The purpose of the present proposal is to extend and improve the existing facilities and know-how at the Institute of Microelectronics (IMEL) of the National Center for Scientific Research (NCSR) “Demokritos”, recognized as Center of Excellence in Nanoelectronics and MEMS in Greece, and organize and coordinate the access to the infrastructure at regional, national and EU levels. Dissemination and networking activities will be also organized, targeting mainly, but not exclusively, collaborations with the countries in Southeastern Europe in the field of nanofabrication, nanodevices and sensors/MEMS/NEMS. With the existing expertise, know-how and state-of-the-art infrastructure and facilities, complemented by important new equipment that will be purchased within the present proposal, MiNaSys Center of Excellence (MiNaSys-CoE) aims at becoming unique in the Southeastern Europe region. The instruments for the implementation of MiNaSys-CoE will be the following: • Extending and upgrading the existing infrastructure • Recruitment of experienced scientists and engineers • Development of the access to the existing facilities and know-how • Development of networking activities and strategic partnership with other leading research groups in Europe. • Organization of scientific events, thematic sessions and seminars supporting knowledge transfer and research policy development. • Dissemination of results and activities

The semiconductor industry has been able to improve the performance of electronic system by making ever-smaller devices. However, this approach will soon encounter both scientific and technical limits, which is why the industry is exploring alternative device technologies. Carbon-based nano-electronic is currently investigated. Discovered recently, the graphene is rapidly raising star on the horizon of materials science and condensed-matter physics. Its exceptional properties make it a promising material for applications in future nanoelectronic circuits and a number of graphene based devices have been proposed theoretically or already tested. However, the current performances are still below that what expected from this magic layer. Indeed, the alternative graphene synthesis, its manipulation and its interaction with neighboring environment impact drastically its structural properties considering intrinsic or generated defects. In this context, the key objective of GRENADA proposal is to tailor the graphene’s properties and morphologies to provide high quality layers through different scalable deposition technologies. GRENADA consortium will work on graphene material development and properties investigation that be used as a final point in proof concept by operating basic systems to measure the graphene performances. Prior to that, a strong focus will be made on defects that are crucial regarding graphene properties and they will be, then, considered through their formation, evolution and their specific impact on integrated graphene properties. The consortium includes internationally renowned experimental and theoretical groups from academic and industry in advanced elaboration, modelling, characterization and industrialization methods that have a significant potential for graphene nanomaterials. That will ensure a tight focus on the exploitation of the project results for European industry.

The objective of the R&D ACCESS proposal is to identify R&D results on semiconductor design from FP7 projects and to provide these results to partners from outside the consortia. The R&D results are divided into four categories: 1) Training and Education, 2) Intellectual Properties, 3) Design Tools and 4) Design Methodologies.

COUNTING ATOMS IN NANOMATERIALS Advanced electron microscopy for solid state materials has evolved from a qualitative imaging setup to a quantitative scientific technique. This will allow us not only to probe and better understand the fundamental behaviour of (nano) materials at an atomic level but also to guide technology towards new horizons. The installation in 2009 of a new and unique electron microscope with a real space resolution of 50 pm and an energy resolution of 100 meV will make it possible to perform unique experiments. We believe that the position of atoms at an interface or at a surface can be determined with a precision of 1 pm; this precision is essential as input for modelling the materials properties. It will be first applied to explain the fascinating behaviour of multilayer ceramic materials. The new experimental limits will also allow us to literally count the number of atoms within an atomic columns; particularly counting the number of foreign atoms. This will not only require experimental skills, but also theoretical support. A real challenge is probing the magnetic and electronic information of a single atom column. According to theory this would be possible using ultra high resolution. This new probing technique will be of extreme importance for e.g. spintronics. Modern (nano) technology more and more requires information in 3 dimensions (3D), rather than in 2D. This is possible through electron tomography; this technique will be optimised in order to obtain sub nanometer precision. A final challenge is the study of the interface between soft matter (bio- or organic materials) and hard matter. This was hitherto impossible because of the radiation damage of the electron beam. With the possibility to lower the voltage to 80 kV and possibly 50 kV, maintaining more or less the resolution, we will hopefully be able to probe the active sites for catalysis.

Nanosystems are integrated systems exploiting nanoelectronic devices. In particular, this proposal considers silicon nanowire and carbon nanotube technologies as replacement/enhancement of current silicon technologies. This proposal addresses high-risk, high-reward research, unique in its kind. The broad objective of this proposal is to study system organization, architectures and design tools which, based on a deep understanding and abstraction of the manufacturing technologies, allow us to realize nanosystems that outperform current integrated systems in terms of capabilities and performance. Thus this proposal will address modelling of technological aspects, synthesis and optimization of information processing functions from high-level specifications into the nanofabric, and new design technologies for specific aspects of nanosystems including, but not limited to, sensing and interfacing with the environment. This proposal will address also cross-cutting design goals such as ultra-low power and high-dependability design, with the overall objective of realizing nanosystems that are autonomous (w.r. to energy consumption) and autonomic (i.e., self healing). The scientific novelty of this proposal stems from the use of a nanofabric, where computation, sensing and communication are supported by a homogeneous means as well as from the study of algorithmic tools for mapping high-level functions onto the nanofabric. The intrinsic benefit of this research is to provide a design flow that extends both the technological basis and the capabilities of integrated systems, thus strengthening the industrial European position in a key sector where disruptive innovation is key for survival. The extrinsic benefit of this research is to broaden the use of nanosystems to new domains, including mobile/distributed embedded systems, health/environment management, and other areas that are critical to our lives.

A wide variety of natural phenomena and technological applications involve flow, transport and chemical reactions taking place on or near fluid-solid or fluid-fluid interfaces. From gravity currents under water and lava flows to heat and mass transport processes in engineering applications and to the rapidly developing field of microfluidics. Both equilibrium properties of a fluid and transportcoefficients are modified in the vicinity of interfaces. The effect of these changes is crucial in the behavior of ultra-thin fluidfilms and fluid motion in microchannels of micro-electromechanical systems, but is essential as well in macroscopic phenomena involving interfacial singularities, such as thin-film rupture and motion of three-phase contact lines associated e.g. with droplet spreading. Interface boundaries are mesoscopic structures. While material properties vary smoothly at macroscopic distances from an interface, gradients in the normal direction of conserved parameters, such as density, are steep with strong variations as the molecular scale in the neighborhood of the interface is approached. This brings about a contradiction between the need in macroscopic description and a necessity to take into consideration microscopic factors that come to influence the fluid motion and transport on incommensurately larger scales. The aim of the proposed research is to develop a class of novel continuous models bridging the gap between molecular dynamics and conventional hydrodynamics and applicable at mesoscopic distances from gas-liquid and fluid-solid interfaces. A combination of analytical techniques, numerical modeling and computer-aided multiscale analysis will be employed. The results of the proposed work will greatly contribute to the fundamental understanding of mesoscopic non-equilibrium phenomena in the vicinity of interfaces and to the development of novel computational methods combining the advantages of molecular and continuous models.

Interfacial physicochemical processes are ubiquitous in chemistry, the life sciences and materials science, underpinning some of the most important scientific and technological challenges of the 21st century. The overarching aim of this proposal is to draw together separate strands of interfacial science by creating a unique holistic approach to the investigation of physicochemical processes and developing principles and methods which have cross-disciplinary application. To understand and optimise interfacial physicochemical processes, the major aspiration is to obtain high resolution pictures of chemical fluxes at a scale commensurate with our understanding of structure. The proposed research will address this need and break new ground by: (a) developing a family of innovative imaging methods capable of quantitatively visualising interfacial fluxes with unprecedented resolution that have wide application; and (b) establishing a common framework applicable to different fields of science through the usage of electrochemical principles. Experimental/instrumentation aspects will be supported by advanced modelling of mass transport-chemical reactivity. The research programme will focus on three distinct and important exemplar topics. (i) Electrochemical processes at new forms of carbon, including carbon nanotubes and graphene, where a major challenge is to identify the active sites for electron transfer. (ii) Membrane transport, where the goal is to identify the true factors controlling passive permeation across bilayer lipid membranes, with implications for understanding membrane function. (iii) Crystal growth/dissolution, where there is a major need to bridge kinetic and structural studies so as to understand the relationship between surface features and local flux. The project will allow a team of sufficient critical mass to be constituted to transfer knowledge between each area and establish a new way of addressing and understanding interfacial processes.

In this project we intend to design new magnetic molecules and new classes of magnetic molecular materials which, conveniently nanostructured, can be of interest in molecular spintronics, quantum computing and, in general, in nanomagnetism. The project pretends to cover either the development of molecule-based materials with interesting spintronic properties (molecule-based spintronics), as well as the design and study of magnetic molecules of interest in unimolecular spintronics and quantum computing. The objectives will be the following: - Use of molecule-based magnets for the preparation of multilayered spintronic structures (molecular spin valves) - Design of molecule-based magnetic materials exhibiting multifunctional properties (ferromagnetic superconductors, magnetic multilayers and magnetic/conducting multilayers) - Nanopatterning of magnetic nanostructures on surfaces via a molecular approach. - Chemical control of quantum spin dynamics and decoherence in single-molecule magnets based on magnetic polyoxometalates with the aim of developing qu-bits based on these inorganic molecules. - Positioning and addressing magnetic polyoxometalates on surfaces. An unconventional strategy of this project is the use of purely inorganic building blocks, as well as of inorganic magnetic molecules to design these magnetic materials, instead of using metal-organic molecular systems. This purely inorganic molecular building-block approach will benefit from the robustness of this kind of molecules and materials. Another characteristic feature of this project is the combination of top-down and bottom-up approaches for the processing of the molecules / materials. Thus, the project will exploit the advantage of using lithographic techniques (high throughput, easy scalability, etc.) in combination with the chemical bottom-up design of the molecular system, for the nanopatterning of the materials and the positioning of the molecules on surfaces with nanoscale accuracy.

Present project aims at strengthening the research cooperation between EU and Russia in the strategic field of ultrathin nanostructured dielectric materials for advanced electronic applications. This field is experiencing a continuous expansion, due to the wide possible applications, which include, among others, enhanced-performance data storage devices, catalysis, communication technologies, sensoristics and molecular electronics. Russia is a leading country in frontier research in this highly relevant technological area, and we believe that through this project the role of EU can be highly reinforced. This will be achieved through the joint participation of EU and Russian researchers in common experiments and related activities. The exchange programme will involve 7 independent partners, 5 located in EU and 2 in Russia and will have the duration of 4 years. The different partners are: 1. UNIMORE – University of Modena and Reggio Emilia (Italy) - project coordinator 2. INC – Institut Català de Nanotecnologia (Spain) 3. IMDEA – Nanociencia (Spain) 4. ESRF – European Synchrotron Radiation facility (France) 5. ILL – Institut Laue Langevin (France) 6. IOFFE – Ioffe Physical-Technical Institute, St. Petersburg (Russia) 7. PNPI – Petersburg Nuclear Physics Institute (Russia) The exchange will concern: i) the preparation and conduction of joint experiments; ii) the discussion of the results; iii) the transfer of knowledge between partners, in relation to specific expertise of individual partners; iv) the periodic organization of workshops and seminars to present the results and identify future activities - common strategies; v) the training of technical staff and researchers; vi) the creation of a research network between EU participating countries and Russian institutions in the field of the experimental investigation of hetero- and ordered nano-structures on dielectrics; vii) dissemination of the results not only within the network but also outside.

Microsystems and Bioanalysis Platforms for Health Care - MICROCARE Miniaturisation of analytical systems is generally considered to be the strategy that will overcome the requirements of process speed for performing efficient evaluation studies. By utilising the versatility of silicon micromachining to fabricate efficient minute volume microstructures, it is possible to make analysis systems that are extremely small. The benefits of miniaturisation stem from the increased reaction kinetics in low volumes and the possibility to perform sample-handling procedures at a high speeds. Our research proposal is focussed on the implementation of micro/nano fabrication technologies for functionalised systems and sensors for bio-chemical analysis and micro delivery based on microtransducer array and micromachined modules. We propose to develop microfluidic devices, surface structuring and chemical organization methods to study both synthetic and systems biology. Additionally MEMS based devices will be developed for applications in life science research. The purpose is to form a network with the following aims: 1) to exploit synergies and complementarities (expertise and facilities) within the multidisciplinary partnership, through researcher mobilization, to conduct a focused research in life science 2) to address some of the theoretical and technological challenges, e.g. static and kinetic analyses with single molecular and cellular resolution and high throughput capabilities, 3) to use micro and nano techniques to develop appropriate systems and platforms to facilitate the defined research 4) develop a set of MEMs based devices for biomedical applications and 5) create a research climate within the partnership for long term collaboration between EU and China in this particular field. Investigations will be conducted through a collaborative process facilitated by a balanced exchange of researchers within the consortium.