Projects News

ICMAB secures €2.2 million in National Research Funding for 13 cutting-edge projects

The ICMAB has been awarded a total of €2,195,000 to fund 13 research projects under the 2024 call of the "Proyectos de Generación de Conocimiento" programme, promoted by the Spanish State Research Agency (AEI). These highly competitive grants support fundamental and applied research across diverse areas of science and technology.

ICMAB Lab | ICMAB, CSIC

This year's edition of the programme marks a record-breaking funding milestone, with over €667 million provisionally awarded — the highest amount ever allocated in the history of the call. Nationally, 3,252 projects have been selected out of 7,190 applications, achieving a success rate of 45.2%.

Research excellence across multiple fields

The 13 ICMAB-funded projects reflect the institute’s multidisciplinary expertise and commitment to tackling pressing scientific challenges. Highlights include:

Energy and Photovoltaics

Sergi Riera: Organic photovoltaic electrodes for urban environments (€68,750)
Mariano Campoy Quiles / Alejandro Goñi: Tailoring organic solar cells for specific applications (€337,500)

Thermoelectricity & Soft Matter

Sebastian Reparaz / Riccardo Rurali: Thermal anisotropy in polymers and inorganic materials using advanced contactless tools (€87,500)
Jordi Faraudo: Multiscale modeling of soft materials for biomedical applications (€96,250)

Photoactive Molecules & Chemistry

David Amabilino: Novel photosensitizers for panchromatic photoisomerizations (€136,250)

Energy Storage and Electrochemistry

Valeria Blanco: Green Li-ion battery anodes based on nanostructured materials (€137,500)
Nieves Casañ Pastor: Multichemical zinc cells via bipolar electrochemistry (€137,500)

Spintronics & Quantum Materials

Martí Gich / Jose Luis García Muñoz: Spin-driven phenomena in frustrated magnets for sustainable data society (€203,750)
Anna Palau / Narcis Mestres: High-temperature superconductors for next-generation ICT (€191,250)
Alberto Pomar / Lluís Balcells: Spin-orbit torque materials for energy-efficient magnetic memories (€193,750)

Biomaterials & Nanomedicine

Judit Guasch: Functional biomaterials and tumour organoids for personalised cancer medicine (€208,750)
Anna Roig / Anna Laromaine: Strategies to obtain bioactive bacterial cellulose (€231,250)
Juan Pellico: Radiolabelled nanoparticles for optimised pharmacokinetics and tumour targeting (€165,000)

Support for young researchers

Of the 13 awarded projects, 5 are led by at least one female principal investigators, representing 38.5% of ICMAB's total (45.5% is the total of the projects led by at least one woman of the AEI funded projects in this call).

In addition, 6 projects include a predoctoral FPI (Formación de Personal Investigador) fellowship, reinforcing ICMAB’s dedication to nurturing the next generation of scientists.

The AEI’s 2024 call, co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+), supported 1,149 predoctoral contracts across Spain. With a 2% increase in funding over 2023, this edition further strengthens the national R&D system and its international collaborations.

Congratulations to all ICMAB researchers and collaborators on this outstanding achievement!