A brain stroke occurs when the flow of oxygen-rich blood to a portion of the brain is obstructed or when a blood vessel leaks or bursts. It is the second leading cause of death in Europe, and 60% of the survivors have different degrees of disability, with a socio-economic impact of the first magnitude for...
PHOTOQUANT aims at exploiting the potential of the emerging field of nano-photonics for developing a new generation of highly efficient and ultrafast single-photon quantum sensors. The project proposes two different approaches: the first will exploit the ability of nanometallic structures to concentrate light into subwavelength volumes, designing an interface layer between the light source and...
Structural alongside functional smart materials play an important role in modern industry and technology. The behaviour of such materials is often governed by their structural properties. Knowledge on their specific grain formation and orientation is crucial for their development and use in prospective applications. Neutron diffraction plays a central role in the structural characterisation of...
The goal of this proposal is to implement broadband giant refraction (n>10) to achieve a basic building block in what could be termed a white-light photonics, an all-purpose achromatic white-light transducer. The white-light transducer will be able to transfer with maximum efficiency light from any angle of incidence to a photosensitive sensor, irrespective of the...
Glass and glass ceramics are attractive alternatives to the crystalline materials widely used in radiation detectors in basic research as well as for applications in medical diagnostics and homeland security detectors. The materials can be fabricated in moulds or by sol-gel techniques. Therefore, they can be prepared in various geometrical shapes such as blocks, plates,...
The project can be defined as a multidisciplinary effort towards finding the optimal scientific links between the synthesis of the carbon-quantum dots/graphene hybrids and their applications in broad band photodetection. Specifically, it will address the current need to develop flexible carbon-based photodetector (PD) with detection window broader than Si-based photodetectors (sensitivity ranging from UV to...
The enormous potential of silicon sensors in precise time measurement of ionizing particles is far from being exploited. At present, the best time resolutions in pixelated silicon is obtained by the proponents that have measured 100 and 130ps with low-noise ultra-fast SiGe HBT electronics in hybrid and monolithic implementations, respectively, without internal gain mechanism. Recently,...
Generation of mid-infrared supercontinuum (see submitted ATTRACT proposal “SMIL”) requires the development of a sub-ns laser source based on thulium-doped silica fibres. In order to achieve sub-ns pulses, a novel semiconductor saturable absorber (SESAM) will be developed within this project. Unlike off-the-shelf SESAMs from a commercial supplier, the consortium will develop a custom GaSb-based saturable...
III-Nitride semiconductors (GaN, InN, AlN and their alloys) know an extremely rapid and extensive development in electronics and optoelectronics where lighting represents the first application. White LED lighting systems are based on indirect phosphor photoluminescence with nitride LED as an exciting source, although nitride materials offer theoretically the unique potential of a direct electroluminescence at...
The idea of global, low earth orbit satellite constellations delivering high data rate free-space communication from and to any point in the world is reaching maturity. Projects by SpaceX, OneWeb, Facebook and Google are only a few examples of many initiatives which have recently been publicised. Key to the success of such deployments is the...
This project objective is to develop a new ultrasound breast imaging modality that is safer and more accurate than mammography and cheaper than magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The intention is not only to establish it as a new standard routine screening tool to replace mammography, but also to complement MRI diagnosis for women with breast...
SCENT aims to realise isolated, single-chain polymeric nanostructures (i.e. conjugated polymers and carbon chains), featuring one-dimensional (1D) quantum-confined properties in configurations suitable for exploitation as gas-sensors. The key elements of our proposal are: i) the development of inert zeolites with hierarchical porosity controlled at the nm and sub-nm scale; which will be used to template the realisation of...
Unpredictability is usually perceived with a sense of uneasiness and discomfort. However, when it comes to secure our data, information, posts, pictures and whatever flows to (or from) the internet about us, protection relies on unpredictability. The impossibility for an eavesdropper or a hacker to break the walls protecting what sits on the net about us depends on...
