Dr. Bill Baloukas

Dr. Bill Baloukas is Research Associate at Polytechnique Montreal, QC, Canada, where he has also obtained his PhD degree in engineering physics in 2012. His research activity within the Functional Coatings and Surface Engineering Laboratory (FCSEL) focuses on the development of processes, nanostructured optical materials, and passive and active coating systems for optical filters, low emissivity coatings, smart windows, and optical security devices. He is the author or co-author of about 30 scientific articles, book chapters, conference proceedings, frequent invited speaker at international conferences, and he is the inventor of multiple optical security devices for anticounterfeiting applications for which he holds 3 patents.

Francesco Fumagalli, PhD

Born in 1981 in the Lario Lake area, Northern Italy, I’m a researcher working in the field of the nanotechnology where my main areas experitise actually cover nanofabrication, energy materials, plasma and laser ablation processing, optoelectronics and photo-electrochemistry. I earned my PhD in Plasma Physics at the University of Milano-Bicocca, with a thesis work on plasma bio-interfaces engineering. From 2007 I’ve been working in research laboratories in the field of applied physics, both in the public (University of Milano at Plasma Prometeo Labs and EC-JRC Nanobiotechnology Laboratories) and private sector (Tigres Gmbh in Hamburg and Plasmore Srl). Presently I’m working as a post-doc researcher at the Italian Institute of Technology in Milano in the N2E laboratories (Nanotechnology and Nanomanufacturing for Energy and Environment).

My current research interests are focused around the development of nano-materials for emission-free and sustainable energy conversion systems, with special focus on applicability in photoelectrochemical solar fuels production, energy storage systems and photovoltaics. The main approach followed is the gas-phase, self-assembly growth of nanomaterials with controlled properties at the nanoscale and subsequent investigation of the fundamental processes at atomic and molecular level. Basic understanding of the properties of functional nanomaterials is a thus focus of the research as well as upscaling of nanomanufacturing methods in order to match relevant technological requirements with the aim of translating the acquired knowledge into innovative processes, leading to design of novel solutions to the energy, environmental, and sustainable mobility challenges that will face humanity in the 21st century.

More specifically, in the field of photoelectrochemical solar fuels production I developed, together with the IIT group @ N2E labs, an alternative route to H2 evolution via water splitting through the use of hybrid organic/inorganic interfaces. We recently demonstrated, demonstrated in proof-of-principle reports, the capability of semiconducting polymers/fullerene-based acceptors compounds to steadily drive photo-generated electrons towards an electrocatalyst when immersed in a water environment. In the latest months research on efficient H2 evolution hybrid photocathodes architectures based on organic semiconductors and inorganic interfacial layers emerged with the first devices investigations. Despite the novelty of the approach, state-of-the-art performances of organic photoelectrochemical systems and a clear design orientation towards full water splitting system integration allowed the organic photoelectrochemistry community to lay a cornerstone in the field solar fuels production. [Fumagalli et al., J. Mater. Chem. A, 2016, 4, 2178; Comas et al., Energy Environ. Sci., 2016, 9 (12), 3710]

Complex polymers, graphenes and composites

Low temperature plasmas, although and old tool , well accepted in science in technology, do not stop to surprize with their potentials in the field of material synthesis starting from the gas phase.

In this work we present several types of plasma synthesized organic and inorganic structures (from nanotubes, nanoparticles to thin composite films).

Material analysis is, together with plasma diagnostics, crucial for the control of the synthesis. Several in-situ and ex-situ methods are proposed and tested- as for example in-situ Raman, in-situ FTIR spectroscopy, mass spectroscopy…

Examples of the applications concern eg base-materials for FET immunosensors, or astrophysics.

Prof. Eva Kovacevic

• 1990-1996 study at: Faculty for Electrical Engineering and Computing, Zagreb, Croatia, (1996 Diploma)
• 1997-2000 Postdiploma studies and research at the Institute for Applied Physics, Faculty for Electrical Engineering and Computing, Zagreb, Croatia,
• 2000 Magisterium, Interaction of laser beams with solid surfaces: pulsed laser plasmas, University of Zagreb, Croatia
• June 2006 PhD Title: Plasma polymerized carbonaceous nanoparticles: application as astroanalogs Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
• June 2011 Habilitation, Université d’Orléans, France

Professional activities

• 1997-2000 research at the Institute for Applied Physics, Faculty for Electrical Engineering and Computing, Zagreb, Croatia (Prof Dr Henc-Bartolic), teaching at: Aeronautical College “Rudolf Peresin”, Zagreb/Velika Gorica, Croatia (September 1996-March 2001),
• 2001-2008 research associate at the Institute for Experimental Physics II Faculty for Physics and Astronomy, Ruhr University Bochum, (Wiss.Mitarbeiter)
• March 2008 -now, researcher at GREMI, Orléans, France (2008 Heinrich Herz fellowship)
• September 2012- professorship, Université d’Orléans, France

Distinctions

• DAAD-Preis (Ruhr Uni Bochum) 2006, Rector’s award (University of Zagreb) 1996

Publications-examples:

• IR – fingerprints and periodic formation of nanoparticles in Ar/C2H2 plasmas
• E. Kovačević, I. Stefanović, J. Berndt, and J. Winter, J. Appl. Phys 93, 2924 (2003)
• Ha emission in the presence of the dust in an Ar-C2H2 radio-frequency discharge,
• I. Stefanović, E. Kovačević, J. Berndt, and J. Winter, NJP 5, 39.1-39.12 (2003)
• A candidate analog for carbonaceous interstellar dust: Formation by reactive plasma polymerization,
• E. Kovačević, I. Stefanović, J. Berndt, Y. Pendleton, and J. Winter, Astrophysical Journal 623, 242 (2005)
• In situ characterization of nanoparticles during growth by means of white light scattering
• S. Mitic, M. Y. Pustylnik, G. E. Morfill, and E. Kovačević, Optics Letters, 36, 3699-3701 (2011)
• Size dependent material properties of plasma synthesized nanoparticles
• E. Kovacevic, J. Berndt, Th. Strunskus, L. Boufendi, J. Appl. Phys. 112, 013303 (2012).

Dr. Kremena Makasheva

Dr Kremena MAKASHEVA is Researcher at CNRS, LAPLACE laboratory, Toulouse, France with a Ph.D. degree on Plasma Physics from Sofia University, Bulgaria, 2002, for her work on surface wave sustained discharges. In 2003 she joined the Groupe de physique des plasmas at Université de Montréal, Québec for almost 4 years to work on surface wave discharges at atmospheric pressure and especially to study the contraction phenomenon of gas discharges. In 2007 she moved to Toulouse, France to work in LAPLACE laboratory on modeling microwave plasmas sustained by dipolar sources. Since 2009 she works on plasma deposition of thin dielectric layers, their characterization and analysis in relation with dielectric charging phenomenon. She entered the CNRS in 2010. Her research activities in LAPLACE now are directed to study of reactive plasmas and the design of nanostructured materials by plasma. Recently she served as General Chair of the 11th IEEE Nanotechnology Materials and Devices Conference (IEEE NMDC 2016) in Toulouse.

Prof. Takashi Nishino

Affiliation

Professor, Dr. Graduate School of Engineering, Kobe University

Education

• 1982 Kobe University, Bachelor
• 1984 Kobe University, Master
• 1990 Kobe University, PhD.

Professional Experience

• 1985 Assistant Professor Kobe University
• 1996 Associate Professor Kobe University
• Since 2004 Professor Kobe University

Professional Societies

• Director, Kansai Branch Chair: Society of Polymer Science, Japan
• Director: Adhesion Society of Japan
• Director: Kinki Chemical Society, Japan

Others

• 2015 Award of the Society of Polymer Science, Japan
• 2011 Award of the Adhesion Society of Japan
• 2007 Award of the Cellulose Society of Japan
• 2007 Award of the Society of Fiber Science and Technology, Japan

Prof. Paolo Milani

Paolo Milani is Full Professor at the Department of Physics of the University of Milano.

He graduated in Physics from the University of Pavia (Italy) in 1984 and he received his Docteur es Sciences (PhD) in 1991 from the Ecole Polytechnique Federale of Lausanne. He founded in 1992 the Molecular Beams and Nanocrystalline Materials Laboratory at the University of Milano.

His research focuses on cluster-assembled nanostructured materials for sensors, stretchable electronics, biomedicine, soft robotics. He has published more than 250 papers on refereed journals (H=47 GS), several review papers and a monograph on supersonic cluster beam deposition for the synthesis of nanostructured thin films.

Milani is the recipient of the U. Campisano Award from the Italian Institute for the Physics of Matter in 2000 for his contributions to the field of the synthesis and characterization of nanostructured materials. In 2006 he received the L. Tartufari Prize awarded by the Lincei National Academy.

Currently, Milani serves as Director of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Nanostructured Materials and Interfaces of the University of Milano, he is member of the scientific board of the Leonardo da Vinci National Museum of Science and Technology, and of the Mentor’s Club of PoliHub Start Up District & Incubator. He is the Coordinator of the PhD School in Medical Nanotechnology supported by the European School of Molecular Medicine and the University of Milano.

He is co-editor of the Springer book series Carbon Materials Chemistry and Physics, regional editor for Europe of the Journal of Nanoparticle Research, member of the editorial boards of Advances in Physics X, KONA Powder and Particle Journal and Journal of Aerosol Science.

He holds fifteen patents in the field of nanotechnology and he is co-founder of four start-up companies: TETHIS spa active in the field of diagnostic systems for cytogenetics, WISE srl producing stretchable electronics for neuromodulation, EOS srl producing optical diagnostic systems for nanoparticles in complex biological fluids and MANIFATTURA MACCHINE SOFFICI srl developing natural polymeric composite materials for lighting and interior design.