Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-erc-participations-et-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Projet ERC : Relative Health (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Social Sciences and Humanities
Panel : Human Mobility, Environment, and Space
Entité participante : Université de Lund — Pays : Suède — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1264809.0 €

Worldwide life expectancy has increased strongly over the past decades, but social inequalities in health and mortality are large and increasing. In contrast to trends in socioeconomic inequality and social mobility, long-term developments in inequality in health and mortality have been poorly documented. “Relative Health” aims to quantify the level of inequality in health and mortality from a family perspective 1800-today. Characteristics that affect health and mortality accumulate in families, and thus the level of inequality in health and mortality can be quantified by addressing similarities within families in health and mortality (same-generation relatives) and intergenerational persistence of health and survival (ancestors and descendants). The project has four main objectives: 1. Develop new ways to measure inequality in health and mortality using a revolutionary new perspective, inequality between families and intergenerational persistence; 2. Using these, describe for the first time long-term trends in health and mortality inequality; 3. Identify mechanisms that shape these inequalities between families and across generations; 4. Identify the role of contextual characteristics in shaping inequalities between families, including the level of social mobility and social inequality. State-of-the-art population reconstructions cover up to 9 generations of relatives (grandparents, parents, children) in Sweden, Netherlands, and US 1800-today and contain lifespan and health information. The project lays the groundwork to generalize these estimates of family health inequality to many contexts with less abundant data sources, using survey data. These contain indicators of health and mortality for focal individuals, their siblings and children for a range of low- and middle-income countries covering 4 decades (DHS, 1984-2018). Overall, the project seeks to transform our understanding of social inequality in health and mortality across time and space.

Mots-clés : demography,historical demography
Projet ERC : QuESADILLA (Horizon Europe, appel 2021, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Fundamental Constituents of Matter
Entité participante : Université de Paderborn — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1844350.0 €

Optical measurements are fundamental to experimental science and observations of nature. At the single photon level, superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPDs) are well-established as the gold standard in measurement, due to their near-unit efficiency, negligible noise and ultrafast response. Building SNSPD arrays and simultaneously extracting intensity, spectral and spatial resolution from a device at the single photon level will revolutionise astronomical measurements, spectrometry in chemistry and life sciences, and quantum imaging. Key to unlocking this potential is to marry concepts from detector tomography with robust high-yield detector fabrication, the integration of complementary optical technologies and low heat-load scalable readout schemes. QuESADILLA tackles these challenges head-on, with a series of experiments demonstrating the groundbreaking potential of quantum detector engineering. In contrast to engineering quantum states of light for metrology, QuESADILLA will shift that paradigm by engineering the quantum mechanical response of the detector itself. QuESADILLA introduces the concepts of a modal decomposition of the positive operator valued measure (POVM), and quantum-enhanced POVM engineering in low-light applications. To do so, arrays of SNSPDs in combination with lithographically-written etalons and dielectric coatings will be developed, in concert with state-of-the-art scalable approaches to large scale quantum tomography. QuESADILLA will exceed the state of the art in many areas: performing the first modal decomposition of detector tomography and the largest tomographic reconstruction of a quantum detector; the first demonstration of quantum detector engineering using nonclassical ancilla states; the first demonstration of etalon array reconstructive spectrometry with single photons; and exploit the fastest electronic shutter speed of any optical sensor to enable the highest dynamic range detection of continuous illumination.

Mots-clés : superconducting detectors
Projet ERC : LUMOCX (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Products and Processes Engineering
Entité participante : Université de Gand — Pays : Belgique — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : UGent
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1499875.0 €

Raw materials scarcity and the geographical dependency for critical materials is a growing concern within the EU. As demands for materials and minerals keeps on increasing, directing our view to space becomes an option to be considered. Humankind has continued to expand its reach beyond Earth, for which establishing a permanent base on the Moon is necessary. Launching technology has a large economic and ecological footprint. Producing resources, such as metals, cement-like materials and oxygen, in situ on other planets is thus required and should happen in a sustainable way. But testing the processes under the relevant conditions is time-consuming and expensive or, if executed on Earth, impossible. This is currently limiting further developments of these processes. Modelling can play a pivotal role in this. But the limited previous research did not focus enough on correct input data or experimental validation. The current proposal will for the first time develop a terrestrial methodology to enable the design of a method to produce metal, oxygen and concrete- or glass-substitutes from lunar regolith with solar-produced electricity on the Moon. This combination of resources being extracted will enable the development of a waste-free in-situ resource utilisation process on the Moon without the need for extra reactants. For this, several important aspects are currently unknown and will be investigated in detail: metal and oxygen extraction, heating, mixing and castability of molten oxide and glass formation from molten oxide. To take into account the lunar gravitation, which is experimentally practically impossible to do, the combined modelling-experimental approach in the proposed research is essential and to be applied for the first time in this context. The process is first investigated under terrestrial conditions, both experimentally and with a model, which is validated with the experiments. The validated model is then adapted to lunar gravity.

Mots-clés : lunar raw materials molten oxide property experiments molecular modelling of oxides pyrometallurgical multiphysics modelling high temperature reduction experiments
Projet ERC : DIADAPT (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Environmental B iology, Ecology  and E volution
Entité participante : Université de Gand — Pays : Belgique — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : UGent
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1500000.0 €

Diatoms are a group of highly diverse, globally dominant microalgae which contribute significantly to global carbon fixation and biogeochemical cycling. Understanding how diatoms adapt to changes in their environment is therefore a major research interest. However, whereas the phenotypic outcomes of adaptation have received considerable attention, we understand little about the genomic underpinnings of evolution and adaptation in diatoms. Within DIADAPT, I will investigate the genomic processes that underlie adaptation to climate shifts in diatoms. To this end, I will focus on two evolutionary radiations of non-model diatoms that are characterized by the repeated colonization of different climate zones throughout their evolutionary history, yet that played out in different ecological conditions: the aquatic and terrestrial realm. Comparative analyses of genomes and transcriptomes obtained from taxa that inhabit polar, temperate, or tropical regions will be complemented with experimental evolution. As such, I will investigate the roles of both genome and gene expression evolution in climate-driven adaptation over macro- and microevolutionary timescales, thus capturing different stages of the adaptation process. By implementing DIADAPT within a robust phylogenetic framework and contrasting the two evolutionary radiations, I will (i) formulate general insights into the genomic basis of climate-driven adaptation in diatoms, (ii) reveal the degree of divergence and repeated evolution in adaptive solutions, and (iii) discern if and how adaptation is constrained by evolutionary history, including differences in ecology, population size, and historical patterns of climate zone transitions. Altogether, the integration of macro- and microevolutionary approaches on the scale of genome and gene expression divergence will generate a deep understanding of climate-driven adaptation in a keystone microbial lineage on an unprecedented geographic and taxonomic scale.

Mots-clés : adaptation,biodiversity,comparative biology,diatoms,experimental evolution,gene expression evolution,genome evolution,macroevolution,marine biology,microalgae,microevolution,phylogenomics,protists,selection,transcriptomics,terrestrial ecosystems
Projet ERC : FLOWSCOPY (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Products and Processes Engineering
Entité participante : Université de Gand — Pays : Belgique — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : UGent
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1500000.0 €

Models of fluid flows in porous materials commonly fall short because they fail to capture the effects of the puzzling underlying microscopic dynamics. These flows are very common: examples range from groundwater flow and H2 storage in underground rocks to water discharge in fuel cells. The fluctuating, microscopic dynamics are poorly understood because they have so far been inaccessible in the 3D labyrinths formed by pore geometries, hampered by the optical opacity of the materials. In FLOWSCOPY, I will cause a paradigm shift by resolving this inaccessibility, enabling the measurement of unsteady 3D flows inside opaque porous materials. First, I will enable the inspection of flow fields in all their µm-scale complexity by creating a method that tracks tracer particles flowing through the pores with 3D X-ray imaging. To achieve the required millisecond imaging times - up to 3 orders of magnitude faster than my state-of-the-art preliminary results – the new approach will retrieve tracer locations in each of the many radiographs that conventionally make up a single tomographic time frame. Then, I will untangle the upscaling problem, building the first method that can measure flow maps averaged on a sliding scale from nano- to centimetres. Finally, I will apply the methods’ transformative capabilities to two pertinent problems in arguably some of the most complex porous media: geological materials. First, I will investigate how two fluids, such as water and H2, displace each other in porous rocks, lifting the veil on capillary fluctuations that deviate from current models. Second, I will unriddle flows of viscoelastic fluids, such as those to clean up polluted sediments, which exhibit a poorly understood transition from steady to chaotic dynamics. Beyond this, the new techniques will be applicable to a wide range of natural and engineered microstructures, from arteries to building materials.

Mots-clés : fluid flow in porous media,x ray micro computed tomography,pore scale imaging,multi scale pore network models
Projet ERC : ECOLENT (Horizon Europe, appel 2025, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Social Sciences and Humanities
Panel : The Study of the Human Past
Entité participante : Université de Gand — Pays : Belgique — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : UGent
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1500000.0 €

ECOLENT develops a new conceptual-methodological framework to study the impact of ecological entanglements, interconnections between different regions, on biodiversity in a historical context. It will do so by using the late medieval Hanseatic League as a case study. This merchant association bought food products and raw materials in Scandinavia and the Baltic, and exchanged them for manufactured goods in the urbanised Low Countries and England. In this way, they created both economic and ecological connections between different regions of Northern Europe. Humans' modification of ecosystems in one part of the trade network can only be understood by considering it in tandem with interventions in the network's other regions. The project studies the impact of the socio-economic pressures the Hanseatic trade network generated on animal and plant diversity in six regions (Flanders, Guelders, Schleswig, Brunswick-Lüneburg, East Prussia, and Kraków) from 1400 to 1600. It thus draws attention to the history of biodiversity, a subject that has been overlooked in both historical and archaeological studies so far, but whose study has become particularly urgent in the context of current ecological challenges. The methodology developed on the basis of the Hanseatic League's exceptionally rich source material — historical and archaeological — can later be adapted to examine biodiversity in other geographical and chronological contexts. Many scholars have analysed humans' relationship with nature, but none have placed relationships within animal and plant communities at the centre of attention. The main focus has always been on their use as trade commodities. The project proposes a new interpretation of non-human agency that acknowledges both animals' and plants' capacity to respond to environmental stimuli. They did not remain passive towards human attempts to commodify the natural world, even though only few of them were truly agents in their own right. This is their story.

Mots-clés : biodiversity,animals,plants,hanseatic league,medieval history,environmental history,historical ecology,environmental archaeology,human animal relations,ecological conservation
Projet ERC : FROST (Horizon Europe, appel 2025, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Social Sciences and Humanities
Panel : The Study of the Human Past
Entité participante : Université de Gand — Pays : Belgique — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : UGent
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1557358.0 €

The Late Glacial period, at the end of the Pleistocene, is marked by dynamic climatic and environmental changes. During this time, hunter-gatherers gradually recolonized Western Europe after a retreat of several millennia, representing a pivotal phase in the region’s population history. However, during the final climatic cooling of the Late Glacial, known as the Younger Dryas (ca. 12,850 to 11,650 cal BP; YD), the number of archaeological sites drastically reduced, raising questions about population decline, migration, and adaptation to severe environmental stress. Despite its significance, the human responses to these climatic shifts remain poorly understood.  The FROST project aims to bridge this gap by investigating the impact of climate fluctuations within the YD on human populations, mobility, subsistence strategies, and the ecosystems they depended on. The project uses a multi-proxy approach, integrating palaeoclimate, palaeoecological, and archaeological data from 30 key sites across Western Europe. This includes high-resolution analysis of speleothems (isotopes, trace elements), pollen, sedaDNA, sediments (granulometry, MS, LOI, micromorphology), and reindeer remains (isotopes) from archaeological sites. These data will be anchored with high-resolution dating using 14C, OSL, U/Th and tephrochronology. FROST tackles four core challenges: (1) reconstructing regional climate variability within the YD, (2) assessing ecosystem responses to these climate shifts, (3) tracking reindeer herd movements, and (4) refining the timing and spatial dynamics of human occupation patterns. By integrating these datasets into demographic and spatiotemporal models, FROST will explore how prehistoric populations adapted to environmental changes. This will not only significantly advance our understanding of human recolonization during a crucial phase in Western Europe, but also provide insights relevant to contemporary climate challenges.

Mots-clés : geoarchaeology,prehistoric archaeology,younger dryas,final palaeolithic,palaeoenvironmental dynamics,climate change,geochronology,human behaviour,human migration,reindeer migration
Projet ERC : NuMass (Horizon Europe, appel 2025, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Fundamental Constituents of Matter
Entité participante : Université de Gand — Pays : Belgique — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : UGent
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1499500.0 €

Neutrinos, assumed massless in the Standard Model of particle physics, must have masses to explain the observation of neutrino oscillations. However, the absolute neutrino mass scale remains elusive. Laboratory measurements using tritium beta decay provide the most direct and model-independent means of determining neutrino mass. Yet, current experiments utilizing molecular tritium sources face fundamental sensitivity limits. This project aims to develop a groundbreaking resonant cavity detector capable of performing neutrino mass measurements with unprecedented precision. Within this project, I will develop and build a resonant cavity, laying the foundations for the next-generation neutrino mass measurement. The detector will simultaneously serve as a high- volume trap for neutral atomic tritium and as a detector for beta decay electrons. Utilizing cyclotron radiation emission spectroscopy (CRES) in a cubic-meter-scale cavity, this technique promises to significantly enhance sensitivity by resonantly amplifying the power of emitted radiation from trapped electrons, which has never been demonstrated. This will increase the CRES-sensitive volume by five orders of magnitude and reduce the power threshold for signal detection by four orders of magnitude, enabling high-precision measurements that could decisively determine the neutrino mass scale. Beyond its critical role in advancing neutrino physics, this project will contribute innovative tools and methodologies to the ultracold atom community and other precision measurement fields. By overcoming existing technological barriers, this detector paves the way for revolutionary advancements in our understanding of fundamental particles.

Mots-clés : neutrino mass,neutrino properties,detector development
Projet ERC : e-CAPTURE (Horizon Europe, appel 2025, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Products and Processes Engineering
Entité participante : Université de Gand — Pays : Belgique — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : UGent
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1499375.0 €

The fossil fuel-driven chemical industry is notorious for its massive CO2 emissions and energy consumption, demanding an urgent shift toward cleaner, more efficient technologies, with CO2 capture as a critical component. Existing gas-liquid reactive absorption/solvent regeneration technologies, relying on bulky packed columns or motor-driven rotating packed beds, fall short due to transport limitations and scale-up challenges. e-CAPTURE seeks to revolutionize the field with a scalable and electrified reactor that uses flow kinetic energy to generate powerful centrifugal forces without mechanical rotation, overcoming transport limitations in interphase mass transfer, mixing, and heat transfer, pushing reaction rates to theoretical limits while slashing energy demands. My objective is to build and demonstrate the e-CAPTURE reactor, aiming for at least a tenfold increase in transport-reaction efficiency and a 50% reduction in energy demand over existing systems. To achieve this, I will: 1) unlock a deep understanding of transport-reaction fundamentals under extreme centrifugal forces and shear rates, observed with cutting-edge temporal (0.1 µs) and spatial (0.1 µm/pixel) resolutions, via innovative techniques like ultra-high speed imaging and infrared planar laser-induced fluorescence. 2) develop a computational fluid dynamics-driven multiscale modeling platform to unravel CO2 interphase mass transfer, turbulence-chemistry interaction, and heat dynamics. 3) address design-performance relation of the e-CAPTURE reactor by multi-objective optimization and conduct reactive demonstration for impurities removal, CO2 absorption, and solvent regeneration with integrated Joule heating. Through a synergy of advanced visualization, state-of-the-art simulation, and real-world testing, I will deliver a transformative reactor technology—not only making CO2 capture scalable and economically viable but also serving as a general gas-liquid reactor for sustainable chemical engineering.

Mots-clés : gas liquid process intensification equipment mixing,heat and mass transfer separation technologies carbon capture engineering microfluidics flow chemistry