Spouse Hisako Sagawa 久子 | ||
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Notable awards Asahi Prize (1990), Japan Prize (2012) | ||
Masato Sagawa (佐川眞人; born August 3, 1943 in Tokushima, Japan) is a Japanese scientist and entrepreneur, and the inventor of sintered permanent magnet NdFeB. Sagawa was awarded the Japan Prize in 2012 for inventing and developing the highest performing sintered Nd-Fe-B type permanent magnets and contributing to energy conservation. Dr. Sagawa is the president of NDFEB Corporation at Kyoto, Japan. NDFEB Corporation is currently establishing the ultimate production processing for producing the most powerful permanent magnets NdFeB to be used in Sustainable energy.
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Early life and education
Masato Sagawa was born in Tokushima Prefecture, Japan in August 3, 1943. Masato Sagawa graduated from Amagasaki City High School in 1961. He received his B.A. from Kobe University in 1966, his M.S from Kobe University in 1968, and his Doctorate degree from Tohoku University in 1972.
Career
The sintered NdFeB was initially conceived and developed by Sagawa when he was with Fujitsu Laboratories where he worked from 1972–1982. Without his supervisor’s support for the new magnetic compound, Sagawa resigned in 1981, and then joined Sumitomo Special Metals. Within several months after joining Sumitomo Special Metals in 1982, the strongest sintered NdFeB magnet was developed. Dr. Sagawa presented the new discovery of NdFeB magnet during the Magnetism and Magnetic Materials Conference in Nov. 1983 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In 1988, Sagawa founded Intermetallics, a research and development company devoted to the development of neodymium magnets. Dr. Sagawa founded NDFEB Corporation in 2012 and he is the president of NDFEB Corporation at Kyoto, Japan, and he is currently establishing the ultimate production processing for producing the most powerful permanent magnets NdFeB to be used in Sustainable energy.