Supervisor: Fabrizio Pirri, Giancarlo Cicero, Elena Tresso, Andrea Lamberti, Stefano Bianco, Sergio Ferrero, Samuele Porro, Luciano Scaltrito, Matteo Cocuzza, Francesca Frascella
Possible research lines the PhD student may be involved in:
1) Materials and devices for Energy harvesting and storage
This research activity aims at developing new devices to store electrical energy by exploiting the double charge layer occurring in supercapacitors made of novel materials and through innovative technologies. In particular, we will develop 2D nanostructures materials (e.g. graphene, transition metal dichalcogenides and MXenes) by means of scalable techniques such as laser writing. After the characterization of the photo-chemical properties of these materials, the best performing ones will be integrated in different cell architectures. A possible application consists of the realization of flexible devices for wearable electronics and their integration with energy harvesting devices, with the aim of realizing energetically independent hybrid energy harvesting/storage devices. This new class of devices will allow the achievement of off-grid distributed sensing for environmental monitoring or to check human body activity.
2) 2D material based membranes
This research activity deals with the study of 2D nanostructured materials (e.g. graphene, transition metal dichalcogenides and MXenes) to be employed in the production of novel functional membranes. The developed membranes will find application in environmental purification processes or in energy harvesting devices. As far as the environmental application, the membranes produced in the laboratory will be tested for their ability to selectivity remove pollutants from gaseous or liquid phases (e.g. organic contaminants). Ionic selective membranes are instead of particular interest for application in “blue energy” harvesting, i.e. recovering energy from salinity gradient, thus they will be integrated in innovative reverse electrodialysis systems.
3) Innovative Biosensors development (1)
This research activity aims at developing new technologies and platforms aiming at the early diagnosis of oncological and neurodegenerative diseases. The activity will be focusing on several aspects ranging from the development of new materials and devices to the design of new methods for the study and analysis of biomarkers, starting from liquid biopsy, serum or plasma. The realized prototypes will be finalized as high technology Lab on Chip devices to support early diagnosis through the purification and identification of specific markers at low concentrations; or as 3D structured polymeric devices to support the development of in vitro biological models for pharmacological screening capable of emulating the cellular and structural complexity of the pathological environment.
4) Innovative Biosensors development (2)
The activity aims at developing a versatile 2D photonics platform based on hyperbolic metamaterials arranged in a planar geometry (HMM) so to design the local density of photonic states (LDOS) on the surface. To realize the aforementioned materials, we will exploit the ability of ad-hoc synthesized block copolymers (BCP) to self-assemble into ordered arrays of nanostructures. BCPs are used as models for the subsequent fabrication of hybrid metal-dielectric nanometric structures. The final objective will be to obtain a highly sensitive platform capable of detecting low concentration biomolecules, such as mi-RNA extracted from exosomes.
5) 3D printable materials for new devices
In the activity, the PhD student will carry the realization of next-generation devices with 3D printing technique through the development of new functional materials. The synergy between the material properties and design of the device can significantly improve the properties of the structure or obtain new features not present in the starting material. During the PhD, the candidate will take care of the development of new formulations and post-treatments for obtaining 3D structures of unconventional 3D printable materials (i.e. carbons, glasses...). The candidate will then evaluate, using modeling techniques and experimental analyzes, how different designs modify the physical properties of the structure (e.g. periodic structures for metamaterials) for the purpose of their application in optical and sensor fields.
1)
- PE3_1 Structure of solids, material growth and characterisation
- PE3_3 Transport properties of condensed matter
- PE3_4 Electronic properties of materials, surfaces, interfaces, nanostructures
- PE3_10 Nanophysics, e.g. nanoelectronics, nanophotonics, nanomagnetism, nanoelectromechanics
- PE4_1 Physical chemistry
- PE4_4 Surface science and nanostructures
- PE4_17 Characterisation methods of materials
- PE5_1 Structural properties of materials
- PE5_3 Surface modification
- PE5_4 Thin films
- PE5_5 Ionic liquids
- PE5_6 New materials: oxides, alloys, composite, organic-inorganic hybrid, nanoparticles
- PE8_6 Energy processes engineering
2)
- PE3_1 Structure of solids, material growth and characterisation
- PE3_4 Electronic properties of materials, surfaces, interfaces, nanostructures
- PE3_10 Nanophysics, e.g. nanoelectronics, nanophotonics, nanomagnetism, nanoelectromechanics
- PE4_1 Physical chemistry
- PE4_4 Surface science and nanostructures
- PE4_17 Characterisation methods of materials
- PE5_1 Structural properties of materials
- PE5_3 Surface modification
- PE5_4 Thin films
3)
- PE3_1 Structure of solids, material growth and characterisation
- PE4_8 Electrochemistry, electrodialysis, microfluidics, sensors
4)
- PE3_1 Structure of solids, material growth and characterisation
- PE11_13 Metamaterials engineering
5)
- PE3_4 Electronic properties of materials, surfaces, interfaces, nanostructures
- PE11_4 Engineering of polymers and plastics