The MSCA COFUND DOC-FAM program, coordinated by the Institute of Materials Science of Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), has closed its first call for the Marie Skłodowska-Curie predoctoral grants.

In total, 10 Early Stage Researchers (ESR) will start their PhD: 5 at the ICMAB-CSIC, 2 at the IREC and 3 at the ALBA Synchrotron, during the 2018-2019 year and for a duration of 3 years.These three centers offer a multidisciplinary, multicultural and stimulating environment, with access to state-of-the-art equipment and facilities for the personal and professional development of the Early Stage Researchers.

The projects (and supervisors) in which they will participate are:

ICMAB-CSIC:

• Computational workflows for structural and electronic properties of materials (Dr. Alberto García)
• Organic radical-based nanoparticles (OR-NPs) with novel multiferroic characteristics as new therapeutic agents (Dr. Inma Ratera, Prof. Jaume Veciana)
• Ultra-high field conductors for accelerators physics (Dr. Joffré Gutiérrez, Prof. Teresa Puig)
• Evaluation of biocompatible nanoparticles for biomedical applications using the model organism C. elegans (Dr. Anna Laromaine)
• Development of new optically active boron clusters-based fluorophores as good candidates for two-photon absorption spectroscopy (Prof. Rosario Núñez)

IREC:

• Atomic scale modification of catalysts for carbon dioxide recycling (Dr. Teresa Andreu, Prof. Juan Ramón Morante)
• Advanced photoelectrodes for next generation of solar energy storage: photobatteries (Dr. Teresa Andreu, Prof. Juan Ramón Morante)

ALBA Synchrotron:

• Functional food investigation by synchrotron emission and absorption spectroscopy (Dr. Laura Simonelli)
• Syncrotron powder diffraction on operando batteries at non-ambient temperature conditions (Dr. Francois Fauth)
• Designed modular nanobiotechnological tools to detect and interfere with the key signaling pathway of heart fibrosis in vivo (Dr. Eva Pereiro)

In October 2018 the second call for proposals will open, offering 12 fellowships distributed between the ICMAB-CSIC, the ALBA Synchrotron, the IREC, the IMB-CNM-CSIC and the ICN2.

The DOC-FAM program ("DOCtoral training programme in Functional Advanced Materials") is the first COFUND program of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (H2020-MSCA-DP-2016) granted to the State Agency National Council of Scientific Research (CSIC) in all its history.

This excellent training program is coordinated by the Institute of Materials Science of Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Severo Ochoa Center of Excellence, in collaboration with several institutions of its environment: ALBA Synchrotron; Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2); Institute of Energy Research of Catalonia (IREC) and Institute of Microelectronics of Barcelona (IMB-CNM-CSIC).

All information about the program can be found on its website: https://projects.icmab.es/docfam/.

You can also contact Laura Cabana, Project Manager of the DOC-FAM project (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) for any further information you may need. 

Press release in Catalan, Spanish and English here.