Inter-disciplinary integration of different fields and inter-sector cooperation among the industries, universities, and the government are indispensable for the creation of innovation. Especially, since the nanotechnology laterally relates to all the industrial fields, the research area can be drastically broaden by efficient execution of the interdisciplinary and inter-business integration, eventually opening up new-frontier. In other words, for the creation of innovation, it is the pressing issue to set up a concrete system that accelerates integration and cooperation by attracting many researchers from different fields for real success, since it is not sufficient to prepare the public investment for individual R&D project.

Therefore, we propose the foundation of "Common-Use Nano-Tech Integration Center" with nation-wide network which directs to financial independence. The "Independence Oriented Common-Use Nano-Tech Integration Center" is a common-use facility that meets all of the three requirements as follows:

[1] A common-use facility that aggregates cutting-edge equipments, realizing a whole necessary process of processing, measurement, fabrication, and manufacturing
[2] An open common-use facility (impartially opened for public) for preferentially supporting inter-disciplinary research; R&D by industry-academia-government cooperation; and promotion of human resource exchange
[3] A common-use facility that aims at independent continuous management through the combination of national budget (base), contribution of recipient organization (universities and national labs, etc.), the matching fund from local government, contribution from enterprises, and the usage fee

For the rest of the world, in their national projects on the nanotechnology, this type of common-use facility is established and managed strategically. For example in the U.S., South Korea, and Taiwan, 15 to 20% of whole nanotechnology R&D budget is allocated to the maintenance of infrastructure such as common-use facilities encouraging the promotion of inter-disciplinary research and the expansion of research front. On the other hand in Japan, although the significance of constructing this type of infrastructure is insisted in the 3rd Science Technology Basic Plan, however, no more than 2 to 3% of whole nano-tech and material budget (nanotechnology comprehensive support project: FY2002-2006) is allocated. This proposal includes the construction of independence-oriented management system of common-use facility as well as the improvement of significance and substantial enhancement of this type of nano-tech integration center in terms of whole nano-tech and material R&D project from the mid-long term strategic point of view.

The purpose of this strategic proposal includes: (1) Highly-effective and productive support for the research activity by the aggregation of nanotechnology cutting-edge facilities; (2) Expansion of research front for the nanotechnology related industries and researchers; and (3) Acceleration of inter-disciplinary research as well as inter-sector cooperation among the industries and universities, and government. The center is supposed to provide a common-use infrastructure for the solution of social issues and a new system for the promotion of R&D, which aims at a management function capable of servicing mid-long term continuously.