The 13th SPRUC Young Scientist Award

13th SPRUC Young Science Award (YSA) is given to a young scientist who is recognized as having established a notable achievement in the development of a new experimental technique or a new method for data analysis, or having achieved remarkable results in the studied field by making use of the characteristic features of SPring-8/SACLA.

Award winner	Dr. Kiyofumi Takaba / University of Vienna
Research subject	Two-way approach for sub-atomic molecular structure visualization with X-ray and electron crystallography
Citation for the award	Dr. Kiyofumi Takaba has been advancing the development of complementary methods that leverage the unique features of X-rays and electron beams by using various quantum beam measurement technologies such as synchrotron radiation, free electron lasers, and electron beams. During his doctoral program, he utilized high-energy X-rays from SPring-8 BL41XU to collect data and performed ultra-high resolution structural analysis of green fluorescent protein (GFP) at 0.78 Å through electron density analysis using the multipolar expansion method developed for small molecule crystal analysis. This allowed him to elucidate the chromophore mechanism of GFP through detailed information on hydrogen atom positions, precise hydrogen bonding details, and charge density analysis based on accurate atomic structures. Subsequently, at SACLA, he successfully achieved high-resolution structural analysis at 0.82 Å from microcrystals of small molecule compounds of micrometer scale using serial femtosecond crystallography (SFX) technology developed for time-resolved structural analysis of protein crystals. Additionally, he performed structural analysis using electron diffraction and elucidated the differences in electron structure visualization due to the differences in each beam. Furthermore, he succeeded in the structural analysis of new compound microcrystals, which was not possible with electron beam diffraction, demonstrating that SFX using SACLA can be applied more broadly, beyond just time-resolved structural analysis of protein crystals. Dr. Takaba has made significant contributions by developing sub-atomic resolution structural analysis techniques that utilize the complementary quantum beam technologies of X-rays and electron beams from the two distinct X-ray sources, SPring-8 and SACLA. His work is highly commendable and promises further advancements. Based on these perspectives, we have determined that Dr. Kiyoumi Takaba deserves the 13th SPRUC Young Scientist Award.

Award winner	Dr. Yoshifumi Hashikawa / Kyoto University
Research subject	In-situ Investigation of Dynamic Properties of Flexible Porous Coordination Polymer
Citation for the award	It is known that molecules confined in nano- to subnano-sized spaces exhibit phenomena and properties not observed in bulk states, referred to as the "nano-confinement effect." Utilizing this "nano-confinement effect," the development of carbon dioxide adsorbents using porous materials is actively progressing. However, for further development, it is essential to understand the behavior of adsorbed molecules in nanospaces. Dr. Yoshifumi Hashikawa synthesized hydroxylated open-cage fullerenes with pores using an organic chemical reaction he developed. He elucidated the physical properties, functions, and molecular behavior of the chemical species confined within the pores by combining synchrotron radiation infrared spectroscopy using SPring-8 BL43IR, single-crystal X-ray structural analysis, and theoretical chemical calculations. His work clarified the novel properties and functions observed in molecules confined in nanospaces by utilizing synchrotron radiation in the infrared region, which can be highly praised as it pioneers new physical material science using high-brightness synchrotron radiation. The "nano-confinement effect" is universal, extending from materials science to biological science, and is expected to have a wide range of ripple effects across various fields. By adding measurements in the soft X-ray region to the results of this study, future developments in interpretations based on electronic states are also expected. Based on these research results, further developments are anticipated by expanding measurements to the soft X-ray region. For these reasons, we have determined that Dr. Yoshifumi Hashikawa deserves the 13th SPRUC Young Scientist Award.

Award winner	Dr. Takumi Nishikubo / Kanagawa Institute of Industrial Science and Technology
Research subject	Investigation of Electronic Structure and Local Structure Changes of Negative Thermal Expansion Materials by Synchrotron X-Ray Techniques.
Citation for the award	With the advancement of nanotechnology, issues such as misalignment due to thermal expansion and delamination at heterogeneous material interfaces have become apparent, drawing attention to materials that exhibit negative thermal expansion. Dr. Takumi Nishikubo has consistently conducted research on developing materials with negative thermal expansion coefficients. In this research, he synthesized novel materials under high temperature and high pressure, and succeeded in observing the domain structures of low-temperature and high-temperature phases using advanced techniques such as powder diffraction, pressure-dependent powder diffraction experiments, Rietveld analysis, and PDF analysis using total scattering data. He determined the crystal and local structures of the low-temperature and high-temperature phases and visualized their coexistence states through Bragg coherent diffraction imaging, elucidating the mechanism of volume change (negative thermal expansion) during the heating process. Furthermore, he has been conducting multifaceted research, including electronic state analysis using HAXPES. His approach, utilizing the features of high-brightness synchrotron radiation and employing various measurement techniques to advance research on a multiscale level, is highly commendable. Dr. Nishikubo is a highly capable researcher who can independently conduct everything from material exploration, precise structural analysis, and electronic state analysis to functionalization and elucidation of functional expression mechanisms. For these reasons, we have determined that Dr. Takumi Nishikubo deserves the 13th SPRUC Young Scientist Award.