From 28-30 January, A.P.E. Research will be at Nano Tech 2015 (www.nanotechexpo.jp ), the world's biggest nanotechnology fair held each year in Japan, this year being the fourteenth edition.

The Trieste-based AREA Science Park company, which specialises in advanced nanotechnology instruments and the development and production of probe microscopes and ultra-high resolution motion sensors, is a leading player in the "Nano Japan Cluster Mission 2015" ( www.eu-japan.eu/nanotech-japan-cluster-mission-2015 ). The mission, promoted by the EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation (a joint venture between the European Commission and the Japanese government) is seeking to encourage collaborations between companies in the field of nanomaterials, nanoscopic measurement and analysis, and nanofabrication technologies. The programme involves site visits, one-to-one meetings and seminars.

The trip to Japan will include an event organised by ICE on 30 January, aimed at promoting innovative technologies from Italy. The presentation will include some of the solutions developed by A.P.E. (www.aperesearch.com ) such as the atomic force and tunnel effect microscopes and the SNOM (scanning near field optical microscope), which is used by universities and industrial research centres to investigate materials and their surfaces, and also in the fields of biology, chemistry and medicine.

The Trieste spin-off has developed an international reputation for technological excellence and already has a presence in Asia, where it has forged an alliance with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), the largest institution of its kind in India and one of the best-known in the world. The laboratory at the IISc's Materials Research Centre (MRC) is equipped with instruments supplied by A.P.E. Research.

In addition to the main exhibition, Nano Tech 2015 will include a number of side events on topics such as water management, energy saving, machines and  technologies used in conversion and for the treatment of surfaces, materials and films, 3D decoration and printing, and printable electronic components.