The UAB to coordinate a project focused on excellence in advanced materials, energy and sustainability
The Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona has secured funding from the European Union to lead the Marie Sklodowska Curie COFUND PHYNEST initiative, a project of scientific excellence under the Horizon Europe programme. This funding will support the recruitment of 25 PhD students, fostering leaders in advanced materials and interdisciplinary solutions for environmental sustainability. Coordinated by the Department of Physics and led by Dr. Eva Pellicer, the project brings together various UAB departments and institutes, research centres, tech companies, and associated international partners.
The UAB has received funding from the European Union to implement the MSCA COFUND PHYNEST (PHYsics for a greener world: fostering the NExt generation of talented young researchers in novel materials, innovative STrategies and energy solutions) initiative. The UAB will receive a total of €3,960,000 from the European Union to coordinate the project, which, combined with co-funding from its the partners, will almost amount to €8 million.
The project, conceived and structured by the UAB Department of Physics, was selected in the latest HORIZON-MSCA-COFUND-2024 call by the European Union. The funding will support the recruitment of 25 PhD students for a four-year period. Coordinated by Dr Eva Pellicer, Full Professor at the Department of Physics, PHYNEST aims to train future leaders in advanced materials, innovative strategies, and groundbreaking solutions to drive the transition towards a new energy paradigm and promote environmental sustainability.
The 25 PhD students will be co-supervised by the UAB and six other entities within the region’s scientific hub: the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2), the Institute of Materials Science of Barcelona (ICMAB), the National Centre for Microelectronics (IMB-CNM), the Computer Vision Centre (CVC), the Catalan Institute for Energy Research (IREC), and the IDEADED company. The project also seeks to strengthen the research collaborations of the Department of Physics with the departments of Chemistry; Chemical, Biological and Environmental Engineering; and Electronic Egineering, and the Institute for Environmental Science and Technology (ICTA) and the Institute for the History of Science (iHC).
These implementation partners will engage in cutting-edge topics, encompassing both experimental and theoretical research, while also exploring the historical and social dimension of energy and the climate. All of this will take place in a highly collaborative, multidisciplinary, and innovative environment.
In addition, 23 partner entities from 12 countries will be involved, including 6 companies, 5 research centres and 10 universities. These partners will host researchers for secondments and/or contribute to the various actions and activities organised within the project’s framework. These partners will offer high quality scientific training and transferable skills across various domains, such as diversity, equity and inclusion, time and project management, and effective communication tailored to different audiences. The initiative will include the support of the UAB Research Park for communication activities, while AGAUR will contribute to the evaluation process of the doctoral candidates.
In addition to addressing the current energy and climate change challenges, the project seeks to strengthen the UAB Campus and the UAB Sphere’s expertise in advanced materials research, spanning from basic research to its market transfer. The initiative will consolidate collaborations, empower future leaders, and drive cutting-edge research, aligning with strategic agendas in advanced materials to promote the European Union's industrial leadership towards a green and digital transformation.
Moreover, as the creator and promoter of HubB30, an open innovation network encompassing 23 surrounding municipalities, over 30,000 companies and 15 universities, the UAB aims to promote collaboration, economic development and social cohesion in the region. This will be achieved through the interaction of the PHYNEST project’s research with the entire regional ecosystem, with the goal of transforming the dominant practices into a more resilient, digital, green, fair development model that prioritises both people and nature.