The Material Science Institute of Madrid, ICMM-CSIC, aims to generate cutting-edge knowledge on materials and processes crucial for addressing societal challenges
Andrés Castellanos gets an ERC ‘Proof of Concept’ grant to revolutionize optical light applications
Andrés Castellanos-Gomez, during a talk. Photo: Gülsüm Ersü/ICMM-CSIC
Andrés Castellanos-Gómez, a research professor at the Institute of Materials Science of Madrid (ICMM-CSIC), has been awarded a 'Proof of Concept' (PoC) project by the European Research Council (ERC) valued at €150,000 for 18 months. These grants will allow the scientist to explore the commercial and social potential of his innovative idea, which aims to revolutionize the field of spatial light modulation.
Spatial light modulators are devices capable of modifying how light is transmitted (changing its intensity, phase, or state), and they are the mechanism behind everyday devices like image projectors or hologram projectors, as well as more specific applications. The researcher explains that this technology is bulky (ranging from several millimeters to a centimeter) and rigid, so his plan is to make it “ultrathin, about 100 microns thick, flexible, and quasi-transparent” so it can be easily integrated into curved surfaces, such as smart lenses, and into compact devices.
To achieve this, his project, titled StEnSo, will apply strain engineering techniques to two-dimensional semiconductor materials (which can conduct or insulate depending on various factors): “When we deform a two-dimensional semiconductor, we can adjust its refractive index, and that is what we want to exploit,” explains Castellanos-Gómez.
“The applications of the spatial light modulators developed in StEnSo are numerous: image projection, holography, aberration correction, laser surgery, and optical tweezers,” assures the researcher, who emphasizes that the ability to integrate these modulators directly into curved optical surfaces, such as eyeglass lenses, “further expands their potential use in advanced and compact optical devices.”
If successful, his next step will be to move towards the commercialization of this technology: “in fact, StEnSo includes a substantial workload focused on IP protection, technology transfer, and studying its potential commercialization,” he indicates.
Castellanos-Gómez's project is one of three from CSIC that have been selected by the ERC for these grants.
ERC Proof of Concept Projects
The ERC PoC grants are open only to individuals who have previously benefited from ERC Starting, Consolidator, Advanced, or Synergy grants, and seek to fund “frontier research” that “often generates radically new ideas that drive innovation and entrepreneurial inventiveness and address societal challenges,” according to the European Research Council.
These grants aim to help researchers explore the commercial and social innovation potential of their work, and intend to maximize the value of excellent research.