Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-actions-marie-curie-participations-et-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Projet MILLISURF (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2023)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - Global Fellowships
Panel : Information Science and Engineering
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Fifth generation (5G) wireless networks have been introduced to enable significantly higher data rates and lower latency. Sixth generation (6G) wireless networks are also envisaged for even higher speed and capacity. In the context of 5G and 6G communications, the operation of wireless networks is shifted toward higher frequencies, as are millimeter-wave (mm-wave) frequencies. Metasurfaces present an appealing technological solution to realize low cost functional components of simple fabrication, especially in mm-wave frequencies, where component dimensions greatly decrease. Metasurfaces are the two-dimensional, planar extension of the well-established electromagnetic metamaterials and are capable of controlling and efficiently guiding propagating waves, by engineering the properties of individual subwavelength resonators. Although, the most appealing properties of metasurfaces arise in non-uniform configurations, the analysis and synthesis of such non-uniform metasurfaces is extremely challenging, especially as the size and complexity increase. Full-wave analysis of the entire structure, though highly accurate, it requires high computational resources and is extremely time-consuming. In some cases, it may even be inapplicable, due to the increased computational demand. MILLISURF aims at developing a computationally-efficient and robust semi-analytical framework to facilitate the analysis and synthesis of high-performance metasurfaces, suitable for mm-wave communications, combined with novel and highly-accurate fabrication techniques. MILLISURF will contribute to the field of wireless communications by advancing the existing technological solutions. The proposed research will be carried out at the Electrical and Computer Engineering Departments of Duke University, United States and Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece.

Mots clés : metasurfaces, metamaterials, millimeter wave, 5g, semi analytical framework

Participants :
- Université Aristote de Thessalonique (Grèce) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 230586.48 €
- Université Duke (Etats-Unis) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
Projet SPIN-COF (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - Global Fellowships
Panel : Chemistry
Statut du projet : SIGNED

In recent times a paradigm shift in chemical reactivity has been induced by the role of chirality. Indeed, chiral structures have the special electronic property of preferentially transmitting electrons with one spin direction. This phenomenon is called chiral-induced spin selectivity (CISS) effect. CISS can play a pivotal role in the control of chemical reaction pathways and it has been exploited to improve the selectivity and efficiency of reactions that involve intermediates of different spin multiplicity, like the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Generally, current catalytic systems based on CISS are obtained by anchoring chiral organic molecules to the catalytic units. This approach has some drawbacks, like the reduction of accessibility to the catalytic centers. To overcome this issue and fully exploit the CISS potential, a new generation of catalysts with intrinsic chirality needs to be designed. In this context, covalent organic frameworks (COFs), a class of crystalline porous polymers, are highly promising candidates, as they are tunable and designable. The overall scientific aim of SPIN-COF is to develop new chiral COFs that can exhibit spin-filtering abilities and enhanced catalytic activity. To this aim, during the outgoing phase at Northwestern University, the synthesis of novel chiral COFs will be investigated. In particular, two families of chiral materials will be produced with different elements of structural chirality. Then, the CISS properties of the developed materials will be tested during a secondment period at the University of Florence, carrying out magnetic conductive atomic force microscopy measures. During the return phase at the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research, the synthesized materials will be tested as catalysts to promote ORR. The effect of chirality on the catalytic performances will be disclosed, setting new perspectives on the control of chemical reactivity using a new generation of chiral materials.

Mots clés : covalent organic frameworks, chirality, chiral induced spin selectivity effect, electrocatalysis

Participants :
- Université de Florence (Italie) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
- Société Max-Planck pour le développement des sciences (Allemagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 401232.0 €
- Université Northwestern (Etats-Unis) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 300169.44 €
Projet FREIHARC (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Social Sciences and Humanities
Statut du projet : SIGNED

The rapid influx of global capital into residential real estate has significantly reshaped housing markets, particularly in global cities, where foreign investment has driven up property prices and rents, exacerbating housing affordability challenges. Despite its economic benefits, Foreign Real Estate Investment (FREI) often makes homeownership less attainable for local residents, leading to varied government responses. While some case studies have explored this issue on a localized level, a large-scale, comparative analysis remains absent. This project addresses this gap by investigating the impact of FREI on housing affordability and homeownership across 50 countries, using a comparative political economy approach. The study will analyze divergent regulatory approaches and evaluate their effectiveness in managing FREI’s effects on housing markets. Using advanced econometric methods like Vector Autoregression (VAR) and Instrumental Variable (IV) models, and developing two original datasets—Foreign Real Estate Investment Index (FREI) and Foreign Real Estate Investment Regulation Index (FREIR)—this research will provide a comprehensive analysis of the complex interactions between foreign investment, housing market dynamics, and regulatory frameworks. The findings will offer critical insights for policymakers to develop strategies that balance the benefits of foreign investment with the need for affordable housing.

Mots clés : foreign real estate investment housing affordability government regulations comparative political economy housing financialization political economy of housing homeownership

Participants :
- Université libre de Berlin (Allemagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 217965.12 €
Projet PhyToVALUE (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2021)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Environment and Geosciences
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Unicellular small plants, microalgae and cyanobacteria, have a great potential to valorize wastewater by producing high-value biomaterials using the contained nutrients. However, a high concentration of ammonia in wastewater exhibits strong toxicity to microorganisms and prevents the successful cultivation of algae. While dilution is the most prevalent solution, large consumption of freshwater resources is costly and not sustainable. Therefore, this project aims to develop a novel method to detect algal ammonia inhibition by fluorescence monitoring, which will enable direct feeding of undiluted ammonia-containing wastewaters by controlling the feeding rate. In this project, appropriate fluorescent methods will be screened first, and the screened methods will be applied to algal cells exposed to various types of inhibition. A multivariate statistical model will be constructed to distinguish ammonia toxicity from other inhibitions. For improvement of feasibility, a low-cost fluorescent monitoring device shall be also developed. Finally, the developed methods and devices will be integrated into a long-term ammonia feeding control experiment to evaluate the feasibility. During the implementation of the research project, the candidate will receive training both from the host institution (Universidad de Valladolid; UVa) and from the Centre Algatech (CA) where the external advisor belongs to. The candidate will further develop skills in process engineering in the training from UVa and learn the mechanisms of fluorescence from CA. The expected results of the project include a fluorescent algal toxicity identification tool, a low-cost fluorescent monitoring device, and the ammonia toxicity control protocol, all of which have a strong impact on the field of wastewater treatment, aquaculture, and algal mass cultivation. Successful development of proposed methods will enhance the utilization of waste for value creation, leading to the establishment of a sustainable society.

Mots clés : algae, cyanobacteria, mass cultivation, wastewater treatment, valorization, circular economy, ammonia, toxicity, fluorescence, sensor, statistics, process engineering

Participants :
- Université de Valladolid (Espagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 181152.96 €
- Institute of Microbiology (Rép. Tchèque) — Partner, associated partner, Recherche, subvention : 0.0 €
Projet BLISS (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2021)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Herein, kinetic-guided target synthesis (KTGS) will be used to discover novel boronic acids inhibitors of KPC-2, a clinically relevant serine beta-lactamase, with the aim to tackle antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and restore beta-lactams antibiotic activity. Boronic acids transition state inhibitors (BATSIs) have been extensively employed to inhibit beta-lactamases, a class of bacterial enzymes responsible for the most widespread mechanism of AMR against beta-lactam antibiotics. However, the structural variety characterizing the different types of beta-lactamases imposes the development of novel beta-lactamases inhibitors (BLIs). To fully exploit the potential of BATSIs as antibacterial agents and expedite the drug development process, KTGS will be used as a platform for drug discovery. KTGS is an innovative strategy where the biological target is employed to catalyze the synthesis of its own best effective inhibitors from a library of reagents. Triazole-based BATSIs, which have been reported to be potent and selective inhibitors of KPC-2, will be generated in a rapid and efficient way through KTGS (in situ click chemistry). Given the strong interaction between BATSIs and their targets, KPC-2 will be employed as scaffold for the formation of potent and selective 1,4-disubstitued triazole-based BATSIs, starting from azido boronic acid warheads and functionalized alkynes. In summary, this proposal seeks the development of novel BLIs drug candidates through the accomplishment of three objectives: 1) Investigation of KPC-2 as scaffold for in situ click chemistry and evaluation of the ability to generate triazole-based BATSI; 2) Discovery of novel inhibitors for KPC-2 using KTGS; 3) Identification of at least one highly active BATSI against clinically relevant beta-lactamases to be tested in vivo. To accomplish these specific objectives, the project will be divided in three main work packages, which will involve a combination of biological, chemical, and analytical skills

Mots clés : in situ click chemistry, antimicrobial resistance, boronic acids, beta lactamase inhibitor, kinetic guided target synthesis kgts

Participants :
- Université de Modène et de Reggio Emilie (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 188590.08 €
- Université Case Western Reserve (Etats-Unis) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
Projet TBR (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - Global Fellowships
Panel : Social Sciences and Humanities
Statut du projet : SIGNED

This research explores the dynamic flow of textiles and their cultural impacts in Transylvania from the late 18th century to World War I, challenging the prevailing perception of rural isolation. By examining the consumption and circulation of foreign textiles, the study reveals how these goods facilitated continuous cultural exchanges and influenced local identities in East Central Europe. Utilising digital humanities techniques, the project employs data capture technologies and machine learning frameworks to analyse textile patterns and trade routes. Ethnographic collections from Romanian and international museums provide the primary sources for this investigation. The research underscores the significance of textiles as carriers of cultural and technological information in largely illiterate societies, highlighting their role in the age of nationalism. Through digital mapping and pattern recognition, the study traces the evolution of cultural identity in multicultural spaces, illustrating the rural world's integration into global markets and its interaction with urban areas. By focusing on the socio-economic and cultural consequences of the textile trade, this project offers fresh insights into the dynamics of multiculturalism, nationalism and the shifting cultural identities in East Central Europe, expanding our understanding of the European rural space's role in the broader historical and economic developments during the modern period.

Mots clés : transnational history, digital history, material cultural, modern period, east central europe

Participants :
- Université Ca' Foscari de Venise (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 384484.02 €
- Université Cornell (Etats-Unis) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
Projet E-PFAStest (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Chemistry
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Phones, tablets, and flat screens have ever-shorter innovation cycles and become swiftly obsolete, thus, electrical and electronic waste (e-waste) is currently the fastest-growing solid waste stream worldwide. Hence, e-waste is associated with numerous pressing challenges e.g., the release of pollutants like per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and their transformation products (TPs). Given the growing concern over PFAS, also known as "forever chemicals" due to their high persistence in the environment, this research addresses critical questions about the contribution of e-waste toward the PFAS pollution. The goal of E-PFAStest is the development of analytical methods based on non-target screening (NTS) for comprehensively analysing e-waste samples for PFAS and their TPs. The E-PFAStest project has three parts: 1) Development of NTS analytical methods for the determination of PFAS in e-waste samples; 2) Development of testing procedures to simulate the formation of TPs from PFAS in e-waste samples; and 3) Analysis of PFAS and their TPs in environmental samples in the vicinity of e-waste facilities. As such, E-PFAStest will be the first study to comprehensively assess the PFAS contamination originating from e-waste as it identifies parent PFAS and TPs in e-waste and in the surrounding environment of e-waste facilities. In E-PFAStest, I will combine my skills in NTS of PFAS and method development at the interface materials-environment with the host lab’s analytical equipment and expertise, multi-disciplinary research, and network. Further, two secondments are foreseen, that will ensure the implementation of the electrochemistry approach for the simulation of TPs and the sampling in and around e-waste facilities. Thus, E-PFAStest will ensure my development as an independent researcher to establish my own research group on the topic of analytical development for emerging contaminants at the interface materials-environment.

Mots clés : lc hrms, non target screening, pfas, e waste, transformation products tps

Participants :
- Université de Rome « La Sapienza » (Italie) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
- Université d'Anvers (Belgique) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 216240.0 €
- Université de Münster (Allemagne) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
Projet Systoles-diastoles (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2022)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Mathematics
Statut du projet : SIGNED

The project is devoted to two classes of metric invariants of Riemannian and contact manifolds: systoles and diastoles. Riemannian systoles are shortest non-contractible curves (and higher-dimensional cycles) on manifolds and other spaces. Diastoles measure longest curves in an optimal slicing of a manifold into a family of curves (or cycles). Symplectic/contact systoles measure the least action on closed characteristics (integral curves of the Reeb flow). The goals of the project are to extend and complement the results of M. Gromov, M. Freedman, C. Viterbo, and others, by relating all these invariants to the volumes of the corresponding spaces and other metric quantities. A key tool for investigating the systolic freedom (measured as the behavior of several systoles compared to the volume) is its connections with quantum error correction codes, which are a promising rich source of spaces of great systolic freedom. The diastolic geometry, which is the study of waists of slicings/foliations/sweepouts via the methods of geometric analysis, has applications to the open Buser pants decomposition problem, as well as connections with persistence and dimensionality reduction in manifold learning. The symplectic isosystolic/isodiastolic conjecture of Viterbo, which will be studied via extensions of billiard approach, has exciting implications in convexity, namely the longstanding Mahler conjecture on the volume product. My experience in waist and width estimates, combined with the expertise of Prof. Hugo Parlier in systolic geometry and Buser's problem, will help me to carry out this project at the University of Luxembourg. The secondment at Freie Universität Berlin in the quantum group of Prof. Jens Eisert will help me to bring closer the systolic and quantum topics of research as well as the communities of researchers.

Mots clés : systole, systolic freedom, diastole, waist, urysohn width, sweepout, metric geometry, isoperimetry, action of closed characteristics, systolic ratio, zoll manifold, billiards, quantum error correction

Participants :
- Université du Luxembourg (Luxembourg) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 175920.0 €
- Université libre de Berlin (Allemagne) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
Projet ESSENS (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2021)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Information Science and Engineering
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Quantum photonics has become a key driver for the development of novel applications—such quantum information processing and sensing—that leverage quantum effects to open new possibilities beyond classical capabilities. Squeezed states of light are particularly promising for such applications and have been employed, e.g., to conduct Gaussian boson sampling experiments. Despite the success of these experiments, the use of bulk optical components hinders scalability and phase stabilization. Thus, higher levels of photonic integration are strongly desired. However, the exploitation of squeezed light, which critically relies on efficient detection, has not yet been achieved using nanophotonic chips because of the limited efficiency of the required fiber-chip couplers and single-photon detectors (SPDs).  In this project, an optical fiber–accessible, photonic integrated system will be implemented to demonstrate on-chip detection of squeezed light at telecom wavelengths. To accomplish this goal, two approaches will be employed to assist fiber-chip couplers and waveguide-integrated superconducting nanowire SPDs, enabling access to previously inaccessible regions of the design space: subwavelength grating (SWG) metamaterials and direct-laser-writing (DLW) fabrication technology. The outcome of this project will break new ground for exploiting squeezed states for applications in quantum simulation, communication, and sensing with hundreds of detectors and interferometers on highly integrated, monolithic chips with near perfect phase stability.  This project will be completed in a leading interdisciplinary research group. The applicant’s background in integrated photonics and SWG metamaterial engineering will be combined with the expertise on quantum detectors and the DLW nanofabrication capabilities of the host group. The proposed work will expand the applicant’s experience, skills and professional networks, re-enforcing the advance of his career as an independent researcher.

Mots clés : integrated quantum photonics, subwavelength grating metamaterials, superconducting nanowire single photon detectors, superconducting nanowire avalanche photodetectors, fiber chip couplers

Participants :
- Université Friedrich-Schiller d'Iéna (Allemagne) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
- Université de Münster (Allemagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 173847.36 €