ICN2-sponsored Session Nanodevices for Societal Challenges analysed at TNT 2014 the future of nanotechnology

by Super User

The Session gathered experts from around Europe in the areas of Biosensors, Theory, ICT and Energy. It was an opportunity to celebrate the Severo Ochoa accreditation in the context of a first-line international event.

Trends in NanoTechnology (TNT) is a well-known Congress offering a broad perspective of the recent advances in Nanotechnology. It provides every year a platform where young researchers can present their latest work and also interact with high-level scientists. The 2014 edition of TNT is taking place in the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Barcelona from October 27-31. The Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (Institut Catala de Nanociencia i Nanotecnologia – ICN2) has played an important role collaborating with the Congress organization and designing the Congress Program. In addition to the Keynote talks and satellite events that counted with ICN2 researchers, the Institute organized a half day event to celebrate the recent accreditation as a Severo Ochoa Center of Excellence. The Session was entitled Nanodevices for Societal Challenges.

During the special session, four ICN2 Group Leaders introduced the main research areas of the Severo Ochoa Program related with Theory (introduced by ICREA research Prof. Stephan Roche), Energy (introduced by CSIC Prof. Pedro Gómez), Biosensors (introduced by ICREA Research Prof. Arben Merkoci) and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) (introduced by ICREA Research Prof. Sergio Valenzuela). Four Keynote speakers, Gianaurelio Cuniberti (University of Technology Dresden, Germany), David Munoz-Rojas (Laboratoire des Matériaux et du Génie Physique (LMGP), CNRS - Grenoble, France), Jesus M. De La Fuente (ICMA, Instituto de Ciencias de Materiales de Aragon, Spain) and Johan Åkerman (University of Gothenburg, Sweden), gave their point of view on each research area.

The ICN2 Severo Ochoa Research Program focuses on Nanodevices for Societal Challenges. It means the researchers will use scientific knowledge generated in-house to develop new, disruptive solutions for the design, fabrication and integration of devices in these Core Areas: Life, Energy, and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). It is designed to bridge the gap between science and technology in a wide range of Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs), from research focused on basic principles (TRL 1) through technological research (TRL 2-4), to demonstration in operational environments (TRL 5 and beyond). The ultimate aim is to expand ICN2’s TRL competencies towards more advanced levels to facilitate links with the productive sector, and be even more competitive in the EU Horizon 2020 Program. Progress in the three Core Areas will be supported by four Transversal Platforms (Theory and simulation, Nanomaterials growth, Nanofabrication, and Characterization andmetrology).

In 2009, the EU identified key enabling technologies (KETs) for their potential impact in strengthening Europe's industrial and innovation capacity. Six KETs were highlighted as key for European sustainable growth: Nanotechnology; Micro- and nano-electronics; Advanced materials; Photonics; Industrial biotechnology; and Advanced manufacturing. The research developed by ICN2 involves virtually all the six KETs, comprising the whole value chain from fundamental research to commercial products, which impacts upon a recurring theme in European policy: bridging the gap from basic research to competitive production.

TNT 2014 includes other relevant ICN2 contributions, such as:

Graphene Day (Organized in collaboration with ICN2)
Jornada de Networking "Patentes y Marcas"
Keynote and invited speakers:
- Pedro Gomez (ICN2 & CSIC)
- Laura M. Lechuga (ICN2 & CSIC)
- Arben Merkoci (ICN2 & ICREA)
- Pablo Ordejón (ICN2 & CSIC)
- Jordi Reverter (ICN2)
- Stephan Roche (ICN2 & ICREA)
- Daniel Ruiz Molina (ICN2 & CSIC)
- Sergio Valenzuela (ICN2 & ICREA)