Prochain événements

Après plus de 100 jours de fermeture, la Bibliothèque a partiellement réouvert ses portes aux étudiants EPFL (sur réservation) le 1^er juillet 2020. Nous vous proposons le concours Instagram #backatEPFLlibrary pour immortaliser le retour des étudiants au Rolex Learning Center en cette période de révision si particulière. Les auteurs des trois meilleurs clichés sélectionnés par les bibliothécaires recevront des prix. Alors tous à vos smartphones et welcome back at EPFL Library !

Principe et fonctionnement
La Bibliothèque de l’EPFL organise un concours photo sur son compte Instagram https://www.instagram.com/epfllibrary/. Chaque participant, pour autant qu'il réponde aux conditions de participation, photographie et publie sur Instagram une photo mettant en scène le thème du concours #backatEPFLlibrary. L'interprétation du thème reste libre dans les limites des conditions d’utilisation de la page Instagram de la Bibliothèque de l’EPFL. Les participants prennent soin d'ajouter à leurs photos l’hashtag #backatEPFLlibrary. Les photos publiées dans le cadre du concours sont consultables en cherchant l'hashtag susmentionné.

Délais
La période de participation s'étend du jeudi 2 juillet au dimanche 9 août 2020, minuit (GMT+1). Les photos doivent être postées dans l'intervalle du concours ; celles publiées avant ou après cet intervalle ne seront pas prises en compte. Les gagnants seront annoncés dans les jours suivant la fin du concours.

Participation
Est libre de participer au concours toute personne possédant un compte Instagram et étant abonnée au compte de la Bibliothèque @EPFLlibrary, avec un compte ouvert (nous ne pourrons malheureusement pas voir vos photos si votre compte est privé; avertissez-nous si c'est le cas, et nous vous suivrons). Seule condition pour participer au concours : la photo doit être en rapport avec le thème #backatEPFLlibrary. Chaque participant est libre de poster jusqu'à 3 photos dans le cadre du concours. Les photos postées par les participants doivent être leur propre création. Les photos peuvent être prises avec un téléphone portable ou un appareil photo numérique.

Droit à l'image
Dans le cas d'une photographie d'une/de personne(s) dans un contexte particulier, le participant a pour obligation d'informer la personne photographiée des conditions ci-présentes, et d'obtenir son autorisation pour publier sa photo dans le cadre du concours.

Dotation
À l'issue du concours, le jury déterminera trois vainqueurs qui seront récompensés par des prix. Les vainqueurs seront contactés par message privé sur Instagram.

Utilisation des photos
La Bibliothèque de l’EPFL se réserve le droit de publier sur ses propres canaux de communication, médias sociaux et supports de communication les photos des participants, notamment pour annoncer les gagnants du concours. La Bibliothèque de l’EPFL mentionne et crédite les auteurs des photos sous une licence Creative Commons CC-BY.

Modifications des modalités et acceptation du règlement
La participation au concours requiert l’acceptation totale et sans réserve du présent règlement. En participant au concours, le participant exprime son accord avec le règlement. Le non-respect du règlement entraîne l’annulation de la participation du participant au concours. Toutes contestations relatives à l’interprétation ou à l’application du présent règlement seront tranchées définitivement par l’organisateur, sans autres formes de recours. L'organisateur peut, sans justification nécessaire, exclure du concours une photo qu'il jugerait inappropriée.
L’organisateur se réserve le droit de modifier le règlement, voire de reporter ou d’annuler la tenue du concours si des circonstances le justifient.
Tout recours juridique est exclu.

Bibliothèque de l’EPFL, Lausanne, juillet 2020
 
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Ingrid Le Duc

What are the good reasons to flip a class? How to flip your class? This workshop will introduce the participants to the various forms of flipped classroom designs and to the different instructional techniques that can be used. Hands-on activities will allow the participants to work on the design of their own course.

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L’innovation a lieu lorsque le business, le design, et la tech se rencontrent. 

Dans le cadre d'une série de conférences virtuelles et de masterclasses (en personne), les intervenants de renommée internationale partageront leur expérience, des études de cas et les coulisses de l’innovation en Suisse, au sein de la Silicon Valley, et dans le reste du monde. Ils partageront également leurs outils et méthodes pratiques qui inspirent au quotidien des milliers de spécialistes et les entreprises les plus innovantes au monde. 

Innovation Today (#itoday) se concentre sur des personnalités inspirantes:  penseurs, auteurs de best-sellers et créateurs qui ont un impact direct sur le monde actuel et futur. 

Avec les intervenants suivants:

• Alex Osterwalder & Yves Pigneur sont les inventeurs du Business Model Canvas et auteurs de Business Model Generation vendu plus de 1,5 million d'exemplaires en 30 langues. Ils sont détenteurs du prestigieux prix Thinkers50 Strategy Award (#4)
• Jake Knapp (USA) est l'inventeur de la méthodologie Design Sprint de Google Venture. Il est considéré comme l'un des Product Designers les plus influents au monde. Il a coach des équipes dans des organisations telles que Google, Slack, LEGO, IDEO et la NASA sur leur stratégie de design et d’innovation et leur gestion du temps.
• Surya Vanka (USA) est un designer transdisciplinaire qui travaille à la pointe des expériences physiques et numériques. Il est le fondateur de Authentic Design, président émérite du Seattle Design. Festival et a été chairman de l’Interaction week d'IXDA. Surya est un ancien directeur de l'expérience utilisateur (UX) chez Microsoft.
• Ramatoulaye A. Diallo (SEN) est la CEO d'Orange Money au Sénégal et directrice des services financiers mobiles du pôle Orange Sonatel dans 5 pays. Sa mission est de créer des produits, des services et des communautés qui améliorent la vie de millions de personnes en Afrique.
• Professeur Marc Gruber (DE; CH) est vice-président de l'Innovation à l’EPFL de Lausanne, professeur titulaire au Collège de management de la technologie de l'EPFL où il est titulaire de la chaire d'entrepreneuriat et de commercialisation de la technologie (ENTC). Il est aussi co-auteur de Where to Play.
• Katie Swindler (USA) est une stratège de l'expérience utilisateur chez Allstate insurance, et auteur de Life & Death Design. Elle estime que si les marques souhaitent réellement établir un lien avec les consommateurs, elles doivent combiner émotion et fonction, storytelling et technologie.
• Jonas Vonlanthen (CH) est partenaire de Liip Digital Progress, expert suisse en gestion agile et en auto-organisation. En tant qu'associé chez Liip, il se concentre sur l'évolution de l'organisation, qui est passée d'un système de gouvernance hiérarchique à un système de gouvernance autogéré (holacratie).

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Siara Isaac

This online workshop offers a participative example of how to increase engagement and interaction during live streaming online sessions, including when you have some students in the classroom. The research evidence, e.g. from cognitive science, in favour of active learning is very strong. However, the challenges of stimulating high engagement online are daunting.
This workshop will prompt you to consider how you can successfully translate your on campus approach to online, or hybrid online/on campus. We will explore some interaction strategies, and also dig into the micro actions (phrasing, timing, etc.) that make the difference between a flat and sparkling level of student participation.

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Gautam Maitra, AC Immune
Hasnaà Haddouck, Swedish Orphan Biovitrum
Norma Shafer, Steadmed Mediacal
Ary Saaman, Debiotech
Claude Amman, Amman Consulting
Ajit Simh, San Diego
Matthew Scherer, FDA - Europe Office

4-week fully online course (60-70 hours in total) jointly organized by EPFL and the College of Sciences, San Diego State University. Experienced instructors from Europe and the US will introduce you to the fundamentals of drug/device development, and the requirements for regulatory and quality compliance. You will have exposure to the requirements in Europe and the US in terms of the approach, the attitude to risk-taking, and the cultural divide.

Who can participate?

• Members of Swiss Academic Institutions with a minimum of a Bachelor degree, in a relevant field
• Members of early Start-ups, linked to a Swiss University, may be eligible; please contact the organizer

Practical information:

• Starts on September 7, 2020
• 4-weeks fully online interactive course with a total of 60-70 hours, including lectures, team-work and self-study
• Jointly organized by EPFL and the College of Sciences, San Diego State University
• Highly experienced instructors from Europe and US, including member of FDA
• Pricing: non-EPFL members 400 CHF, EPFL members 200 CHF
• Limited participants, first come first served

Why should you participate?
Advances in biotechnology, medical technology, and information technology give new hope for treating diseases never imagined before. To bring these advances from the laboratory bench to the patient bedside requires training and experience that are not available in academia, this course is intended to fill that gap.
Students who successfully complete this course will be able to:

• Describe the major steps of the drug and device development process from bench to bed-side
• Compare and contrast US and European Union regulatory and quality requirements
• Discuss the basics of a Quality Management System
• Develop a Product Profile for a drug/device product or therapy
• Draft the basic components of a Development Plan for a Phase 1 clinical trial, including a pre-clinical Plan, a Clinical Trial Protocol, and CMC (Chemistry, Manufacturing and Controls) Plan
• Work with other life science professionals on a team
• Feel more confident about job seeking and job interviews

 
More info and registration

• Catalyze4Life - Educate to innovate
• Pre-registration
• Contact program director Kostas Kaloulis catalyze4life@epfl.ch  

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Siara Isaac

This online workshop offers a participative example of how to increase engagement and interaction during live streaming online sessions, including when you have some students in the classroom. The research evidence, e.g. from cognitive science, in favour of active learning is very strong. However, the challenges of stimulating high engagement online are daunting.
This workshop will prompt you to consider how you can successfully translate your on campus approach to online, or hybrid online/on campus. We will explore some interaction strategies, and also dig into the micro actions (phrasing, timing, etc.) that make the difference between a flat and sparkling level of student participation.

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Prof. Dr. Anne Ladegaard Skov,
Technical University of Denmark, DTU

Institute of Microengineering - Distinguished Lecture

Campus Lausanne BM 5202 (live)
Campus Microcity MC B0 302 (video)
Zoom Live Stream: https://epfl.zoom.us/j/927149523

Abstract: Soft robotics put a demand forward for softer and softer materials with mechanical integrity and stability over time. Hydrogels are natural candidates with respect to the softness and to some extent with respect to the mechanical integrity, but over time, hydrogels change properties due to the change of water content. Silicone elastomers are the excellent for soft robotics due to their inherent softness, mechanical integrity and stability both with respect to temperature (between -100 and 300◦C) and deformation (mechanical stability for more than 100 mio cycles is not uncommon). However, silicone elastomers are challenged with demands of elastic moduli below ~500 kPa. Various network structures have been made to decrease the elastic moduli beyond the natural lower limit arising from the elastic response from entanglements. Amongst these structures are slide-ring elastomers, bottlebrush elastomers, and a completely novel type of elastomer where the origin of elasticity is currently not understood. The pros and cons of these network synthesis methods and the resulting properties will be discussed in this talk.

Bio: Anne Ladegaard Skov is a professor of polymer science and engineering specialising in design and utilization of silicone elastomers in the Danish Polymer Centre at Department of Chemical Engineering, DTU. She holds a PhD in polymer physics from DTU. She was a research fellow at Cambridge University, UK, before taking up a position as assistant professor at DTU. She has headed the Danish Polymer Centre sinde 2016. In 2018 she was promoted to full professor. She has worked with functionalisation and formulation of silicone elastomers with main focus on silicone elastomers used and optimised for dielectric elastomers and more recently for flexible electronics and drug delivery amongst others.


Note: The Seminar Series is eligible for ECTS credits in the EDMI doctoral program

Note: After the lecture, there will be time for discussion and interaction with the distinguished speaker, sandwich lunch and refreshments sponsored by the Institute of Microengineering will be provided for attendees in front of the lecture hall (BM 5104, ca. 13h15)

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Prof. Fiona Meldrum, Leeds University, U.K.


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Prof.Radhika Nagpal

Prof. Radhika Nagpal est la Fred Kavli professeur de l'école d'ingénierie et de sciences appliquées Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering de l'université de Harvard.

Résumé :


Le Centre pour les systèmes intelligents de l'EPFL (CIS) est une collaboration entre IC, SB et STI qui réunit des chercheurs travaillant sur différents aspects des systèmes intelligents. En juin 2020, le CIS a lancé ses Colloques CIS avec des orateurs invités de renom.
Plus d'info https://www.epfl.ch/research/domains/cis/center-for-intelligent-systems-cis/events/colloquia/

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Prof. Jeff Grossman, MIT, USA


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La Startup Champions Seed Night est un événement annuel de présentation de start-ups qui réunit les entrepreneurs les plus prometteurs de l'EPFL et d'ailleurs, des investisseurs, des mentors, des leaders de l'industrie et des scientifiques pour un public de plus de 250 personnes. L'objectif de l'événement est de présenter à la communauté des projets entrepreneuriaux à croissance rapide et d'éduquer le public sur l'investissement de départ.

Plus d'informations sur la page EPFL Alumni.

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Prof. Melanie Blokesch

Abstract:
Cholera is a devastating diarrheal disease that sickens millions of people each year. Despite incredible progress over the past hundred years in our understanding of the pathogen’s virulence mechanisms, we still lack crucial information related to its transmission. While we know that the route of transmission occurs mostly via contaminated water, it is still not entirely clear why cholera outbreaks in endemic regions often follow seasonal patterns. Indeed, the environmental aspects of the causative agent of the disease, the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, have so far been insufficiently studied at the molecular level. In my talk, I will address this knowledge gap and present insights into the pathogen’s environmental lifestyle including its potential to form bacterial communities on biotic surfaces and its evolvability. I will also show how the bacterium actively seeks genetic material from neighbors while defending itself against mobile genetic mobile elements, bacterial competitors, and eukaryotic grazers. I will end my talk with speculations on how these environmental features might prime the pathogen for interbacterial competition and intestinal colonization.
Short Bio:
Melanie Blokesch obtained her doctoral degree in Biology from the Ludwig-Maximilians-University in Munich, where her research focused on metalloenzyme maturation and hydrogen production in bacteria. During a four years postdoctoral stay within the Department of Microbiology & Immunology of Stanford University, USA she switched her research topic towards the study of infectious agents. She joined the faculty of the School of Life Sciences of EPFL in 2009, first as Assistant Professor and later as Associate Professor. While at EPFL, she obtained two consecutive ERC grants, became a Howard Hughes Medical Institute International Research Scholar, and was elected as a member of the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO). As service to the community, she also accepted her election to the National Research Council of the Swiss National Science Foundation in 2018.
 
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Dr Julien Bras, Nestlé


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Dr. Jan Kerschgens, Directeur exécutif du CIS
 

Le Centre pour les systèmes intelligents de l'EPFL (CIS) est une collaboration entre IC, SB et STI qui réunit des chercheurs travaillant sur différents aspects des systèmes intelligents.
 
Afin de promouvoir les échanges entre chercheurs et d'encourager la création de nouveaux projets collaboratifs, le CIS organise une série de conférences intitulée "Get to know your neighbors". Chaque séminaire consistera en une ou deux courtes présentations générales destinées au grand public à l'EPFL.
 
Par Zoom : https://epfl.zoom.us/j/95904377229
 
Lundi 5 octobre 2020 de 15h15 à 16h15


NB : Des enregistrements vidéo des séminaires seront disponibles sur notre site internet et publiés sur nos pages de médias sociaux
 

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Prof. Dr. Donhee Ham,
Harvard University

Institute of Microengineering - Distinguished Lecture

Campus Lausanne BM 5202 (live)
Campus Microcity MC B0 302 (video)
Zoom Live Stream: https://epfl.zoom.us/j/934241343

Abstract: Massively parallel, intracellular recording of a large number of mammalian neurons across a network has been a great technological pursuit in neurobiology, but it has not been achieved until our recent breakthrough [1]. For example, the intracellular recording by the patch clamp revolutionized neurobiology with its unparalleled sensitivity that can measure down to subthreshold synaptic activities, but it is too bulky to scale into a dense array, and only ~10 parallel patch recordings have so far been possible. For another example, the microelectrode array (MEA) can record from many more neurons, but this extracellular technique has too low a sensitivity to tap into synaptic events. In this talk, I will share the recent breakthrough of ours [1], a CMOS nanoelectrode array that massively parallelizes the intracellular recording from thousands of connected mammalian neurons. I will also explore the applications of this unprecedented tool in fundamental and applied neurobiology, in particular, functional connectome mapping, high-throughput drug screening for neurological disorder, and copying biological neuronal networks as a possible new synthesis of machine intelligence.

[1] J. Abbott et al, “A nanoelectrode array for obtaining intracellular recordings from thousands of connected neurons,”  Nature Biomed. Eng., doi: 10.1038/s41551-019-0455-7 (2019)

Bio: Donhee Ham is Gordon McKay Professor of Applied Physics and EE at Harvard and Samsung Fellow. He earned a BS in physics from Seoul National University. Following a military service, he went to Caltech for graduate training, where he worked in LIGO under Prof. Barry Barish in physics, and later obtained a PhD in EE winning the Wilts Prize for the best EE thesis. His experiences/recognitions include IBM T. J. Watson Research, distinguished visiting professorship at Seoul National University, IEEE conference committees (e.g., ISSCC), distinguished lecturer for IEEE SSC Society, associate editor for IEEE TBioCAS, IBM faculty fellowship, and MIT TR35. His intellectual focus includes neuro-electronic interface, neuromorphic processor, low-dimensional and quantum devices, NMR technology, and integrated circuits.


Note: The Seminar Series is eligible for ECTS credits in the EDMI doctoral program

Note: After the lecture, there will be time for discussion and interaction with the distinguished speaker, sandwich lunch and refreshments sponsored by the Institute of Microengineering will be provided for attendees in front of the lecture hall (BM 5104, ca. 13h15)

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Prof. Sara Bals, University of Antwerp, Belgium

Nanomaterials are important for a wide range of applications because of their unique properties, which are strongly connected to their three-dimensional (3D) structure. Electron tomography has therefore been used in an increasing number of studies. Most of these investigations resulted in 3D reconstructions with a resolution at the nanometer scale, but also atomic resolution was achieved in 3D. However, the increasing complexity of nanomaterials has driven the development of even more advanced 3D characterization techniques. 
 
Moreover, in order to preserve the carefully designed morphologies and functionalities, understanding the stability of nanomaterials during application is of equal importance. It is hereby important to note that most electron tomography investigations have been performed at the conventional conditions of an electron microscope. An emerging challenge is therefore  to fully understand the connection between the 3D structure and properties under realistic conditions, including high temperatures as well as in the presence of liquids and gases. Therefore, innovative methodologies are required to track the fast 3D changes of nanomaterials that occur under such conditions.
 

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Prof. Helena van Swygenhoven, EPFL, Switzerland

Thanks to the increased brightness of xray and neutron beams at large facilities and to the enormous progress made in detector technology, insitu and operando experiments have become possible, adding the timescale to microstructural and mechanical characterization techniques. Compared to traditional post-mortem studies, such experiments enable an easier interpretation of processes occurring in materials under service or synthesis, allowing pinning down the chronological sequence between events and providing accurate input for computational modeling.
This lecture will illustrate recent insitu and operando experiments that NXMM/PEM carried out at the Swiss large facilities SLS and SINQ using scattering/diffraction and imaging techniques. Topics such as laser based additive manufacturing of net-shaped metal and ceramic components, phase transformations under multiaxial loading and precipitation mechanism in gold alloys will be addressed.
 

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Prof. Ralph Claessen, Würzburg University, Germany


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Madame Kay Firth-Butterfield

Madame Kay Firth-Butterfield est actuellement responsable de l'IA et de l'apprentissage automatique et membre du comité exécutif du Forum Economique Mondial.

Résumé :


Le Centre pour les systèmes intelligents de l'EPFL (CIS) est une collaboration entre IC, SB et STI qui réunit des chercheurs travaillant sur différents aspects des systèmes intelligents. En juin 2020, le CIS a lancé ses Colloques CIS avec des orateurs invités de renom.
Plus d'info https://www.epfl.ch/research/domains/cis/center-for-intelligent-systems-cis/events/colloquia/

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Prof. Dr. Allard Mosk,
Utrecht University

Institute of Microengineering - Distinguished Lecture

Campus Lausanne BM 5202 (live)
Campus Microcity MC B0 302 (video)
Zoom Live Stream: https://epfl.zoom.us/j/119888136

Abstract: Random scattering of light, which takes place in paper, paint and biological tissue is an obstacle to imaging and focusing of light and thus hampers applications ranging from laser ablation to precision measurements. At the same time scattering is a phenomenon of basic physical interest as it allows the study of fascinating interference effects such as open transport channels [1,2], which enable lossless transport of waves through strongly scattering materials. The frequency bandwidth of these channels [3] is critical to their usefulness as it determines their ability to carry pulses and their information-carrying capacity. After a broad overview of the field, we present new measurements of the frequency bandwidth and intensity fluctuations in these channels. Moreover, we show that  optimizing the incident light wave is essential to  extract precise information about the position of any scatterer. The information we retrieve turns out to be limited by our knowledge of the position of the other scatterers and the local density of states [5].

Bio: Allard Mosk (1970) started his physics career in ultracold atomic gases with work in Amsterdam (Ph.D. 1994), Heidelberg, and Paris, performing the first observation of a Feshbach resonance in Li, and of photoassociation of H. In 2003 he joined the Complex Photonic Systems group at the University of Twente. where he pioneered wavefront shaping methods to focus and image through strongly scattering media. Since 2015 he holds a chair at Utrecht University, The Netherlands, where he studies statistical properties of light in complex scattering media with a view on imaging and optical precision measurements.

Note: The Seminar Series is eligible for ECTS credits in the EDMI doctoral program

Note: After the lecture, there will be time for discussion and interaction with the distinguished speaker, sandwich lunch and refreshments sponsored by the Institute of Microengineering will be provided for attendees in front of the lecture hall (BM 5104, ca. 13h15)

References:

1. A. P. Mosk, A. Lagendijk, G. Lerosey, and M. Fink, Controlling waves in space and time for imaging and focusing in complex media, Nat. Photon., 6, 283 (2012).
2. I.M. Vellekoop and A.P. Mosk, Universal optimal transmission of light through disordered materials, Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 120601 (2008).
3. Jeroen Bosch, Sebastianus A. Goorden, and Allard P. Mosk, Frequency width of open channels in multiple scattering media, Opt. Expr. 24, 26472-26478 (2016)
4. X. Xu, X. Xie, A. Thendiyammal, H. Zhuang, J. Xie, Y. Liu, J. Zhou, and A. P. Mosk, Imaging of objects through a thin scattering layer using a spectrally and spatially separated reference, Opt. Express 26 (12), 15073–15083 (2018).
5. D. F. Bouchet, R. Carminati, and A. P. Mosk, Influence of the local density of states on the localization precision of single particles in scattering environments, arXiv. org 1909.02501 (2019).

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Prof. Paulina Plochocka, CNRS Toulouse, France

High environmental stability and surprisingly high efficiency of solar cells based on 2D perovskites have renewed interest in these materials. These natural quantum wells consist of planes of metal-halide octahedra, separated by organic spacers.  Remarkably the organic spacers play crucial role in optoelectronic properties of these compounds.The characteristic for ionic crystal coupling of excitonic species to lattice vibration became particularly important in case of soft perovskite lattice. The nontrivial mutual dependencies between lattice dynamics, organic spacers and electronic excitation manifest in a complex absorption and emission spectrum which detailed origin is subject of ongoing controversy. First, I will discuss electronic properties of 2D perovskites with different thicknesses of the octahedral layers and two types of organic spacer.  I will demonstrate that the energy spacing of excitonic features depends on organic spacer but very weakly depends on octahedral layer thickness. This indicates the vibrionic progression scenario which is confirmed by high magnetic fields studies up to 67T. Finally, I will show that in 2D perovskites, the distortion imposed by the organic spacers governs the effective mass of the carriers.  As a result, and unlike in any other semiconductor, the effective mass in 2D perovskites can be easily tailored.  
 

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Prof. Nic Spencer, ETH Zürich, Switzerland

Cartilage is an extraordinary material, both in terms of its impressive lubricious properties and the
fact that it continues to function, without a blood supply, for many decades, providing very low friction coefficients. In the simplest terms, cartilage consists of a hydrogel material with a stiffness gradient that interfaces to bone, attached, at the outer edge, to loose polysaccharide chains, which are thought to provide a lubricating function. Polymer brushes, which bear a resemblance to these loose chains, are well known for their lubricious properties, but when coating hard-hard contacts, minor disturbances in tribological conditions or the inclusion of foreign bodies, can rapidly lead to catastrophic failure, as asperities on one hard countersurface encouter the opposing brush. This problem is significantly reduced when the underlying substrate is soft, as in the cartilage case. When imitating cartilage, elastomers can provide this soft base layer, but an even more effective substrate for brushes in tribological applications is a gel. These can be readily tailored to ensure compatibility with the brush, and provide a number of cushioning functions, including elastic, viscoelastic, and porelastic, depending on the loading conditions. In our laboratory, we have explored a variety of systems for imitating cartilage, some of which have actually reached comparable friction coefficients to those observed in cartilage, as well as toughness values and wear resistance that render them of interest for medical and industrial applications.
 

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Prof. Jan van Hest, Eindhoven University of Technology, The Netherlands

Compartmentalization is generally regarded as one of the key prerequisites for life. To better understand the role of compartmentalization, there is a clear need for model systems that can be adapted in a highly controlled fashion, and in which life-like properties can be installed. Polymer-based compartments are robust and chemically versatile, and as such are a useful platform for the development of life-like compartments. In this lecture we discuss polymer vesicles, which are modified in shape and function to show life-like features as catalytic activity, motility and transient behavior.  A second platform technology is based on complex coacervates, stabilized by a biodegradable block copolymer. The specific feature of the polymer membrane is its semipermeable character.  Enzymes inside the protocell can therefore still be reached by their substrates, and small molecule products can be excreted. This allows protocell communication with this robust synthetic platform.

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Prof. Dr. Alberto Salleo,
Stanford University

Institute of Microengineering - Distinguished Lecture

Campus Lausanne BM 5202 (live)
Campus Microcity MC B0 302 (video)
Zoom Live Stream: https://epfl.zoom.us/j/843927942

Abstract: Organic semiconductors have been traditionally developed for making low-cost and flexible transistors, solar cells and light-emitting diodes. In the last few years, emerging applications in health case and bioelectronics have been proposed. A particularly interesting class of materials in this application area takes advantage of mixed ionic and electronic conduction in certain semiconducting polymers. Indeed, the ability to transduce ionic fluxes into electrical currents is useful when interacting with living matter or bodily fluids. My presentation will first discuss the fundamental aspects of how mixed conduction works in polymeric materials and show some applications in biosensing. The bulk of my talk will focus on polymer-based artificial synapses.
The brain can perform massively parallel information processing while consuming only ~1- 100 fJ per synaptic event. I will describe a novel electrochemical neuromorphic device that switches at record-low energy (<0.1 fJ projected, <10 pJ measured) and voltage (< 1mV, measured), displays >500 distinct, non-volatile conductance states within a ~1 V operating range. Furthermore, it achieves record classification accuracy when implemented in neural network simulations. Our organic neuromorphic device works by combining ionic (protonic) and electronic conduction and is essentially similar to a concentration battery. The main advantage of this device is that the barrier for state retention is decoupled from the barrier for changing states, allowing for the extremely low switching voltages while maintaining non-volatility. Our synapses display outstanding speed (<20 ns) and endurance achieving over 10⁹ switching events with very little degradation all the way to high temperature (up to 120°C). These properties, which are unheard of in the realm of organic semiconcuctors, are very promising in terms of the ability to integrate with Si electronics to demonstrate online learning and inference. When connected to an appropriate access device our device exhibits excellent linearity, which is an important consideration for neural networks that learn with blind updates.

Bio: Alberto Salleo is currently Full Professor of Materials Science and Department Chair at Stanford University. Alberto Salleo holds a Laurea degree in Chemistry from La Sapienza and graduated as a Fulbright Fellow with a PhD in Materials Science from UC Berkeley in 2001. From 2001 to 2005 Salleo was first post-doctoral research fellow and successively member of research staff at Xerox Palo Alto Research Center. In 2005 Salleo joined the Materials Science and Engineering Department at Stanford as an Assistant Professor in 2006. Salleo is a Principal Editor of MRS Communications since 2011.While at Stanford, Salleo won the NSF Career Award, the 3M Untenured Faculty Award, the SPIE Early Career Award, the Tau Beta Pi Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award, and the Gores Award for Excellence in Teaching, Stanford’s highest teaching award. He has been a Thomson Reuters Highly Cited Researcher since 2015, recognizing that he ranks in the top 1% cited researchers in his field.

Note: The Seminar Series is eligible for ECTS credits in the EDMI doctoral program

Note: After the lecture, there will be time for discussion and interaction with the distinguished speaker, sandwich lunch and refreshments sponsored by the Institute of Microengineering will be provided for attendees in front of the lecture hall (BM 5104, ca. 13h15)

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Prof. Alex Hoffmann, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA


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Prof. Laura De Laporte, Leibniz Institute / RWTH Aachen, Germany

We apply polymeric molecular and nano- to micron-scale building blocks to assemble soft 3D biomaterials with anisotropic and dynamic properties. Microgels and fibers are produced by technologies based on fiber spinning, microfluidics, and in-mold polymerization. To arrange the building blocks in a spatially controlled manner, self-assembly mechanisms and assembly by external magnetic fields are employed. For example, the Anisogel technology offers a solution to regenerate sensitive tissues with an oriented architecture, which requires a low invasive therapy. It can be injected as a liquid and structured in situ in a controlled manner with defined biochemical, mechanical, and structural parameters. Magnetoceptive, anisometric microgels or short fibers are incorporated to create a unidirectional structure. Cells and nerves grow in a linear manner and the fibronectin produced by fibroblasts is aligned. Regenerated nerves are functional with spontaneous activity and electrical signals propagating along the anisotropy axis of the material. Another developed platform is a thermoresponsive hydrogel system, encapsulated with plasmonic gold-nanorods, which actuates by oscillating light. This system elucidates how rapid hydrogel beating leads to a reduction in cell migration, while enhancing focal adhesions, native production of extracellular matrix, and nuclear translocation of mechanosensitive proteins, depending on the amplitude and frequency of actuation.

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Prof. Bin YU

Prof. Bin YU est actuellement professeure du chancelière dans les départements de statistiques et de génie électrique et informatique de l'université de Californie, à Berkeley.

Résumé :


Le Centre pour les systèmes intelligents de l'EPFL (CIS) est une collaboration entre IC, SB et STI qui réunit des chercheurs travaillant sur différents aspects des systèmes intelligents. En juin 2020, le CIS a lancé ses Colloques CIS avec des orateurs invités de renom.
Plus d'info https://www.epfl.ch/research/domains/cis/center-for-intelligent-systems-cis/events/colloquia/

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Prof. Dr. Martin Kaltenbrunner
Johannes Kepler University Linz

Institute of Microengineering - Distinguished Lecture

Campus Lausanne BM 5202 (live)
Campus Microcity MC B0 302 (video)
Zoom Live Stream:

Abstract:

Bio:

Note: The Seminar Series is eligible for ECTS credits in the EDMI doctoral program

Note: After the lecture, there will be time for discussion and interaction with the distinguished speaker, sandwich lunch and refreshments sponsored by the Institute of Microengineering will be provided for attendees in front of the lecture hall (BM 5104, ca. 13h15)

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Prof. Fiorenzo Omenetto, Tufts University, USA

Natural materials offer new avenues for innovation across fields, bringing together, like never before, natural sciences and high technology. Significant opportunity exists in reinventing naturally-derived materials, such as structural proteins, and applying advanced material processing, prototyping, and manufacturing techniques to these ubiquitously present substances.  This approach help us imagine and realize sustainable, carbon-neutral strategies that operate seamlessly at the interface between the biological and the technological worlds. Some of these opportunities include biomaterials-based applications in edible and implantable electronics, food preservation, functional packaging, energy harvesting, wearable sensors, compostable technology, distributed environmental sensing, medical devices and therapeutics, biospecimen stabilization, advanced medical diagnostics, and will be outlined in this talk.
Bio: Fiorenzo G. Omenetto is the Frank C. Doble Professor of Engineering, and a Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Tufts University. He also holds appointments in the Department of Physics and the Department of Electrical Engineering. His research interests are in the convergence of technology, biologically inspired materials and the natural sciences with an emphasis on new transformative approaches for sustainable materials for high-technology applications. Prof. Omenetto was formerly a J. Robert Oppenheimer Fellow at Los Alamos National Laboratories, a Guggenheim Fellow.  He is a 2017 Tällberg Foundation Global Leader,  a Fellow of the Optical Society of America, the National Academy of Inventors, and of the American Physical Society. His research has been featured extensively in the press with coverage in the most important media outlets worldwide. 
 

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