Nicholas Kotov

Afiliation:

University of Michigan

Biography:

Nicholas A. Kotov received his degrees from the Moscow State University with his diploma and PhD studies centered on bioinspired harvesting of solar energy. His postdoctoral studies in Syracuse University encompassed the synthesis and self-assembly of biomimetic nanocomposites. After taking a position of an Assistant Professor at Oklahoma State University he expanded the field of biomimetic processes and materials by establishing a research program on self-assembly of nanostructures. Nicholas is currently holding the rank of Irving Langmuir Distinguished University Professor of Chemical Sciences and Engineering at the University of Michigan. He heads the laboratory and international team of scientists working on practical implementations and theoretical foundations of Biomimetic Nanostructures. Self-assembly and optical properties of chiral nanoparticles and their superstructures represent a focal point for the continuum of bioinspired nanoscale materials with significance to physics, chemistry, biology, and medicine. Nicholas is a co-founder of five startup companies and a passionate advocate for scientists with disabilities.

Maurizio Prato

Afiliation:

CIC biomaGUNE

Biography:

Carbon Nanobiotechnology Group Leader at CIC biomaGUNE. Research line: Development of functional carbon-based interfaces with enhanced performance in the field of biosensing and diagnostics. Federchimica Prize, Association of the Italian Chemical Industries (1995). National Prize for Research, Italian Chemical Society (2002). Ciamician-Gonzalez Prize, Spanish Royal Society of Chemistry (2008). Nominee for the Descartes Prize for Excellence. Previous research experience in USA (Yale University, University of California), Italy (University of Trieste), France (Ecole Normale Superieure, Université de Strasbourg), Belgium (Université de Namur) and China (Xi'an Jiaotong University). Doctor in Chemistry (1978) from University of Padova, Italy, Honoris Causa Laurea in Materials Science and Technology at the University of Roma Tor Vergata (2014), Honoris Causa PhD in Chemistry, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha (2016).

Wiebke Albrecht

Afiliation:

AMOLF, Amsterdam

Biography:

Dr Wiebke Albrecht is the group leader of the Hybrid Nanosystems group at NWO-Institute AMOLF in Amsterdam. She received her PhD in Physics from Utrecht University in 2017. Afterwards she worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Antwerp and Leiden University. In 2018, she was awarded with a Marie-Curie fellowship and in 2021 she won the Minerva prize for her research activities. Her research is focused on heat and laser-induced transformations of anisotropic metal nanoparticles, which she is investigating in situ inside the transmission electron microscope. In addition, she investigates the correlation of optical and structural properties at the single-nanoparticle level by combining single-particle optical spectroscopy and advanced electron microscopy techniques.

Joerg Lahann

Afiliation:

University of Michigan

Biography:

PhD in Macromolecular Chemistry, RWTH Aachen, 1998. MS in Chemistry, RWTH Aachen, 1995. BS in Chemistry, University of Saarland, 1993. Experience: Wolfgang Pauli Collegiate Professor of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, 2019-Present; Director of Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, 2012-Present; Co-Director, Institute of Functional Interfaces, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany, 2009-Present

Ventsislav Valev

Afiliation:

University of Bath

Biography:

Ventsislav K. Valev is a Professor in the Physics Department of the University of Bath (UK). He received his PhD from the Radboud University Nijmegen (the Netherlands). Subsequently, he was a post-doc and a Research Fellow at the KU Leuven University (Belgium), and in the Cavendish Laboratory at the University of Cambridge (UK). He joined the University of Bath as a Research Fellow of the Royal Society. In 2019, he was promoted to professor, in 2021 he became the Director of Research for the Department of Physics, and in 2022 he was appointed Head of Department.

Valev’s research team focuses on the interaction between powerful laser light and nanostructured materials. He builds laser experiments to study novel materials, such as plasmonic nanostructures, metamaterials, 2D materials and quantum optical materials. He explores the physics of photons, electrons and magnetism confined to tiny volumes of space – nanoparticles or 2D sheets. He aims to discover new properties and to test theoretical predictions, seeking out new and useful intersections between classical electromagnetism and quantum mechanics. His investigations are both fundamental and applied.

Valev’s work is very interdisciplinary; it has been distinguished with the Thomas Young Medal of the Institute of Physics, the Horizon Prize from the Faraday Division of the Royal Society of Chemistry. He is a Fellow of Optica, SPIE, the Institute of Physics and the Royal Society of Chemistry.

Gustavo Bodelón

Afiliation:

CINBIO, Universidade de Vigo

Biography:

Gustavo Bodelon holds a PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular biology from the University of Santiago de Compostela. He has extensive postdoctoral experience in national and international research laboratories. He was awarded the Juan de la Cierva Scholarships from the Spanish Ministry of Science, and Severo Ochoa from the Spanish National Biotechnology Center (CNB-CSIC). His research focuses on obtaining advanced tools for biodetection and bioimaging based on the implementation of molecular biology techniques and microbiology with nanotechnology.

Joaquín Castilla

Afiliation:

CIC bioGUNE

Biography:

Professor Dr. Joaquín Castilla is a senior investigator currently working at CIC bioGUNE, with over 25 years of experience in prion research. He has worked at several prestigious research institutions, including the Serono Research Institute in Switzerland, the University of Texas Medical Branch, and Scripps-Florida, where he led an independent research group. Dr. Castilla's research focuses on prion propagation both in vitro and in vivo, exploring strain and species barriers. His notable achievements include developing sensitive prion detection methods, generating prion infectivity in vitro, detecting prions in blood, and creating diverse recombinant prions, which have provided invaluable insights into the fundamental aspects of the prion field. He has extensive experience collaborating on international projects, has supervised 20 doctoral theses, and has published over 125 peer-reviewed articles in top journals, significantly contributing to our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying prion propagation.

Nùria López

Afiliation:

ICIQ, Tarragona

Biography:

Núria López obtained her BSC Chemistry (1995) and her Ph.D. degree in Theoretical Chemistry at the University of Barcelona, Spain (1999). Then she joined the Center for Atomic-scale Materials Physics led by Prof. Jens K. Nørskov (Denmark) as post-doctoral researcher. In 2005 she started her independent career at ICIQ. Her research group focuses on the study heterogeneous photo-electro-catalysis from a theoretical standpoint. In 2010 she was awarded an ERC Starting Grant (2010) and then a ERC Proof-of-concept (2015) by the European Research Council. She was awarded a “Prize for Excellence” by the Real Sociedad Española de Química in 2015 and participated in the consortium that won the RSC’s 2022 John Jeyes Award for sustainability. She has collaborated with several industries in Europe to leverage atomistic modelling, participated in more than 10 EU projects, and served in several committees in the European Union, including the most important supercomputing initiatives in Europe (being Chair of PRACE‘s Steering Committee and INFRAG (EuroHPC-JU)).

Prof. López has an h impact of 85, has published over 300 published articles. She is a pioneer in the introduction of open data practices via ioChem-BD, the computational catalysis database developed at ICIQ.

José M. Taboada

Afiliation:

Universidad de Extremadura

Biography:

José M. Taboada received the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Electrical Engineering from the University of Vigo, Vigo, Spain. From 1998 to 2002, he worked as a researcher at the University of Vigo. In 2002, he joined the School of Technology at the University of Extremadura, Spain, as an Associate Professor, and was promoted to Full Professor in 2019. His research focuses on the development of advanced techniques in computational electromagnetics (CEM). He has made significant contributions to the application of high-performance computing (HPC) for solving extremely large and multi-scale problems in CEM . For these achievements, he received the Partnership for Advanced Computing in Europe (PRACE) Award and the Intel Itanium Solutions Alliance Innovation Award. He is a co-founder of the spin-off EM3WORKS, which is dedicated to technology transfer in the areas of electromagnetic compatibility and interference (EMC/EMI). He is currently leading research efforts focused on the development of advanced HPC-CEM techniques to address cutting-edge challenges in nanoscience and nanotechnology, where there is a growing demand for intensive simulation tools capable of delivering highly accurate results and exceptional computational performance.

Soon

Afiliation:

CINBIO, Universidade de Vigo

Biography:

Miguel A. Correa-Duarte received his PhD degree in Chemistry from Universidade de Vigo in 2002. Then, he performed postdoctoral stays at CAESAR (Germany) and Arizona State University (USA). He currently holds a position as Full Professor in the Department of Physical Chemistry at Universidade de Vigo and leads CINBIO Research Centre and TeamNanoTech, group engaged in the design and synthesis of nanomaterials toward the development of novel applications as well as their implementation on devices. Correa-Duarte has published more than 100 papers in high impact journals and licensed 5 patents. He has been the PI of 15 national and international projects and currently heads the Galician Network of Nanomedicine.