Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Silicon Technology for Novel Semiconductor-Superconductor Hybrid Qubits (SiTe)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Individual Fellowships (IF)-Society and Enterprise panel
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Physics
Countries involved: Switzerland
Call: Individual Fellowships (H2020-MSCA-IF-2019, 2019)
Start date: 2020-04-01
End date: 2022-03-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 191149.44
EU funding (EUR): 191149.44
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The quantum information revolution aims at transforming information technology by engineering quantum systems, i.e. qubits, that can be used for quantum information processing (QIP), which allows to perform computations inaccessible to classical computers. In the quest for such systems, solid-state qubits alongside trapped ions currently are the leading candidates. One of the most advanced solid-state technologies to date is based on superconducting quantum circuits (SQCs), which makes use of Josephson tunnel junctions and their macroscopic quantum coherence between two superconducting islands. Due to recent advances in semiconductor-superconductor hybrid (SSH) devices, novel SSH-based qubit architectures have emerged, demonstrating improved properties compared to conventional SQCs, such as in-situ tunability while not being susceptible to flux noise. These novel SSH qubits make use of the true microscopic particle transport within SSH weak links. The main goal of the project is to unambiguously demonstrate SSH-based qubits as a viable and scalable platform for QIP by combining novel SQCs with advanced silicon-technology. The fellow will develop and characterise SSH weak links solely based on silicon (Si), which have the advantage of being fully CMOS compatible and consisting entirely of crystalline materials. Finally, these Si-based weak links will be implemented in novel SQCs, which will combine the good controllability of SQCs with the unique material quality of Si. This will allow the study of the underlying charge dynamics, giving insight into sources of loss, and offer new possibilities for complex architectures. The successful completion of this project will be a decisive landmark towards understanding and integrating such devices in larger circuits, which will be crucial a step towards a vital roadmap for their application in QIP.

Keywords: silicon,weak link,qubits,andreev bound states,junction,critical current
Development of new optical absorption filters for application in Night Vision Imaging Systems (FANVIS)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Industrial Leadership
Programme: Innovation in SMEs
Action type: SME instrument
Countries involved: Spain
Call: SME instrument (H2020-SMEInst-2018-2020-1, 2018)
Start date: 2018-12-01
End date: 2019-05-31
Duration (months): 6.0
Total project cost (EUR): 71429.0
EU funding (EUR): 50000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Technology and design improvements in Night Vision Imaging Systems (NVIS) have led to important price reductions in these equipment, so their use is growing in the civil segments, such as commercial aviation, law enforcement agencies, guard coasts, emergency medical services, forestry services, wildlife observers, etc. All illuminated panels within the cockpit in land/sea/air vehicles must integrate NVIS-compatible filters to enable the use of Night Vision Goggles (NVG). Filters’ suppliers are currently scarce and impose their unilateral selling conditions to manufacturers, integrators, adaptors and retrofitters of NVIS equipment. These suppliers come from outside EU market (mainly USA and Japan), so European industry is completely dependent on them as any change in trade regulations would have a negative impact, leading to stock disruption and costs increases. GRABISUR is a European leader in the design and manufacture of Human Machine Interfaces (HMI) systems in aviation, naval and land vehicle industries. The FANVIS project is the result of an R&D project, which has developed a cost-effective NVIS-compatible Green-A type absorptive filter (TRL6 prototype) that outperforms the technical features of current solutions. The FANVIS filters will be internationally patented and will allow the non-dependence on external suppliers, strengthening European industry. Our filters are suitable for aircrafts, vehicles, ships, simulators and, to a lesser extent, other civil equipment (personal equipment, radios, laptops, etc.). Our main target customers are Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), platform manufacturers and organizations performing NVIS upgrading/repairing. Just considering the civil helicopters’ segment, we have estimated a yearly Total Addressable Market of €7.7M. This project aims at analysing the technical, economic and commercial feasibility of this new product that, according to our preliminary data, presents a ROI of 1.9.

Keywords: night vision systems,nvis,night vision goggles,absorption filters,illuminated panels,cockpit,cabin,display,infrared,nvis compatible,green a
Linking the intrinsic protein dynamics to function in glutamate transporters (MEMDYN)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Individual Fellowships (IF)-Global Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Life Sciences
Countries involved: France,United States
Call: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF-GF) (H2020-MSCA-IF-2014, 2014)
Start date: 2016-04-01
End date: 2019-03-31
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 246668.4
EU funding (EUR): 246668.4
Participants: 2
Project status: CLOSED

The alternating access model of how membrane-embedded transport proteins translocate substrates across biological membranes has been proposed since the 1960s: membrane transporters bind substrates on one side of the membrane and release them on the other side upon conformational rearrangements in the protein. This has been experimentally confirmed by high-resolution structures of membrane transporters in different conformations and is exemplified by the conformational change in the archaeal glutamate transporter homologue GltPh from Pyrococcus horikoshii. GltPh is a trimer in which each protomer functions independently of the others. Outward and inward facing conformations suggest transport by alternating access to either side of the membrane whereby a distinct transport domain undergoes large rotational and translational movements relative to the static trimerisation domain. It is unknown how GltPh achieves this conformational rearrangement, which occurs both in the absence and presence of substrates. We propose to integrate cutting-edge techniques in membrane structural biology to identify dynamic hotspots that drive the large conformational transitions in GltPh. We will combine insights from protein crystallography with local variations of thermodynamic stability and protein dynamics measured by hydrogen/deuterium exchange to map the structural components that allow conformational change to occur. In doing so, we will obtain new insights into how GltPh functions, shedding light on the mechanism of biomedically important glutamate transporters. We will use this model system to develop strategies that allow understanding of the molecular basis of substrate transport. The methods developed would be widely applicable to other membrane transport proteins.

Keywords: glutamate transporter,structure,conformational dynamics,crystallography,thermodynamics,hydrogen,deuterium exchange mass spectrometry
Prenylated-flavins: Application and Biochemistry (pre-FAB)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Advanced grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Molecules of Life: Biological Mechanisms, Structures and Functions
Panel description: Molecular biology, biochemistry, structural biology, molecular biophysics, synthetic and chemical biology, drug design, innovative methods and modelling
Countries involved: United Kingdom
Call: ERC Advanced Grant (ERC-2015-AdG, 2015)
Start date: 2016-09-01
End date: 2023-08-31
Duration (months): 84.0
Total project cost (EUR): 2494328.75
EU funding (EUR): 2494328.75
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Our group has recently discovered a new type of cofactor: a prenylated-flavin that has azomethine ylide properties. This cofactor is an integral part of the widespread ubiD/ubiX system. The latter is implicated in the non-oxidative reversible decarboxylation of aromatic substrates, and plays a pivotal role in bacterial ubiquinone biosynthesis or microbial biodegradation of aromatic compounds. We established UbiX acts as a novel flavin prenyltransferase, linking a dimethylallyl moiety to the flavin N5 and C6 atoms. Formation of the holo-UbiD enzyme involves oxidative maturation of the new cofactor, creating the novel azomethine ylide moiety. The dipolarophile substrate binds directly above the azomethine ylide group, and our data strongly suggests 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition chemistry supports reversible decarboxylation in these enzymes. While 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition is commonly used in organic chemistry, this presents the first example of an enzymatic 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reaction. Our model for UbiD catalysis hints at new routes in alkene hydrocarbon production or aryl (de)carboxylation. The current application builds ambitiously on these results and takes the project altogether to another level: we seek to investigate structure/function of relationships of the wider UbiD family, ultimately including the multi-subunit enzymes that couple ATP-hydrolysis to benzene or naphthalene carboxylation. Furthermore, we will explore and harness the unusual properties of the prenylated flavin, through targeted evolution of (monoxygenase) flavoenzymes to create artificial prFMN-dependent self-sufficient monoxygenases. Our approach seeks to harness both the UbiD and the artificial prFMN-dependent enzymes in novel green routes to commodity chemicals.

Keywords: enzymology,enzyme cofactors,enzyme evolution
Molecular mechanisms of endosome departure from the spindle in asymmetric cell division (ENDODEP)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Individual Fellowships (IF)-Standard European Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Life Sciences
Countries involved: Switzerland
Call: Individual Fellowships (H2020-MSCA-IF-2016, 2016)
Start date: 2017-11-01
End date: 2019-10-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 187419.6
EU funding (EUR): 187419.6
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

During mitosis, cells can undergo asymmetric cell division, where daughter cells are endowed with different fates. Asymmetric division enables developing organisms to generate their particular diversity of cell types through a balanced combination of self-renewal and differentiation. Better understanding the mechanisms of asymmetric cell division will shed light on how cell renewal, differentiation and proliferation are controlled. In the longer term, this knowledge might enable regenerating defective cells in ageing and disease, generating cells of a particular identity for therapeutic purposes and tackling cell proliferation in cancer. The fate asymmetry results from a differential distribution of fate determinants between daughter cells. One way this segregation is implemented is through the directional trafficking of vesicles called endosomes along the microtubules of the mitotic spindle. While our understanding of the trafficking step has improved a lot through recent studies, it remains unclear how asymmetrically distributed endosomes at the spindle are ultimately released into the target daughter cell. This proposal aims at identifying the molecular mechanisms underlying this final, decisive step of asymmetric division: endosome departure from the spindle. We will work through four specific aims: 1 Characterise the dynamics of endosome departure under wild-type conditions, 2 Identify molecular interactions triggering departure, 3 Build a mathematical theory of the physics of departure,4 Test whether our proposed model can be generalised to other models of asymmetric division. Recent progress on directional endosomal trafficking has laid strong conceptual and practical frames to now focus on the next step of asymmetric division. Thus the proposed project is timely both through the question it addresses and the tool availability. This project is also intrinsically intersectorial, integrating physics, chemistry and mathematics to address a biological question.

Keywords: asymmetric division,notch signalling,sara endosomes,drosophila,sensory organ precursor
The Global and Local Organization of Production (GLOBALPROD)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Individuals, Markets and Organisations
Panel description: Economics, finance and management
Countries involved: Norway
Call: ERC Starting Grant (ERC-2016-STG, 2016)
Start date: 2017-01-01
End date: 2021-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1476948.0
EU funding (EUR): 1476948.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

A defining feature of the global economy is the gradual fragmentation of production across firms and borders, a phenomenon that has been termed outsourcing or global value chains. State-of-the-art empirical economic analysis on value chains has mostly been limited to the study of aggregate data because there is limited data on actual firm-to-firm linkages in the global economy. Even less is currently known about which products are typically outsourced, and which workers are affected. This project will change that. I will bring together four unique firm-to-firm datasets on local and global value chains that will push the research frontier forward in two main directions: - Previous research has shown that economic integration encourages growth. Due to data limitations, however, we know little about the origins of growth, and to what extent the emergence of value chains can explain the growth response. New theory is needed, where firm-to-firm connections are endogenously formed in response to economic integration. I will confront theory with data and directly test whether integration facilitates new buyer-supplier relationships and growth. - Previous research has found that economic integration has large negative effects on wages for low-skill workers. But again, due to data limitations, it is unclear to what extent value chains are responsible for this. Simply put, the impact of outsourcing on wages will depend on which workers are displaced by outsourcing. Until now, researchers have not been able to observe which workers, along with their occupations and skills, that are employed in both the supplying and outsourcing firm. For the first time, this information will be available, allowing for a rich analysis of labor market effects for different skill groups. GLOBALPROD will inform policymakers about how wages for different types of skills change in response to globalization, but also how economic integration can promote efficiency and competitiveness.

Keywords: outsourcing,value chains,productivity,skill premium
Animals Make identities. The Social Bioarchaeology of Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic Cemeteries in North-East Europe (AMI)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Consolidator grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: The study of the human past
Panel description: Archaeology, history and memory
Countries involved: Finland
Call: ERC Consolidator Grant (ERC-2019-COG, 2019)
Start date: 2020-04-01
End date: 2026-03-31
Duration (months): 72.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1992839.0
EU funding (EUR): 1992839.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

AMI aims to provide a novel interpretation of social links between humans and animals in hunter-gatherer cemeteries in North-East Europe, c. 9000–7500 years ago. AMI brings together cutting-edge developments in bioarchaeological science and the latest understanding of how people’s identities form in order to study the relationships between humans and animals. Grave materials and human remains will be studied from the viewpoint of process rather than as isolated objects, and will be interpreted through their histories. The main objectives are 1) Synthesize the animal related bioarchaeological materials in mortuary contexts in North-East Europe, 2) Conduct a systematic multimethodological analysis of the animal-derived artefacts and to study them as actors in human social identity construction, 3) Reconstruct the individual life histories of humans, animals, and animal-derived artefacts in the cemeteries, and 4) Produce models for the reconstruction of social identities based on the data from the bioanalyses, literature, and GIS. Various contextual, qualitative and quantitative biodata from animals and humans will be analysed and compared. Correlations and differences will be explored. Intra-site spatial analyses and data already published on cemeteries will contribute significantly to the research. Ethnographic information about recent hunter-gatherers from circumpolar regions gathered from literature will support the interpretation of the results from these analyses. The research material derives from almost 300 burials from eight sites in North-East Europe and includes, for example, unique materials from Russia that have not previously been available for modern multidisciplinary research. The project will make a significant contribution to our understanding of how humans living in the forests of North-East Europe adapted the animals they shared their environment with into their social and ideological realities and practices.

Keywords: bioarchaeology,bone technology,human animal relations,identification of hair and feather,physical anthropology,individual life histories,isotopes,hunter gatherer identities,mortuary practices
Spin correlations by atomic design (SPINCAD)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Condensed matter physics
Panel description: Structure, electronic properties, fluids, nanosciences, biological physics
Countries involved: Netherlands
Call: ERC Starting Grant (ERC-2015-STG, 2015)
Start date: 2016-08-01
End date: 2021-07-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1449983.0
EU funding (EUR): 1449983.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Unexpected physical phenomena occurring in materials often result from the complex interplay between spins on the atomic scale. The field of quantum magnetism aims to capture the rich emergent physics that arises when multiple spins interact. While experimental techniques are available to probe the global quantum magnetic properties of materials, they fail to reveal the role of local features such as individual defects or phase boundaries. I propose to use custom-designed spin lattices created by low-temperature scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) to probe spin correlations locally at the atomic scale, providing the ultimate tool to trace particle-like excitations (spinons) as they propagate. Since these excitations exist on timescales that are much too short to be accessed directly in real time, I will introduce ‘spinon traps’: atom-built detector bits that record the presence of a spinon and store this information immediately on the atomic scale, to be read out at a later time. This approach opens the possibility to study emergent material properties as a function of system size and test theories for quantum magnetism that were previously experimentally inaccessible. Based on preliminary experiments in my group that indicate the feasibility of SPINCAD, I will realize and demonstrate the spinon trapping technique by employing it to the study of attractive interactions between spinons, which may be forged independently through atom manipulation. In addition, I will observe the motion of spinons through two-dimensional frustrated spin lattices. Being the first technique to perform local injection and readout of excitations in custom-designed spin structures, SPINCAD will generate a long-lasting synergy between the fields of theoretical quantum magnetism and experimental surface science.

Keywords: atom manipulation,spin chains
A new paradigm in boosting orphan crops to super grains: Linking metabolomics and gene editing to improve Teff for global food security and sustainable agriculture (SUPERTEFF)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Individual Fellowships (IF)-Standard European Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Environment and Geosciences
Countries involved: United Kingdom
Call: Individual Fellowships (H2020-MSCA-IF-2018, 2018)
Start date: 2020-03-25
End date: 2023-01-22
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 224933.76
EU funding (EUR): 224933.76
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Food security is one of the prime concerns of the world as the production is affected by increase in demand for cereal crops as food and bioenergy resources. In order to maximize productivity, one strategy is to identify and improve indigenous crops (orphan crops) which are often ignored. Orphan crops (e.g. teff, millet) possess better nutritional and adaptive traits than other cereal crops (e.g. rice, wheat). Teff, Ethiopia’s most important indigenous cereal crop is recently gaining attention among farmers and consumers over other cereals due to its natural gluten-free nature and its adaptation to tough environmental conditions. The high market price for its grains and straw make it a valuable cash crop but has received less attention on research and funding. The main objective of “SUPERTEFF” is to apply omics and gene editing strategies for the improvement of teff. The key objectives of the study are (1) characterization of disparate teff germplasm for agronomically important traits using image-based phenomics (2) to explore the nutrient diversity in teff cultivars using high-throughput metabolomics (3) metabolite-genome-wide association studies (m-GWAS) to understand the genotype to phenotype relation (4) to develop a CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing platform in teff with prime focus to lodging. The proposed study will provide a new paradigm in linking metabolic status to gene expression and will provide valid targets for CRISPR gene editing strategies in teff to convert it from an orphan crop to a super crop which will bare comparison to other established cereal crops. The outputs of this project will result in bridging the gap between orphan crops and other cereal crops in terms of sustainable yield and resilience to environmental conditions, whereby addressing the growing concerns of farmers and consumers across the globe. This project aims to strengthen the EU economy, by placing it in the fore-front of global food security and sustainable agriculture.

Keywords: cereals,teff,agronomic traits,metabolite gwas,genome editing,crsipr,lodging