Team Director Motoko Kotani Receives the Japan Academy Prize

Motoko Kotani, Team Director (concurrent) of the Mathematical Application Research Team, Division of Applied Mathematical Science, at the RIKEN Center for Interdisciplinary Theoretical and Mathematical Sciences (iTHEMS), has been selected as a recipient of the Japan Academy Prize. The Japan Academy announced on March 12, 2026, that the award recognizes the collaborative research “Discrete Geometric Analysis of Infinite Graphs with Symmetry” conducted with Toshikazu Sunada, Professor Emeritus of Meiji University and Professor Emeritus of Tohoku University.

According to the award citation, the research was highly recognized for introducing the concept of the “standard realization” of crystal lattices, for studies of random walks on crystal lattices based on that concept, in particular for establishing central limit theorems and large deviation principles, and for the rediscovery of the K4 crystal and the promotion of its applications to materials science. These achievements have made important contributions to the development of discrete geometric analysis and discrete algebraic geometry from both theoretical and applied perspectives.

The research recognized by this award is based on work that Team Director Kotani pursued while based at Tohoku University and the Advanced Institute for Materials Research (WPI-AIMR), Tohoku University. In 2018, iTHEMS and AIMR established the collaborative hub SUURI-COOL (Sendai): AIMR-iTHEMS Mathematical Science Laboratory. This laboratory, located on the third floor of the AIMR Main Building, aims to address fundamental questions in matter, life, and the universe, as well as basic problems in society, from the perspective of the mathematical sciences.
All of us at iTHEMS extend our heartfelt congratulations to Team Director Kotani on this distinguished achievement.