This call is launched jointly by Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) and the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation). With this joint call, JST and the DFG are working together to foster cooperative efforts in scientific research between Japan and Germany. This call for proposals aims at bilateral research projects in Quantum Technologies, an emerging priority area in both Japan and Germany. 

Proposals submitted to JST and the DFG will be evaluated jointly and adopted projects will be respectively supported by both agencies. Japan-based research teams will be supported by JST through the ASPIRE (Adopting Sustainable Partnerships for Innovative Research Ecosystem) programme; Germany-based research teams will be supported by the DFG via a standard research grant (“Sachbeihilfe”).

Research Areas

The present call is open to joint research projects in the research field of “Quantum Technologies”. A more detailed description can be found in the document “JST DFG Quantum Technology Call 2024” (see link below).

Submission of Project Proposals

Each project proposal must have at least two eligible research teams: one or more teams in Japan and one or more teams in Germany. 

The Japanese and German teams will need to submit their proposals by parallel submission, using the designated proposal form to draft a joint proposal and submit it to the proposal submission websites of their respective countries. Each research team in each country needs to be led by a PI who also must submit all required consortium proposal documents on behalf of the consortium to JST or the DFG.

For detailed instructions on eligibility, proposal preparation and proposal submission, please refer to the document “JST DFG Quantum Technology Call 2024” (see link below).

All proposals have to be submitted to JST by 26 June 2024 17:00 JST. The same proposal and accompanying documents have to be submitted to the DFG before 17:00 CEST on the same day.

It is necessary to have an elan-account to submit a proposal to DFG. Confirmation of registration is usually provided within three working days. The registration has to be confirmed before submitting.

Notification of Results

Applicants will be informed in writing of the results of the review and, where applicable, of the subsequent administrative steps according to the respective national regulations. The selection of the projects will be completed by the end of 2024. Funding will be provided according to the funding rules (incl. reporting) of the respective funding organization. Funding can only be granted if both JST and the DFG arrive at a positive decision.

Good Research Practice

Please note that according to a resolution of the DFG General Assembly, as of 1 August 2019, DFG funding may only be awarded to institutions that have implemented the guidelines laid down in the Code of Conduct for Safeguarding Good Research Practice in their own regulations in a legally binding manner. This means that also for international proposals, funding from the DFG can only be received if the guidelines for safeguarding good research practice (see link below) have been implemented by the German applicant´s institution. If you have any questions on this subject, please contact the Research Integrity team at the DFG Head Office (see contact below). Further information regarding the implementation can be found on Research Integrity website (see link below).

Equity and Diversity

The DFG strongly welcomes proposals from researchers of all genders and sexual identities, from different ethnic, cultural, religious, ideological or social backgrounds, from different career stages, types of universities and research institutions, and with disabilities or chronic illness.

Further Information

JST DFG Quantum Technology Call 2024:

• www.jst.go.jp/aspire/download/aspire2024/japan-germany_quantum_technologies_call_text.pdf 

JST DFG Quantum Technology Call 2024 Template:

• www.jst.go.jp/aspire/download/aspire2024/japan-germany_quantum_technologies_form.docx 

JST Information on the call:

• www.jst.go.jp/aspire/en/program_e/announce_e/announce_aspire2024_de_e.html

General information for German applicants under the Research Grants Programme:

• www.dfg.de/research_grants

The DFG’s electronic portal “elan” can be found at:

• https://elan.dfg.de

Further general information on elan:

• www.dfg.de/en/research_funding/principles_dfg_funding/elan

Please note the DFG’s data protection notice on research funding and for reviewers:

• www.dfg.de/privacy_policy

As part of the assessment procedure, the necessary personal data must be exchanged between the organisations involved. This requires the transfer of personal data between Japan (JST) and Germany (DFG). Further information can be found in the data protection notices of the respective organisations (JST – www.jst.go.jp). If necessary, please also forward this information to those persons whose data the DFG processes because they are involved in your project.

Guidelines for Safeguarding Good Research Practice – Code of Conduct:

• https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3923601

Information on the implementation of the Guidelines for Safeguarding Good Research Practice (Code of Conduct):

• https://wissenschaftliche-integritaet.de/en/notes-on-implementation

Contact of the DFG's Research Integrity team (Good Research Practice)

• gwp@dfg.de

Contact information for Germany:

Inquiries related to this call:

• Dr. Andreas Deschner
  phone +49 228 885-2959
  andreas.deschner@dfg.de
• Dr. Michael Mößle
  phone +49 228 885-2351
  michael.moessle@dfg.de

Inquiries related to general questions on Japanese-German cooperation:

• Raoul Wagner
  phone +49 228 885-2217
  raoul.wagner@dfg.de

Contact information for Japan:

• JST Department of International Affairs
  aspire-de@jst.go.jp