Masahito Yamazaki receives 2026 Commendation for Science and Technology from MEXT

April 8, 2026
The University of Tokyo Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe (Kavli IPMU, WPI)

Kavli IPMU Project Professor Masahito Yamazaki (Credit: Kavli IPMU)

The University of Tokyo Graduate School of Science Physics Professor and Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe (Kavli IPMU, WPI) Project Professor Masahito Yamazaki has been awarded a 2026 Commendation for Science and Technology by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) in the Science and Technology (Research category), it was announced by MEXT on April 7.

The Awards for Science and Technology recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to research development and to promoting the understanding of science and technology, both to raise the standard of science and technology in the country. The commendation for Science and Technology is awarded to an individual or group that has carried out remarkable original research that has contributed to development in their field.

The Research category is intended for individuals or groups who have carried out original research, or whose research could contribute to the advancement of science and technology in Japan.

Yamazaki has been recognized for his “research on integrable systems using quantum field theory.” Many diverse physical models cannot be solved exactly, buts exceptions known as “integrable systems” exist, where physical quantities can be determined exactly. Research on integrable systems has traditionally relied on the accumulated work of predecessors and artisanal methods, and a framework for understanding “integrability itself” from first principles had often been lacking. Yamazaki and collaborators constructed a general framework for reconstructing integrable systems from scratch, based on the perturbation theory of quantum field theory. Also, by identifying integrable lattices with the observables in supersymmetric gauge theories related to superstring theory, and by deriving the Yang–Baxter equation through a combination of new dualities and localization, he uncovered the origin of integrable systems and established a systematic path for their derivation. Yamazaki also extended the scope of integrable structures. These results might provide a common foundation spanning integrable systems, knot theory, and quantum groups, and accelerate the exploration of new theories and development of related fields.

An award ceremony will be held at MEXT on April 15.