Welcome Message by General Chair
Welcome Message by PIERS 2018 Toyama General Chair
It is our great pleasure to welcome all of you working in the worldwide electromag
netics and photonics community to the “2018 Progress in Electromagnetics Research Symposium” (40th PIERS) to be held at Toyama International Conference Center and ANA Crowne Plaza Toyama on August 1-4, 2018.
The “Progress in Electromagnetics Research Symposium” (PIERS) provides an international forum for reporting progress and recent advances in the modern development of electromagnetic theory and its new and exciting applications, since 1989. Topics include radiation, propagation, diffraction, scattering, guidance, resonance, power, energy and force issues, and all other modern developments, with spectra ranging from statics to RF, microwave, photonics, and beyond. PIERS is sponsored by The Electromagnetics Academy.
PIERS has been rapidly growing since 2013 when it was held in Stockholm, Sweden. At PIERS 2013 Stockholm (August 12-15, 2013), The Electromagnetics Academy initiated close collaboration with the optics and photonics community, and as a result, the Stockholm PIERS was a great success with 1,650 paper submissions (including a large number of outstanding keynote and invited papers) and 1,135 registered participants from 67 countries. Since the great success of the Stockholm PIERS in 2013, PIERS has become a large-scale conference with over 1,000 registered participants, where microwave and lightwave communities meet.
PIERS was held twice in Japan in the past. The first and second PIERS in Japan were held in Osaka on July 18-22, 2001 and in Tokyo on August 2-5, 2006, respectively, and both were successful. PIERS 2018 Toyama is the third PIERS held in Japan. The Toyama PIERS is sponsored by The Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers (IEICE), The Electromagnetics Academy, Science Council of Japan, and is technically co-sponsored by Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society (IEEE GRSS), IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society (IEEE AP-S), IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society All Japan Joint Chapter, The Electromagnetics Academy at Zhejiang University. It is also important to mention that the Conference is supported by various governmental and educational organizations including, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, Japan Tourism Agency, Japan National Tourism Organization, Toyama Prefecture, Toyama Prefectural Board of Education, Toyama City, Toyama Convention Bureau, University of Toyama, Toyama Prefectural University.
According to the recent statistics as of July 26, 2018, the total numbers of abstract and extended paper submissions are 1,968 and 545, respectively, and the total number of registrants is 1,375 from 49 countries. We are proud that we have had an opportunity to host PIERS, a world-renowned conference in the area of electromagnetics and photonics, in Japan this year. A total of 1,635 abstracts were accepted for presentation, and have been arranged into the 177 sessions of the technical program, including 46 focus sessions and 76 special sessions.
There are several unique features that we would like to emphasize for this year’s PIERS in Toyama. In addition to a number of oral and poster sessions distributed during the four days of August 1-4, 2018, we have organized the four General Lectures as plenary sessions, which will be delivered by leading scientists in the electromagnetics and photonics community. There are no other sessions running in parallel to the General Lectures, and all the PIERS 2018 Toyama participants are invited to join these lectures. Prior to the Conference, the half-day Pre-Conference Workshop has also been arranged in the afternoon of July 31, 2018, where five prominent scientists will give special invited talks based on their recent research. All the registered PIERS 2018 Toyama participants are invited to attend the Workshop without extra fees.
In order to encourage more young scientists and students to contribute to PIERS with presentations of good research results, we are organizing two young scientist programs at PIERS 2018 Toyama, namely the Best Student Paper Award (BSPA) and the Young Scientist Award (YSA). For BSPA, any full-time university student, who is the first author as well as the presenting author of a paper submitted for oral presentation is eligible for application. On the other hand, the YSA is a totally new program that has been organized for the first time at PIERS 2018 Toyama, and it provides a more general young scientist program in comparison with the BSPA. To qualify applications for the YSA, the applicant must be under 35 years of age on August 4, 2018 and be the first author as well as the presenting author of a paper submitted for oral presentation. We received 119 and 126 applications for the BSPA and the YSA programs, respectively. This shows that both programs have been successful.
For the BSPA program, we selected a total of 25 finalists from among 119 applicants before the Conference. On Thursday morning, August 2, 2018, all the finalists will each present his/her paper orally in one of the five BSPA special sessions. Based on the quality of presentations by the finalists, winners will be selected during the Conference. As for the YSA program, we already selected 20 recipients from among 126 applicants before the Conference, who will come to Toyama presenting their papers at the Conference.
On Friday evening, August 3, 2018, the Symposium Banquet will be held at ANA Crowne Plaza Toyama, one of the two venues of PIERS 2018 Toyama. We have made arrangements for various attractive programs at the Banquet, where the Award Ceremony will also be held, and the BSPA winners and the YSA recipients will be announced. We hope that, in addition to the scientific part of the Conference, you will also enjoy a warm atmosphere and nice food at the Symposium Banquet.
Toyama is a prefecture along the Sea of Japan coast in the Hokuriku region. The prefectural capital is Toyama City. The Prefecture also includes part of the spectacular Northern Japan Alps, which can be experienced along the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route. We are sure that you will enjoy the beauty of nature by visiting the mountain and/or sea areas. We would also like to mention that there will be special events during the Conference week including Toyama City Fireworks Festival on August 1, 2018 and 58th Toyama Festival on August 4-5, 2018, which will both be held in a walking distance from the Conference venue. So please plan on visiting these two major festivals in Toyama!
On behalf of the PIERS 2018 Toyama Committees, I would like to express a hearty welcome to all of you working in the area of electromagnetics and photonics for your participation in PIERS 2018 in Toyama, Japan on August 1-4, 2018. We wish that you enjoy the Conference and have a pleasant stay in Toyama. We are hoping that the PIERS 2018 Toyama will lead to a great success as a result of your contributions to the Conference in various ways.
Welcome to Toyama, Japan and welcome to PIERS 2018 Toyama!
July 28, 2018
Kazuya Kobayashi
General Chair
2018 Progress in Electromagnetics Research Symposium (PIERS 2018 Toyama)