Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Decision noise in reward-guided learning amidst option unavailability (DnReLU)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Postdoctoral Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Social Sciences and Humanities
Countries involved: France,Germany
Call: MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2023 (HORIZON-MSCA-2023-PF-01, 2023)
Start date: 2024-10-01
End date: 2026-09-30
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 195914.88
EU funding (EUR): 195914.88
Participants: 2
Project status: SIGNED

Navigating a new city's dining scene often confronts us with unavailable options, e.g., 'fully booked,' shaping our behavioral variability such as random exploratory choices and learning errors. Existing theories of reward-guided learning typically overlook option unavailability. Hypothesized strategies may vary, from adjusting action stochasticity—over-exploration to broadly check alternatives, or under-exploration to quickly latch onto available favorites—to adjusting learning process, e.g., weighing past choices for maximal future rewards, or heuristically inflating the value of busy venues while devaluating others ('busier = better'). A nuanced understanding of these tactics requires a deep dive into information sampling, encompassing not just overt evidence-seeking actions but also covert attentional sampling during value updates in the internal model of the world. These complex sampling patterns, unfolding rapidly over hundreds of milliseconds, have been chiefly studied through eye-tracking that captures overt oculomotor variables, leaving the subtleties of covert sampling unexplored and detailed mechanistic insights elusive. I aim to address this issue across multiple scales—from neurotransmitter and neural dynamics to biophysically-grounded modeling of behavior. Using pharmaco-magnetoencephalography (MEG), I will track covert attentional focus across the entire timespan of every single reward-guided decision during learning, in detailed source-localized brain regions, while also perturbing neurochemical systems to establish causal links. This research promises to illuminate longstanding questions, such as why behavioral variability persists despite evolutionary pressures favoring reward-maximizing decisions. The training through this MSCA in circuit-level mechanistic models, imparted by world-leading experts, will complement my existing expertise, and establish me as an independent researcher in the burgeoning field of cognitive computational neuroscience.

Keywords: magnetoencephalography,reward guided learning,information sampling,attention,decision variability,learning noise,exploration,locus coeruleus,decision making,decision neuroscience
Boundaries of quantum chaos (Boundary)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Consolidator grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Condensed Matter Physics
Panel description: Structure, electronic properties, fluids, nanosciences, biological physics
Countries involved: Slovenia
Call: ERC CONSOLIDATOR GRANTS (ERC-2023-COG, 2023)
Start date: 2024-09-01
End date: 2029-08-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 2000000.0
EU funding (EUR): 2000000.0
Participants: 2
Project status: SIGNED

Physical systems are both universal and special, depending on the physical property under consideration and the corresponding scale, such as the energy, time, or length scale. From the perspective of quantum dynamics, it has been recently established that the ability of isolated quantum systems to thermalize after being driven away from equilibrium is related to the emergence of universal properties that comply with random matrix theory. Specific indicators for the onset of ergodicity and quantum chaos are related to the statistical properties of energy spectrum, Hamiltonian eigenfunction properties, and the expectation values of observables in these states. At the same time, however, these indicators also carry fingerprints of nonuniversal properties of a given system. Remarkable examples of the latter include, e.g., information on the nature of energy and charge transport, and the scaling of characteristic relaxation times. One of the main conjectures of this ERC project is that these indicators, despite complying with the universal predictions of the random matrix theory, also carry information about proximity of phase transitions. Here we focus on ergodicity breaking phase transitions, which represent a novel type of phase transitions at the boundaries of quantum chaos. We then extend the scope of the project to the critical properties at the ergodicity breaking transitions. We conjecture that they also exhibit certain universal properties, yet likely different from those described by the conventional random matrix theory. The outcome of the project is to establish a phenomenological theory of ergodicity breaking transitions that applies to a broad class of quantum systems, and to clarify the impact of dimensionality, symmetries, the nature of interactions, and other mechanisms on universal properties of ergodicity breaking transitions.

Keywords: eigenstate thermalization hypothesis
Safety and Multi Hazard Identification for resilient European Hydrogen Infrastructure and Logistics Development (SHIELD)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Staff Exchanges
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Information Science and Engineering
Countries involved: Italy,Germany,Portugal,Switzerland,Netherlands,United Kingdom
Call: MSCA Staff Exchanges 2024 (HORIZON-MSCA-2024-SE-01, 2024)
Start date: 2026-01-01
End date: 2029-12-31
Duration (months): 48.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1655447.14
EU funding (EUR): 1578150.0
Participants: 10
Project status: SIGNED

SHIELD - Safety and Multi Hazard Identification for resilient European Hydrogen Infrastructure and Logistics Development The hydrogen network is crucial for the European society and any failure or damage could potentially have an enormous negative impact. Due to the rapidly evolving threat and geopolitical landscape, especially with incidents like the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas infrastructure, organizations overseeing critical infrastructure face significant challenges. To face manmade and natural hazards aggravated by climate change, it is crucial to implement resilience-enhancing measures. Hydrogen can be integrated into the natural gas network to advance a low-carbon economy, but first certain technical and regulatory challenges need to be addressed. Blended gas networks must ensure safe and efficient operation while meeting energy demand requirements. The establishment of a universal limit for hydrogen within the European gas infrastructure is challenging due to uncertainties regarding material integrity. SHIELD proposal will enhance the management of hydrogen injection in blended gas networks by expanding our understanding of hydrogen projects along with their associated risks. SHIELD proposes innovative risk assessment methods and solutions to enhance security and reduce risks of natural hazards such as floods, landslides, wildfires, and earthquakes, and cyber-attacks on pipelines transporting hydrogen. This will be accomplished by mapping hydrogen facilities across Europe, identifying their vulnerability, developing an automated threat detection approach to promptly indicate incidents to both critical infrastructure owners and member states authorities, identify strategies for effectively managing a blended gas network ensuring the safe integration of hydrogen into natural gas infrastructure.

Keywords: resilience,hydrogen energy infrastructures blended gas networks risk assessment methods cyber attacks
Non-invasive Conduction Velocity Mapping in Brain Networks: A novel imaging framework for axonal fingerprinting of brain connections in health and disease (CoM-BraiN)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Consolidator grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Prevention,  Diagnosis and T reatment of Human Diseases
Panel description: Medical technologies  and tools for prevention, diagnosis and treatment of human diseases, therapeutic approaches and interventions , pharmacology, preventative  medicine, epidemiology and public health , digital medicine
Countries involved: Denmark
Call: ERC CONSOLIDATOR GRANTS (ERC-2021-COG, 2021)
Start date: 2022-11-01
End date: 2027-10-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1999994.0
EU funding (EUR): 1999994.0
Participants: 2
Project status: SIGNED

Axonal bundles in cerebral white matter form the structural basis of functional brain networks, enabling effective integration of neural activity. The axonal connections are not homogenous structures. Axons differ in diameter and myelination, enabling signal conduction at different velocities. This axonal diversity is a clinically relevant microstructural feature, as neurodegenerative or neuroinflammatory processes can affect axon diameters differently. Recent advances in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) have enabled the non-invasive mapping of the microstructural properties of brain network connections in live brains. But attempts to correlate these structural features with brain function have not yet been successful. I have pioneered the mapping of axon diameters that are directly linked to the conductive properties of axonal connections by using diffusion MRI in living human brain. Also, I have established an unique cross-disciplinary validation setup for such methods by combining nanoscopic 3D Synchrotron Radiation Imaging and functional cell-specific targeting techniques. By Conduction Velocity Mapping in Brain Networks (CoM-BraiN) I will be able to unravel the altered functional dynamics of the microstructural connections in the diseased brain. Methodologically, I will push the frontiers of MRI by creating a new translational CoM-BraiN framework for non-invasive and in-vivo studies in animals and humans. Clinically, CoM-BraiN will provide a new window into the characterization of neuropathological changes in the diseased brain and contribute to the identification of structure-function fingerprints of psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders that are thought to be a major pathogenic factor in many brain diseases.

Keywords: brain network,mri,degenerative disease,animal,human,axon,myelin,validation
Swift Processing for New Generation Hydrogen Resistance Steels (NewGenH2Steel)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Materials Engineering
Panel description: Advanced materials development: performance enhancement, modelling, large -scale preparation, modification, tailoring, optimisation, novel  and combined use of materials, etc.
Countries involved: Finland
Call: ERC STARTING GRANTS (ERC-2025-STG, 2025)
Start date: 2026-01-01
End date: 2030-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1499820.0
EU funding (EUR): 1499820.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Developing a new depth of understanding to control highly refined, complex, multiphase microstructures of modern steels has the potential to create radically new generation of steels. Currently, there is a gap in knowledge on how to control/tailor the microstructures at nanometre level. To bridge this gap, I propose integrating novel science-based approaches such as swift partitioning, chemical heterogeneity engineering, accelerated bainitizing, linear complexions and nanomechanical engineering. These methods enable innovative processes for creating tough, ultra-strong hydrogen resistance steels (NewGenH2Steel) based on nanoscaled martensite/bainite-austenite structures. The novel concept of swift partitioning, based on spike induction heating, is to enrich the finely divided austenite with C and/or Mn for stabilization down to room temperature, thus enabling transformation induced plasticity to maximize the strength-ductility combination. Due to innate versatility, the designed processes will have strong potential in numerous key applications including energy, construction and transportation sectors. The emphasis in these approaches is to adopt short-time accelerated partitioning via high frequency induction heating. This environment-friendly process is attractive, because of low CO2 emissions, clean environment and energy conservation. These approaches will enable realization of a material with nanoscaled multiphase metastable microstructure (N3M). The control of the fraction, stability and morphology of retained austenite is quite puzzling and requires multidisciplinary approach to comprehend its role in deformation behaviour. Another objective is to gain a deep understanding of microstructural heterogeneities such as C-content, size and nature of the phases surrounding the austenite grains with a special emphasis on chemical heterogeneities and linear complexions. Further, the project aims to explore industrial feasibility of N3M-based NewGenH2Steel.

Keywords: advanced high strength steels,quenching and partitioning,medium mn steel,nano structured bainite,ultrafast induction heating,accelerated partitioning,chemical heterogeneity engineering,linear complexions,nano engineering,irreversible hydrogen traps
Design Rules for Efficient Photogeneration in Metal Oxides (DREAM)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Materials Engineering
Panel description: Advanced materials development: performance enhancement, modelling, large -scale preparation, modification, tailoring, optimisation, novel  and combined use of materials, etc.
Countries involved: Israel
Call: ERC STARTING GRANTS (ERC-2021-STG, 2021)
Start date: 2023-01-01
End date: 2027-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 2000000.0
EU funding (EUR): 2000000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting is an attractive route for green hydrogen production. Despite nearly half a century of research efforts, no material has successfully met the stringent requirements for a photoelectrode material, the light harvesting semiconductor within the PEC cell. Metal-oxides are widely viewed as the most promising photoelectrode materials for their exceptional stability in aqueous electrolytes, but those with suitable band gaps for visible light absorption typically have open d shell configurations, and suffer from low photoconversion efficiencies. I hypothesize that the underperformance of such materials is related to their electronic configuration which reduces the photogeneration yield of mobile charge carriers, an overlooked yet critical loss mechanism in metal-oxides. Thus, unlike conventional semiconductors where all absorbed photons generate electrons and holes, in metal-oxides with open d shell configuration, many of the photons give rise to localized electronic transitions that do not contribute to the photocurrent. In addition, polaronic transport and charge carrier recombination reduce the charge carrier collection efficiency. DREAM will address these challenges and provide a leap forward in understanding the photogeneration processes in metal-oxide photoelectrodes and their effect on photoconversion efficiency. To achieve these goals, we will couple systematic control of crystallographic structure, d orbital occupancy, and local cation environment using heteroepitaxial thin film growth together with wavelength and temperature-resolved characterization of the photogeneration yield spectrum. The knowledge gained by these fundamental investigations will lead to new design rules, which we will employ to engineer new metal-oxides with near unity photogeneration yield, and integrate them into novel device architectures, enabling highly efficient PEC-PV tandem cells for unassisted solar water splitting.

Keywords: transition metal oxides,photoelectrochemical water splitting,solar water splitting,thin films,photogeneration,charge carrier transport,epitaxial growth
An immersive, versatile fish VR for studying whole-brain circuits during naturalistic experience of complex and flexible behaviours in the adult vertebrate (FISH-VR)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Postdoctoral Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Life Sciences
Countries involved: France
Call: MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2024 (HORIZON-MSCA-2024-PF-01, 2024)
Start date: 2026-09-01
End date: 2028-08-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 242260.56
EU funding (EUR): 242260.56
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Animals navigate through complex, ever-changing environments, and can adapt to dramatic variations in their sensory inputs, internal states, and the effects of their motor outputs across different contexts. Despite the complexity of the natural environments in which brains evolved, most experiments in neuroscience use simple, artificial stimuli that are designed to evoke specific types of behaviour and neural activity, but are a poor facsimile of reality. Furthermore, most neural recording studies focus on single or few brain regions, and thus ignore the importance of interactions across the brain, especially during complex behaviours. Such hampered experimental approaches have been proven unsuccessful to reveal how diverse cell types across the nervous system interact to produce adaptive behaviour in complex, naturalistic environments. Here, I propose to address these challenges, to contribute to an improved understanding of how the brain works flexibly at large scale, when tackling a sensorimotor task. I will take advantage of the new animal model I established as a PhD student (the small, transparent micro glassfish Danionella cerebrum (DC)), and the techniques I learned and established as a postdoctoral fellow (whole-brain cellular-level calcium imaging, and a virtual reality arena system that allows to reversibly head-tether fish). I propose to conduct brain-wide calcium imaging from tethered adult Danionella as they gauge their behaviour during naturalistic closed-loop and partial open-loop controlled exploration in a complex and immersive virtual environment. My unique expertise will be essential to determine the cellular and network correlates of motor adaptation in an adult vertebrate, to advance our fundamental insight on the neurobiology of behaviour selection, and to establish a research program for exploring brain circuits for experience-dependent behaviours and context-dependent adaptation in the future.

Keywords: danionella,neural circuits,whole brain imaging,virtual reality,visuomotor behavious,behavioural adaptation
Modeling binary neutron star from inspirals to remnants and their multimessenger emissions (InspiReM)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Consolidator grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Universe Sciences
Panel description: Astro -physics/ -chemistry/ -biology; solar system; planetary systems; stellar, galactic and extragalactic astronomy; cosmology; space sciences; astronomical instrumentation and data
Countries involved: Germany
Call: ERC CONSOLIDATOR GRANTS (ERC-2021-COG, 2021)
Start date: 2023-04-01
End date: 2028-03-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1997509.0
EU funding (EUR): 1997509.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Binary neutron star mergers (BNSMs) are unique astrophysical laboratories to explore all four fundamental interactions in their extreme regimes. The landmark detection of the gravitational wave GW170817 and its counterparts in the entire electromagnetic spectrum demonstrated the enormous impact of BNSMs observations on fundamental physics and astrophysics, including the nature of matter at supranuclear densities, the origin of high-energy cosmic photons and of heavy elements. The goal of InspiReM is to break new grounds in the theoretical modeling of BNSMs and to deliver first-principles models linking the source dynamics to the observed radiations. The programme timely addresses central open problems in the modeling of the different coalescence phases with a novel, comprehensive, general-relativistic, (3+1)D and multiscale approach. Simulations and analytical relativity methods are combined to deliver full-spectrum gravitational-wave templates for unbiased, high-precision measurements in gravitational-wave astronomy. Merger remnants and outflows are investigated on uncharted postmerger timescales and including, for the first time, all the relevant processes from the four interactions. The self-consistent secular evolution of the outflows up to days and years is further explored to directly connect the strong-gravity engine to the electromagnetic emission. Bayesian approaches with simulation-driven models are developed for the joint analyses of gravitational and electromagnetic signals. InspiReM leverages on recent breakthroughs and the unique interdisciplinary expertise of my team on all the aspects of the research, and develops novel techniques for exascale parallel computations in relativistic astrophysics. If successful, it will shape the rising field of multimessenger astronomy and drive new groundbreaking discoveries in the related fields.