Microtomography is an X-ray imaging technique based on the same principle as the medical scanner. By using synchrotron radiation instead of a conventional X-ray source, it can be used to capture volumetric scans at much higher resolution and quality. This technology is able to provide three dimensional (3D) images to visualise the internal structures of...
Hydrocephalus is a relevant neurosurgical pathology, both in children and in the ageing population. It comprises a wide set of ailments associated with alterations of the cerebrospinal fluid hydrodynamics and the bio-mechanical properties of the nervous central system structures. In many cases, these pathologies are characterised by an enlargement of the lateral ventricles of the...
This project aims at developing innovative biocompatible sensors able to monitor the status of tissue implants in vivo, at human scale. These sensors are aimed at reporting on the degradation of the scaffold and on the overall transplanted cells conditions. They represent a completely new class of MRI contrast agents that display remarkable relaxation effects...
Deep learning and smart sensors are both gaining wide interest in academia and commercially, but they both still lack research and a commercial breakthrough. DEBARE project researches novel gesture recognition using distributed multimodal deep learning and smart sensors. DEBARE develops a groundbreaking intelligent sensing platform for intuitive interaction with physical objects. Key objectives are: Developing...
Silicon-based photonic biosensors integrated into a semiconductor chip technology can lead to major advances in point-of-care applications, food diagnostics, and environmental monitoring through the rapid and precise analysis of various substances. In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in sensors based on photonic integrated circuits (PIC) because they give rise to cost effective,...
A critical requirement for understanding and diagnosing severe pathologies, such as cancers, neurodegenerative or cardiovascular diseases, consists in achieving an exact understanding of fundamental structures and processes in cells and tissues at optical resolutions beyond the diffraction barrier. Fluorescence based techniques for Super-Resolution Microscopy (SRM) have generated huge impact in many fields of science but...
One-hundred-and-fifteen years after the first device was developed by Sir William Crookes, scintillator technologies remain an integral part of particle detectors in fundamental particle, nuclear, medical and applied physics applications worldwide. Primarily, these are research systems and are bespoke, one off detectors designed for high-performance and permanent installation within controlled and routinely monitored environments. Commercial...
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...
The RaDFOS project has the ambitious goal of developing a dosimeter suitable for the next generation of particle accelerators and fusion reactors. The development of these new energy machine poses the need for new dosimetry technologies capable to measure the unprecedented level of dose expected from their operation, quantified above the MGy level. The RaDFOS...
The goal of FLASH (FLuorescence Analysis Speedup to extremely High rates) project is to develop a new detection system that combines single-photon sensitivity, picosecond temporal resolution, and unprecedented high throughput to acquire time-resolved fluorescence images. A similar system holds great promise to have a revolutionary impact on several fields of biology and medicine. For example,...
Quantum Simulators (QS) are systems that evolve a physical process obeying to the same constituent laws of quantum mechanics as the system under examination. While QS are still in their infancy, an industrial model would need a large degree of automation to address the hardware system calls, interpret results from measurements and perform recursive quantum...
This proposal aims at validating a novel readout concept for the front-end of 2D pixelated detectors that is under development by the ESRF and the University of Heidelberg under the name of digital integration. This new concept combines features of both photon-counting and charge-integrating techniques. It is particularly suitable for X-ray detectors that need to...
In RE-SENSE we propose a new approach to biosensing: the introduction of innovative computational modelling of gene expression to the “tailoring” and optimisation of synthetic biology pathways for whole-cell biosensor design, advancing the field significantly beyond its current state of the art. We will demonstrate the feasibility of this concept by enhancing the performance of...
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...
We propose a new type of optimised and highly sensitive beta-imaging camera with active background rejection POSICS for radio-guided surgery (RGS) and potentially for many other applications. The RGS technique is used to help surgeons to locate precisely tumours, and minimise the surgical invasiveness thus improving patient life quality after the intervention. Currently, the beta-emitting...
MiniRhizotron (MR) imaging systems are key instruments to study the hidden half of plants and ecosystems, i.e. roots, mycorrhiza and their interactions with pathogens, fauna etc. in the rhizosphere. MR systems allow taking repeated images of roots etc. growing in soil (at specific depths) at the interface with transparent MR tubes; time between imaging must...
The VISIR technology will create a new class of solid-state imagers by monolithically integrating an innovative double diode structure, based on a GaAs/Ge heterostructure, with a CMOS readout/imaging circuit. This combination will be capable of imaging over the spectral range from 400 to 1600 nm, covering the visible (VIS) and most of the short wavelengths...
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...
Detection of ultraviolet (UV) light with high single-photon efficiency is required in many fields, from dark matter experiments to astronomical surveys, and even air pollution monitoring. Traditional detection techniques are based on the use of photo-multiplier tubes, which have typical single-photon efficiency of 20-25% for wavelengths λ < 300 nm, and are susceptible to thermal...
The era of Big Data has opened a new chapter in various fields of science, medicine, and business by allowing knowledge to be extracted from vast quantities of collected data, which has never been possible before. In High Energy Physics, the discovery of the Higgs boson would not have been possible without a carefully designed...
