anticipated for the 6G era. The proposed approach utilizes quantum annealing to efficiently solve the combinatorial optimization problem arising in signal detection under multi-antenna and multi-carrier transmission. This result represents a significant step toward realizing large-scale machine-to-machine communications in future 6G networks, including applications involving drones, robots, and XR devices.

The National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT, President: TOKUDA Hideyuki, Ph.D.) has successfully demonstrated 2 Tbit/s Free-Space Optical (FSO) communication using small optical communication terminals that can be mounted on satellites and HAPS, marking a world first for this technology.

A research team led by the Institute for Space–Earth Environmental Research (ISEE) at Nagoya University, in collaboration with the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) and other partner institutions, has successfully observed large-scale variations in the electron density of the plasmasphere and ionosphere during the super geomagnetic storm that occurred on May 10, 2024.

The National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT, President: TOKUDA Hideyuki, Ph.D.), together with 11 international research partners, has demonstrated a record-breaking 430 terabits per second (Tb/s) optical transmission using a novel approach that extends the capacity of standard-compliant cutoff-shifted optical fibers well beyond the original design.

The National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT, President: TOKUDA Hideyuki, Ph.D.) has successfully demonstrated entanglement swapping (one of the key quantum communication protocols) using sum-frequency generation (SFG) between single photons for the first time.

The National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT, President: TOKUDA Hideyuki Ph.D.) and the Nagoya Institute of Technology (NITech, President: OBATA Makoto), collaborated with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), have achieved the world’s first successful demonstration of next-generation error correction codes, mitigating the impact of atmospheric turbulence on ground-to-satellite laser communications.

The National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (hereinafter “NICT”), KIYOHARA OPTICS Inc. (hereinafter “KIYOHARA OPTICS”), ArkEdge Space Inc. (hereinafter “ArkEdge Space”), and SoftBank Corp. (hereinafter “SoftBank”) have entered into a collaborative agreement to advance the demonstration of optical wireless communications between space and the stratosphere, as well as between space and the ground.
The four parties will collaborate on the development of optical wireless communication devices and their application to both satellites and stratospheric communication platforms (High Altitude Platform Stations, hereinafter “HAPS”).

Japan Radio Co., Ltd. (President: Ken Koarai, “JRC”), SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation (Representative Director, President & Chief Executive Officer: Eiichi Yonekura, “SKY Perfect JSAT”), the Graduate School of Engineering at The University of Tokyo (Dean: Yasuhiro Kato, Professor: Akihiro Nakao, “The University of Tokyo”), and the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (President: Hideyuki Tokuda, “NICT”) have successfully demonstrated dynamic switching of backhaul paths and QoS control in a 5G network environment that integrates a geostationary (GEO) satellite link, low earth orbit (LEO) satellite links, and terrestrial links. This achievement paves the way for the construction of highly reliable satellite-5G networks capable of flexibly responding to diverse services and network conditions.

Toshiba Corporation (“Toshiba”), NEC Corporation (“NEC”), and the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (“NICT”) have successfully conducted the world’s first demonstration of multiplexed transmission of quantum key distribution (QKD) signals and key generation within a system environment designed for the IOWN all-photonics network. IOWN, developed by NTT, Inc., is a next-generation information processing and communications infrastructure that delivers ultra-high speed, low power consumption, and low latency.

Scientists strengthen brain cell connections to enable gift-giving courtship behavior in fruit flies.

Researchers in Japan have genetically transferred a unique courtship behavior from one fruit fly species to another. By turning on a single gene in insulin-producing neurons, the team successfully made a species of fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) perform a gift-giving ritual it had never done before. The study, published in the journal Science, represents the first example of manipulating a single gene to create new neural connections and transfer behavior between species.

The National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT, President: TOKUDA Hideyuki Ph.D.) the Advanced ICT Research Institute, ASTRODESIGN, Inc. (President and CEO: NANBA Toyoaki), and Fujikura Ltd. (Director, President and CEO: OKADA Naoki) have developed a multi-core fiber cable consisting of eight 4-core, standard cladding diameter multi-core fibers, and they have successfully implemented it for the first time as an ultrahigh-capacity data transmission unit in a real system handling uncompressed 8K video.

The National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT, President: TOKUDA Hideyuki Ph.D.), in collaboration with Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation (Sony), has developed the world's first practical surface-emitting laser that employs quantum dot(QD) as the optical gain medium for use in optical fiber communication systems.

A joint research team from Nagoya University Institute for Space-Earth Environmental Research, the University of Oslo Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Kyoto University Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences, and the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology conducted ionospheric tomography analysis using data from Japan's ultra-dense GNSS observation network. They clarified, for the first time, the 3D characteristics of ionospheric electron density fluctuations, spatially and temporally evolving, immediately following the Noto Peninsula Earthquake of 2024.

An international research team led by the Photonic Network Laboratory at the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT, President: TOKUDA Hideyuki Ph.D.), and including Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd. (Sumitomo Electric, President: INOUE Osamu) have set a new world record in optical fiber communications, achieving data transmission at 1.02 petabits per second over a distance of 1,808 kilometers (roughly equivalent to the distance from Sapporo to Fukuoka, from Missouri to Montana or from Berlin to Naples).