PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Yasunobu Nakamura

Also known as 中村 泰信

Yasunobu Nakamura works on superconducting circuits for quantum information processing and quantum computing. He completed a bachelor's degree in 1990, a master's degree in 1992, and a doctorate in 2011 at the University of Tokyo, and he joined NEC in 1992. In 1999 he and Jaw-Shen Tsai demonstrated the first superconducting qubit in a solid-state Cooper-pair box. He became a professor at the University of Tokyo in 2012 and director of the RIKEN Center for Quantum Computing in 2021. As of October 2026 he holds both posts, having shared the 2021 Micius Quantum Prize with John Clarke and Michel Devoret in 2022, and in March 2023 Japan's first superconducting quantum computer went into operation with a cloud service under his direction.

Works
382
Citations
24,585
h-index
62

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 17 October 2026.

Timeline

  1. 1990–2011

    Degrees at the University of Tokyo

    He completes a bachelor's degree in the Department of Applied Physics at the University of Tokyo in 1990, a master's degree in the Superconductivity Research Course in 1992, and a doctorate in the Department of Applied Physics in 2011.

  2. 1992

    Joining NEC laboratories

    Work at NEC's Fundamental Research Laboratories begins for him in 1992.

  3. 1999

    The first superconducting qubit

    In 1999 he and Jaw-Shen Tsai demonstrate the first superconducting qubit in a solid-state Cooper-pair box.

  4. 2012

    Professor at RCAST

    A professorship at the University of Tokyo's Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology begins in 2012.

  5. 2021

    Director of the RIKEN center

    RIKEN appoints him director of its Center for Quantum Computing in 2021.

  6. 2022

    The Micius Quantum Prize

    In 2022 he shares the Micius Quantum Prize 2021 with John Clarke and Michel Devoret.

  7. March 2023

    Japan's first quantum computer

    Japan's first superconducting quantum computer goes into operation in March 2023, and a cloud service opens under his direction at the RIKEN Center for Quantum Computing.

  8. As of October 2026

    Professor and center director

    He is a professor in the Department of Applied Physics at the University of Tokyo and director of the RIKEN Center for Quantum Computing, where the research covers quantum information in superconducting circuits and hybrid quantum systems.

Sources and credits

Photo: We have no published photo of Yasunobu Nakamura yet. Send us a free-licensed photo.

  1. Yasunobu Nakamura | Nakamura Lab. qipe.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp. Checked 16 October 2026.
  2. Yasunobu Nakamura | IEEE CSC ieeecsc.org. Checked 16 October 2026.
  3. NEC C&C Foundation candc.or.jp. Checked 16 October 2026.
  4. Yasunobu Nakamura - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org. Checked 16 October 2026.
  5. 受賞 | Nakamura Lab. qipe.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp. Checked 16 October 2026.
  6. Japanese joint research group launches quantum computing cloud service | 2023 | NICT - National Institute of Information and Communications Technology nict.go.jp. Checked 16 October 2026.
  7. Yasunobu Nakamura | Institute for Quantum Computing | University of Waterloo uwaterloo.ca. Checked 16 October 2026.