Products which require complicated material systems and nanoscale structural organization, e.g. third-generation solar cells, are often difficult to develop. This is because electronic properties of bulk semiconductors are often masked or at least strongly superimposed by material interface properties. Additionally these interface properties are also complex and thus make product design difficult. This project aims at solving this problem by offering a nanoscale characterization platform for the European manufacturers of coatings, photovoltaic cells, and semi-conductor circuits. It is proposed to use a combination of scanning microwave microscopes, dielectric resonators, and simulation to measure the material and interface properties of complicated material systems and nano-structures. A metrological system of cross-checks between different instruments, models and simulations with associated error bars is indispensable for obtaining trustworthy results. Scanning microwave measurements will be directly used for three-dimensional characterization of electrical properties of nanostructured semiconductors used in organic and hybrid photovoltaic cells. The objective is to accelerate the development of high efficiency cells and to have measures to predict performances in early stages of prototype production. Where process monitoring of materials with nanostructures is necessary, a dielectric resonator is used to translate insights from scanning microwave microscope measurements to fabrication environments. Such dielectric resonators could be directly integrated in production lines for monitoring thin film deposition processes. An open innovation environment will make the uptake of the results easier for European industry. A database containing exemplary measurement datasets of scanning microwave microscopes will be available in calibrated and raw versions. Simulation results of tip-semiconductor interactions will be made available on the EMMC Modeling Market Place.

Electrochemistry is the enabling science to address key problems of major societal relevance, spanning from electrocatalysis, in the context of energy conversion (e.g. fuel cells and solar cells) and energy storage (battery and water splitting technologies), to the development of advanced analytical tools for environmental monitoring and point-of-care medical diagnostics. The EU has put nanotechnology at the top of its scientific agenda as a key enabling technology with huge potential for addressing societal challenges including energy supply and health care, which SENTINEL will help to achieve. The overarching objective of the SENTINEL program is to join together leading teams from across Europe, with global partners in industry (SMEs and multinationals) and the academic sector in the USA and China, to train a new generation of scientists who have the skills to tackle electrochemistry at individual entities such nanoparticles (metal, semiconducting, soft matter), living cells at the nanoscale, as well as single redox-active (macro)molecules. The study of systems at the “single entity” level is a hugely important emerging area of electrochemistry, which is inter/multidisciplinary and intersectoral. The scientific training will be complemented by training delivered by world-class coaches who, for example, employ sport related concepts to empower the fellows with leadership skills. Also, the founders of a successful science-art business (over 800K likes on Facebook) will engage the fellows in the arts of scientific illustration and a campaigning charity will equip the fellows with the skills needed to make their voices heard in public debates about science. These training sessions will be supplemented by business leaders from the (electro)chemical community sharing lessons in product development, IP protection and project management. Thus, SENTINEL is distinct, new and ambitious.

INERRANT aims to drive genuine advancements for safe-and-sustainable-by-design materials, and eco-friendly processes, to ensure the economical and widespread utilization of safer LIBs tailored for the expanding electromobility applications in our modern society. To realize this, INERRANT is formulating a holistic approach to enhance safety performance, extend cyclability and operational lifespan, and improve fast charging, all while maintaining cost-effectiveness, energy, and power density, and avoiding dependence on Critical Raw Materials. The pivotal S&T challenges encompass: development of functional materials, design sustainable recycling processes and understanding of pertinent interfacial phenomena and degradation mechanisms. The project addresses current challenges for LIBs components related to (i) novel (nano)materials combinations for anodes and cathodes; (ii) smart-functioning separators; (iii) stimuli responsive electrolyte formulations; (iv) novel sustainable recycling processes to improve the purity of recovered materials. Novel electrochemical characterization methods and operando spectroscopies, both at the materials and component level, will be utilized. This includes the establishment of a metrological framework for traceable calibrations and the integration of machine learning methodologies for swift and early LIB cell aging predictions. Adopting fabrication methods that are inherently scalable, built upon existing pilot lines and proven safety testing, will facilitate a swift progression to Gigafactory-relevant scales. INERRANT will present a compelling business case and clear exploitation strategy, rooted in the consortium’s strategic insight, guaranteeing effective technology commercialization. This approach will support the economical and eco-friendly production of LIB cells and systems, tailored for e-mobility applications. INERRANT comprises a consortium of 11 partners from the European Commission and one associated partner from the USA.

Advanced Microscopy techniques are widely recognized as one of the pillars onto which the research and manufacture of Nanotechnology based products is sustained. At present, the greatest challenge faced by these techniques is the realization of fast and non-destructive tomographic images with chemical composition sensitivity and with sub-10 nm spatial resolution, in both organic and inorganic materials, and in all environmental conditions. Scanning Probe Microscopes are currently the Advanced Microscopy techniques experiencing the fastest evolution and innovation towards solving this challenge. Scanning Probe Microscopes have crossed fundamental barriers, and novel systems exist that show potential unparalleled performance in terms of 3D nanoscale imaging capabilities, imaging speed and chemical sensitivity mapping. The objective of the SPM2.0 European Training Network is to train a new generation of researchers in the science and technology of these novel Scanning Probe Microscopes, in which Europe is currently in a leading position, in order to enforce its further development and its quick and wide commercialization and implementation in public and private research centers and industrial and metrology institutions. The researchers of the network will acquire a solid state-of-the-art multidisciplinary scientific training in this field of research, covering from basic science to industrial applications, which should enable them to generate new scientific knowledge of the highest impact. In addition, they will receive a practical training on transferable skills in order to increase their employability perspectives and to qualify them to access to responsibility job positions in the private and public sectors. The final aim of the network is to consolidate Europe as the world leader in Scanning Probe Microscopy technologies and its emerging applications in key sectors like Materials, Microelectronics, Biology and Medicine.

Reliability and innovations in current and upcoming battery technology as one core element of Europe’s green industrial transition are highly dependent on the understanding and systematic classification of the complex processes in advanced functional materials structured at the multiscale level. DigiCell provides a digitally integrated framework that improves reliability and quality in the manufacturing processes of high-performance Lithium-ion batteries (LIB) and beyond Lithium battery technologies through unified and adaptive models capturing the structure-property relationships in these complex energy materials. It is based on a toolset of innovative and state-of-the-art characterisation methods for multiscale materials, interoperable tests, and analytical models supported by and linked through machine learning. With this, the production costs, materials waste, and the CO2 footprint in production lines will be reduced, while in parallel the battery electrochemical performance at the single cell level will be increased. The new measurement tools and multi-scale modelling algorithms lead to a higher characterisation speed (factor of 5) and an improved accuracy in cell tests by an order of magnitude, as will be demonstrated on the lab bench and in pilot lines. DigiCell develops a new holistic approach for open-source algorithms and data standardization strategies; new quality assessments for a healthy, safe, and circular economy. The project readily interfaces and interacts tightly with EMMC.