From December 1 to 20, 2024, we invited a total of eight people for a 20-day research internship in the field of materials science, including three graduate students from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, three undergraduate students from the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, and one accompanying faculty from each school.

Materials science is a field where Japan excels in research, and Tsukuba Science City, where synchrotron radiation facilities, materials science and space research facilities are concentrated, offers an exceptionally conducive environment for industry-academia-government collaboration in material science research. For this reason, there are high expectations for research exchanges from Indian research institutions, but so far, only limited exchanges in the form of individual joint research have materialized. Thus, to accelerate organized exchanges, we conducted research internships at the University of Tsukuba and the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) as part of this exchange plan, including visits to the High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK), NIMS, and the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), and held discussions with the accompanying faculties.

During the invitation period, each of the six students was assigned to a laboratory at the University of Tsukuba and NIMS, where they participated in research internships offered by the host institution, the Master's and Doctoral Program in Materials Innovation of the Graduate School of Science and Technology, University of Tsukuba, in collaboration with NIMS, AIST, and KEK, in fields such as semiconductors, nanocarbon materials, energy, electronic devices, magnetic recording, molecular assemblies, and sensors, and received research guidance. During the research internship, the invited students collaborated with both Japanese and international students belonging to the laboratories, enabling them to experience student life at the University of Tsukuba and NIMS through interactions with these faculties and students. Simultaneously, it was a precious experience for the current students at the University of Tsukuba and NIMS to interact with the excellent students from the Indian Institutes of Technology.

Although the research internships were conducted separately in each laboratory, in between, the invitees gathered and visited the research laboratories of KEK and NIMS together. Through these visits, the invitees were able to experience and understand the research environment of Tsukuba Science City, including the use of cutting-edge research shared-use experimental devices.

Furthermore, we also provided a setting for the accompanying faculties, who came to Japan with the invited students, to exchange opinions with the faculty of the Institute of Life and Environmental Sciences, Institute of Pure and Applied Sciences, and Institute of Systems and Information Engineering of the University of Tsukuba. Although the University of Tsukuba has already established exchange agreements with both the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay and Guwahati, to accelerate further researcher exchanges in a wide range of research areas, not limited to the field of Materials Science, discussions were deepened on seed exchanges for joint research and the potential for further promotion of exchanges in the future.

At the end of the program, a results reporting session was held, and the invited students presented on their research internships. The results reporting session was attended by faculty and students from the University of Tsukuba and the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), who provided feedback on the invited students' presentations and reflected on the overall program.

Many of the invited students expressed their hopes to enroll in the University of Tsukuba or study in Japan through this research internship and visits to research institutions in Tsukuba Science City. Additionally, the connection between the faculty members leading the delegation from the Indian Institute of Technology and the hosting faculty in Tsukuba Science City has strengthened. It is highly anticipated that student and researcher exchanges and academic collaborations between the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay and Guwahati and the research institutions in Tsukuba Science City will continue to be promoted in the future. Moving forward, we will actively work on fostering human resources that serve as a bridge between Japan and India and promoting the study abroad of outstanding Indian students in Japan, utilizing valuable opportunities like the Sakura Science Program.