Hideo Ohno is a distinguished Japanese physicist and academic leader who currently serves as the 22nd President of Tohoku University, a position he has held since April 2018. Born in Tokyo on December 18, 1954, he received his B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in Electronic Engineering from the University of Tokyo in 1977, 1979, and 1982, respectively. Early in his career, he spent time as a visiting graduate student at Cornell University in 1979 and later as a visiting scientist at IBM T. J. Watson Research Center from 1988 to 1990. He joined Hokkaido University as a lecturer in 1982, advancing to associate professor before moving to Tohoku University in 1994, where he was appointed Professor in the Department of Electronic Engineering and later became Professor at the Research Institute of Electrical Communication in 1995.
Professor Ohno is internationally recognized as a leading authority in spintronics, particularly for his groundbreaking research on semiconductor systems with embedded magnetic properties. His pioneering work has established foundational principles for manipulating electron spin in semiconductor materials, enabling the development of novel electronic devices that could revolutionize information and communication technologies. His contributions to the field were so significant that he was tipped as a possible candidate for the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2011. Professor Ohno has received numerous prestigious awards including the IUPAP Magnetism Prize in 2003 and the Japan Academy Prize in 2005, recognizing his transformative impact on understanding spin-dependent phenomena in condensed matter systems.
As an influential figure in global academia, Professor Ohno has held leadership positions including Director of the Center for Spintronics Integrated Systems from 2010 to 2018 and Director of the Research Institute of Electrical Communication from 2013 to 2018. His international recognition extends to his appointment as an international fellow of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences in 2021 and the conferral of a doctor honoris causa by the University of Warsaw in 2021. Under his presidency, Tohoku University has continued its legacy as one of Japan's most prestigious institutions, having been designated as a National University Corporation by the Japanese government in 2017. Professor Ohno remains committed to advancing scientific discovery and innovation while fostering international collaborations that address global challenges through cutting-edge research.
