[Nobel Prize] Three prizes in natural sciences for long basic research that has "fruited", three parties for practical application
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The three 2023 Nobel Prizes in Science have been announced. Messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines, attosecond lasers and quantum dots result from a long period of basic research. However, the path to practical application is different. In response to the coronavirus pandemic, the world has advanced the practical application of mRNA vaccines.
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Although attosecond lasers are opening up new academic fields, they can still be considered a technology for science. Quantum dots have been cost-competitive with existing materials and introduced to the world as lasers and displays after a lengthy application development period. We are on a three-way path.
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Physiology/Medicine Prize mRNA vaccine / Spotlight on coronavirus pandemic
The Physiology/Medicine Prize is awarded for the basic technology for developing mRNA vaccines. The award comes about three years after creating the new vaccine against coronavirus infection.
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The new coronavirus vaccine is the first time a drug using artificially synthesised mRNA has been put into practical use. It might never have seen the light of day if it hadn't been for the pandemic. In an interview before the prize was announced, some researchers were harsh in their comments, saying, "If we only evaluate technology, we won't win the Nobel Prize."
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However, developing a highly preventive vaccine with an efficacy of over 90% in just under a year is a significant contribution. It is expected to be a new step in the rapid progress of future vaccine development.
Basic research into mRNA vaccines has been ongoing for more than 20 years, but it has received little attention for many years due to a lack of funding and failures in clinical trials.
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They were immediately retracted when he submitted his results to the British journal Nature. The prize winner, Dr Katalin Carrico, Senior Vice President of BioNTech in Germany (a specially appointed professor at the University of Pennsylvania in the US), was once demoted and expelled from the university because his research was not valued.
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However, Dr Carrico remains positive and reflects: Research often doesn't go as planned, and it's not easy, but it's a lot of fun and makes me happy. A technology that many people had almost given up on suddenly blossomed with the new coronavirus and climbed the ladder to the Nobel Prize.
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Physics Prize: Attosecond laser/high-performance photocatalyst, etc., expected
The physics prize will be awarded for the realisation of attosecond pulsed lasers. They have discovered a technology to observe the motion of electrons using a laser that flashes briefly, like a strobe light, for a short period of an attosecond (an atto is 1/100 quintillionth of a second).
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In 1999, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded for realising a femtosecond (femtosecond: 1/1,000 trillionth of a second) pulsed laser that emits light for only a moment.
This makes it possible to observe and control the movement of atoms and is widely used in science and industry. However, in solids and liquids, the wave nature of quantum waves generally breaks down after about ten femtoseconds, making it challenging to observe electrons.
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The attosecond laser that won the prize can see how electrons move, so it can be used to study how electrons change the structure of molecules in chemical reactions, for example, and lead to the elucidation of detailed reaction mechanisms.
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However, the field in which it is used is only an essential research tool and is not well known to the general public. Professor Kenji Omori of the Institute for Molecular Science emphasises, "Improvements in the intensity, stability and precision of attosecond optical pulse lasers, as well as the development of technology for application to solids and liquids, are the keys to practical application."
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Industrial applications of attosecond lasers are expected to include developing new materials such as high-performance photocatalysts, solar cells and magnetic devices. The Nobel Prize has brought this technology to the attention of many people. The range of applications may be more comprehensive.
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Chemistry Prize: Quantum dots/assessment of benefit to society
Quantum dots were selected for the Chemistry Prize. There are two kinds of quantum dots. Colloidal quantum dots focus on chemistry, and epi-capital quantum dots focus on solid-state physics. Both were introduced in 1981.
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Colloidal quantum dots won. Alexei Ekimov, a native of the former Soviet Union, discovered the reason why particles in coloured glass produce colour. He later won a chemistry prize with Mr Yone2, who produced quantum dots in a colloidal solution.
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Professor Emeritus Hiroyuki Sakaki and Professor Emeritus Yasuhiko Arakawa of the University of Tokyo invented quantum dots. He proposed the concept of quantum dots, which confine electrons in a tiny three-dimensional (3D) space.
The paper was submitted in December 1980 but was presented to the Japanese Society of Applied Physics. Ultimately, a chemist was chosen to receive the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
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Quantum dots have been used as quantum dot light-emitting diodes (Q-LEDs) in the backlighting of liquid crystal displays. A method of emitting three light colours directly from quantum dots is currently being developed.
Because colloidal quantum dots can be prepared as a solution, the coating can mass-produce them. They are expected to have a longer lifetime and be cheaper than organic EL.
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Epicapital quantum dots have been put into practical use as lasers. It is incorporated into optoelectronic convergence devices and plays a role in high-capacity information transmission.
Professor Emeritus Arakawa of the University of Tokyo said with narrowed eyes, "Whatever the method, quantum dots have been recognised for their usefulness to society, and the award will stimulate research."
