ERC FUNDED PROJECTS

In Europe estimated 300.000 people are suffering from a spinal cord injury (SCI) with 11.000 new injuries per year. The consequences of spinal cord injury are tremendous for these individuals. The loss of motor functions especially of the arm and grasping function – 40% are tetraplegics – leads to a life-long dependency on care givers and therefore to a dramatic decrease in quality of life in these often young individuals. With the help of neuroprostheses, grasp and elbow function can be substantially improved. However, remaining body movements often do not provide enough degrees of freedom to control the neuroprosthesis. The ideal solution for voluntary control of an upper extremity neuroprosthesis would be to directly record motor commands from the corresponding cortical areas and convert them into control signals. This would realize a technical bypass around the interrupted nerve fiber tracts in the spinal cord. A Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) transform mentally induced changes of brain signals into control signals and serve as an alternative human-machine interface. We showed first results in EEG-based control of a neuroprosthesis in several persons with SCI in the last decade, however, the control is still unnatural and cumbersome. The objective of FEEL YOUR REACH is to develop a novel control framework that incorporates goal directed movement intention, movement decoding, error processing, processing of sensory feedback to allow a more natural control of a neuroprosthesis. To achieve this aim a goal directed movement decoder will be realized, and continuous error potential decoding will be included. Both will be finally joined together with an artificial kinesthetic sensory feedback display attached to the user. We hypothesize that with these mechanisms a user will be able to naturally control an neuroprosthesis with his/ her mind only.

1 994 161 €

Start date: 2016-05-01, End date: 2021-07-31

Recent discoveries clearly show that non-retroviral RNA viruses, despite not coding for reverse transcriptase and integrase, can transfer genetic material to their hosts, similarly to DNA viruses and retroviruses. The distribution of non-retroviral integrated RNA viruses (NIRVs) in host populations, mechanisms of NIRVs formation and effects on hosts are unclear. The main objective of this proposal is to uncover the complex biological interactions between non-retroviral RNA viruses and their hosts using the model system “Aedes albopictus and Flavivirus”. This system is ideal because Ae. albopictus is a known vector of non-retroviral RNA viruses, including several highly relevant for public health such as dengue viruses (Flaviviridae, Flavivirus) and NIRVs phylogenetically related to Flaviviruses have been identified in its genome. First, a population genomic approach will be used to interrogate the genome of Ae. albopictus from different geographic populations at their DNA and RNA levels. This approach will permit the systematic characterization of the distributions of NIRVs in natural host populations, the analyses of correlations between the presence of NIRVs and viral infections and the description of NIRVs genomic context, from which insights on mechanisms of NIRVs formation can be derived. Secondly, tissue-specificity of the NIRVs, their trans-generational stability and impact on mosquito biology will be analysed in a controlled laboratory environment. Somatic integrations could contribute to acquired immunity to their respective viruses or establishment of persistent viral infection. Germ-line integrations could have an evolutionary impact. If NIRVs affect Ae. albopictus vector competence or the genome of emerging viral populations, they could be manipulated for vector control purposes. Additionally, results on NIRV distribution in natural host populations and mechanisms of NIRVs formation will have implications in medicine because several non-retroviral RNA viruses are emerging as delivery systems for gene therapy applications.

1 686 875 €

Start date: 2016-05-01, End date: 2022-04-30

Strongly magnetic rare-earth atoms are fantastic species to study few- and many-body dipolar quantum physics with ultracold gases. Their appeal leans on their spectacular properties (many stable isotopes, large dipole moment, unconventional interactions, and a rich atomic spectrum). In 2012 my group created the first Bose-Einstein condensate of erbium and shortly thereafter the first degenerate Fermi gas. My pioneering studies, together with the result on dysprosium by the Lev´s group, have triggered an intense research activity in our community on these exotic species. The RARE project aims at converting complexity into opportunity by exploiting the newly emerged opportunity provided by magnetic rare-earth atoms to access fascinating, yet rather unexplored, quantum regimes. It roots into two innate properties of magnetic lanthanides, namely their large and permanent magnetic dipole moment, and their many valence electrons. With these properties in mind, my proposal targets to obtain groundbreaking insights into dipolar quantum physics and multi-electron ultracold Rydberg gasses: 1) Realization of the first dipolar quantum mixtures, by combining Er and Dy. With this powerful system, we aim to study exotic states of matter under the influence of the strong anisotropic and long-range dipole-dipole interaction, such as anisotropic Cooper pairing and superfluidity, and weakly-bound polar ErDy molecules. 2) Study of non-polarized dipoles at zero and ultra-weak polarizing (magnetic) fields, where the atomic dipole are free to orient. In this special setting, we plan to demonstrate new quantum phases, such as spin-orbit coupled, spinor, and nematic phases. 3) Creation of multi-electron ultracold Rydberg gases, in which the Rydberg and core electrons can be separately controlled and manipulated. This innovative project goes far beyond the state of the art and promises to capture truly new scientific horizons of quantum physics with ultracold atoms. for later

1 992 368 €

Start date: 2016-07-01, End date: 2021-12-31

"Ultra-short light pulses with large instantaneous intensities can probe light-matter interaction phenomena, capture snapshots of molecular dynamics and drive high-speed communications. In a semiconductor laser, mode-locking is the primary way to generate ultrafast signals. Despite the intriguing perspectives, operation at Terahertz (THz) frequencies is facing fundamental limitations: engineering ""ultrafast"" THz semiconductor lasers from scratch or finding an integrated technology to shorten THz light pulses are currently two demanding routes. SPRINT aims to innovatively combine the groundbreaking quantum cascade laser (QCL) technology with graphene, to develop a new generation of passive mode-locked THz photonic laser resonators, combined with unexplored electronic nanodetectors for ultrafast THz sensing and imaging. To achieve these ambitious objectives, the versatile quantum design of QCLs will be exploited to engineer the laser gain spectrum on purpose. Resonators of unusual symmetry and shape, like photonic quasi-crystals or random patterns, will be implemented, offering the flexibility to control and guide photons and the lithographic capability to embed miniaturized intra-cavity passive components to probe and modulate light. Graphene, owing to its gapless nature and ultrafast, gating-tunable carrier dynamic, will lead to a major breakthrough: integration in the THz QCL cavity will allow superbly manipulating its functionalities. Antenna-coupled quantum-dot nanowires will be also devised to sense and probe ultra-short THz pulses. The project will target radically new concepts and interdisciplinary approaches encompassing unconventional THz QCL micro-resonators, graphene and polaritonic THz saturable absorbers, non-linear ultra-low dimensional detection architectures. Pushing forward the understanding of ultrafast dynamics in complex THz electronic and photonic systems, SPRINT prospects new directions and long-term impacts on fundamental and applied science."

1 990 011 €

Start date: 2016-09-01, End date: 2022-08-31