13 May 2022 | We are launching a new series of scientific lectures – the EuroTechTalks! One hour, fully online, open to all, and given each time by two researchers from different universities who will introduce us to their work, provide a glimpse into their latest findings, and present selected projects.
The cornerstone of the EuroTech Universities Alliance is cooperation, and so the motto of the series is “Tackling global challenges together”. With the new series, we put a spotlight on some of the excellent collaborative research conducted at the six EuroTech schools and give the floor to renowned scientists from our universities. Everybody is welcome to sign up and invite interested colleagues.
We kick off with the following two talks:
In this EuroTechTalk we will present nanophotonic and single-molecule biosensors that are being investigated at TU/e and EPFL, including research in the CONSENSE program, a European network that focusses on continuous biosensing technologies for personal health.
Prof. Prins will present biosensors for the continuous monitoring of biomolecular targets, based on measuring Brownian motion of microparticles. The sensors employ particles on a surface, where the particles as well as the surface are provided with specific binder molecules. Motion traces are recorded of hundreds of particles, each revealing digital binding and unbinding events. The events are statistically analyzed and related to the biomarker concentration in solution. Large molecules (proteins, nucleic acids) and small molecules (oligonucleotides, metabolites) are being measured across a wide range of concentrations (picomolar to millimolar). Applications in industry and healthcare will be discussed, for early warning and closed-loop control based on real-time biochemical data.
Prof. Altug will present nanophotonic technologies for optical biosensors, bioimaging and spectroscopy, based on nanofabrication, microfluidics, surface chemistry and data science. Nanoplasmonic and dielectric metasurfaces are developed for increased light-matter interaction in targeted spectral ranges including visible, near-infrared and mid-infrared. Nanofabrication methods allow high-throughput and low-cost manufacturing of nanophotonic structures and integration with microfluidics for automated sample handling. Data science tools with hyperspectral imaging and spectroscopy enable high device performances. Recent progress will be presented as well as prospects for applications.
Speakers:
- Prof. Menno Prins, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology
- Prof. Hatice Altug, Bionanophotonic Systems Laboratory, École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne
Within the EuroTechTalk, Prof. Kizel and Prof. Wudy will present the cutting-edge research they would like to conduct with 8 other partners in the newly funded EU project InShaPe. The overall aim of the InShaPe project is to develop and demonstrate in different industrial use cases (energy, aerospace and automotive) a novel first-time-right Powder Bed Fusion Process of Metals using Laser Beam (PBF-LB/M). The novel PBF process will be underpinned by two technical innovations: (i) the flexible adaptation of laser beam shapes tailored to the material/geometry of the printed parts (enabled by a first-of-a-kind optical module for beam shaping enhanced with AI-techniques to determine the right beam shapes) and; (ii) the multispectral in-line process monitoring and control system (enabled by transferring know-how from the multispectral analysis domain into additive manufacturing). InShaPe will disrupt the manufacturing sector by helping to turn PBF-LB/M from a niche into a mainstream manufacturing technology.
Speakers:
- Prof. Katrin Wudy, Professorship for Laser-based Additive Manufacturing, Technical University of Munich
- Prof. Fadi Kizel, Department of Mapping and Geoinformation Engineering, Civil & Environmental Engineering, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology
