Pure and Applied Chemistry

This volume summarizes the present status of research in the field of organic and inorganic boron chemistry, presented by the invited speakers at the 12th International Meeting on Boron Chemistry (IMEBORON-XII), held in Sendai, Japan, 11-15 September 2005. IMEBORON-XII consisted of 1 plenary lecture, 22 invited lectures, 24 keynote lectures, 48 short oral presentations, and 99 poster presentations. In all, 280 chemists contributed to a truly international meeting, with participants representing China, Czech Republic, Germany, Israel, Japan, Mexico, Poland, Russia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

The presentations at IMEBORON-XII covered all aspects of boron chemistry including theoretical studies, synthetic methods of organic and inorganic boron compounds, novel molecular structures, application of organic and inorganic boron compounds to organic synthesis as catalysts or as reagents, medicinal applications, and creation of new materials (liquid crystals, supramolecular clusters, nanocylinders, molecular electronic devices, nanomachines, ceramics, etc.). Not only the distinguished senior members of the boron community, but also young boron chemists took an active part in the conference. Not only traditional boron chemistry, but also new evolving research areas of boron chemistry were presented. Accordingly, I feel that a new generation of both researchers and research fields is coming in boron chemistry. A selection of the invited contributions to IMEBORON-XII is presented in the 14 papers in this issue.

The importance of scientific exchange in this field was recognized during IMEBORON-XII. Therefore, the continuation of this series of conferences was discussed, and the venue for IMEBORON-XIII in 2008 will be organized by Prof. F. Teixidor at the Institut de Ciencia de Materials de Barcelona, C.S.I.S., Campus U.A.B., Ballaterra, Spain.

Yoshinori Yamamoto

Chairman of IMEBORON-XII