ERC FUNDED PROJECTS

The possibility of having a unique device that converts thermal and photonics energy into electrical energy and simultaneously stores it, is something dreamed by the PI since the beginning of her research career. To achieve that goal, this project aims to gather, in a single substrate, solar cells with up-conversion nanoparticles, thermoelectrics and graphene super-capacitor, all made of thin films. These three main components will be developed separately and integrated sequentially. The innovation proposed is not limited to the integration of components, but rely in ground-breaking concepts: 1) thermoelectric elements based on thin film (TE-TF) oxides; 2) plasmonic nanoparticles for up conversion of near infrared radiation to visible emission in solar cells; 3) graphene super-capacitors; 4) integration and optimization of all components in a single CapTherPV device. This ambitious project will bring new insights at large area, low cost and flexible energy harvesting and comes from an old idea of combining energy conversion and storage that has been pursued by the PI. She started her career in amorphous silicon thin film solar cells, later she started the development of thin film batteries and more recently started a research line in thermoelectric films. If approved, this project will give financial support to consolidate the research being carried out and will give independence to the PI in terms of resources and creative think. More importantly, will facilitate the concretization of the dream that has been pursued with hard work.

1 999 375 €

Start date: 2015-07-01, End date: 2021-09-30

"Large bodies usually follow the classical equations of motion. Deviations from this can be called macroscopic quantum behavior. These phenomena have been experimentally verified with cavity Quantum Electro Dynamics (QED), trapped ions, and superconducting Josephson junction systems. Recently, evidence was obtained that also moving objects can display such behavior. These objects are micromechanical resonators (MR), which can measure tens of microns in size and are hence quite macroscopic. The degree of freedom is their vibrations: phonons. I propose experimental research in order to push quantum mechanics closer to the classical world than ever before. I will try find quantum behavior in the most classical objects, that is, slowly moving bodies. I will use MR's, accessed via electrical resonators. Part of it will be in analogy to the previously studied macroscopic systems, but with photons replaced by phonons. The experiments are done in a cryogenic temperature mostly in dilution refrigerator. The work will open up new perspectives on how nature works, and can have technological implications. The first basic setup is the coupling of MR to microwave cavity resonators. This is a direct analogy to optomechanics, and can be called circuit optomechanics. The goals will be phonon state transfer via a cavity bus, construction of squeezed states and of phonon-cavity entanglement. The second setup is to boost the optomechanical coupling with a Josephson junction system, and reach the single-phonon strong-coupling for the first time. The third setup is the coupling of MR to a Josephson junction artificial atom. Here we will access the MR same way as the motion of a trapped ions is coupled to their internal transitions. In this setup, I am proposing to construct exotic quantum states of motion, and finally entangle and transfer phonons over mm-distance via cavity-coupled qubits. I believe within the project it is possible to perform rudimentary Bell measurement with phonons."

2 004 283 €

Start date: 2015-01-01, End date: 2019-12-31

It has been recognized that growing cells within 3D structures reduces the gap between 2D in vitro cell cultures and native tissue physiology. This has been paving the way for the development of reliable 3D in vitro cell-based platforms with major impact in the reduction/elimination of animal experimentation, diseases modelling and drug development. So far, the many strategies that have been followed to bioengineer in vitro 3D human tissue models mostly rely on the random culture of cells within a 3D structure without reflecting the compositional and structural complexity of the native tissues. Recently proposed bioprinting technologies that allow accurate and high speed deposition of various cells and matrices at high resolution, have therefore great potential in the development of physiologically reliable 3D in vitro tissue models by recreating the different microenvironments/microfunctionalities found in each tissue. Nonetheless, among the components required for bioprinting, bioinks in particular have demanding requirements and much has still to be done regarding their intrinsic formulation to lead cell behaviour and support specific functionalities. ECM_INK intends to tackle this issue by developing cells-self extracellular matrices-based bioinks to create accurate and pathophysiological relevant 3D in vitro diseased skin tissue models. The development of cell phenotype-driven bioinks will generate complex microenvironments comprising varied cell types within matrices that were specifically designed to attain a particular response from each one of those cell types. The use of cells from patients suffering from chronic, genetic and neoplastic skin diseases represents a major advantage that will be reflected in the accuracy and functionality of the respective 3D in vitro models. The ultimate confirmation of their potential will be complete after validation using animal-free approaches reinforcing the intrinsic relationship of ECM_INK with the 3Rs policy.

1 998 939 €

Start date: 2017-05-01, End date: 2022-10-31

Emulsions are elemental to many aspects of every-day life, from food to pharmaceuticals. However, today’s emulsion science faces a grand challenge in developing stabilizers with outstanding functionality in a sustainable manner. To enable society’s transformation from oil-based economy to bioeconomy, there is an urgent need to develop sophisticated biocompatible materials, such as stabilizers of food and non-food emulsions, from biomass-derived precursors through sustainable conversion routes. Current bio-based stabilizers are poorly defined and not as efficient as the synthetic ones, primarily because key technologies to construct sophisticated hierarchical structures from abundant biopolymers are lacking. I will use my expertise on wood biomass and emulsion stabilizer research to develop a novel approach for asymmetric, bi-facial “Janus” nanoparticles from two of the most abundant, but underused biopolymers: lignin and hemicelluloses. I will develop a green conversion route using enzymatic crosslinking to build a novel concept: tailored wood-based Janus particles with superior capacity to stabilize emulsion interfaces. I will further tailor the particles to control their cooling rate through reversible bond formation, which will revolutionize the materials science. To achieve this ambitious goal, it is crucial to carefully characterize the particles and formed interfaces. I will develop a novel method to characterize real emulsion systems with high precision, which existing methods cannot achieve. PARTIFACE will establish a green route to sophisticated hierarchical architectures—bi-facial Janus-particle-stabilized interfaces—and thermal control systems utilizing abundant bioresources. The project will lead to a breakthrough in colloid and interface science and contribute to more sustainable use of Earth’s resources.

2 000 000 €

Start date: 2020-06-01, End date: 2025-05-31