Professor De Liberato pursued his studies in electronic engineering at the Politecnico di Milano, followed by physics at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris. After a fellowship at the University of Tokyo he relocated to the UK as Royal Society University Fellow. Currently, he holds the position of full professor at the University of Southampton where he has been at the helm of the Quantum Theory and Technology group since 2012. Additionally, he serves as a Senior Researcher at the CNR Institute for Photonics and Nanotechnologies. He founded multiple research-driven startups in the United States, France, and Italy. An author of over 90 peer-reviewed journal publications, his contributions span both the foundational and practical realms of quantum science. His distinguished work has been recognized with the prestigious Daniel Guinier Prize and the Philip Leverhulme Prize.

Abstract: Many problems in modern materials chemistry require interfaces with highly structured chemical environments at near-molecular scales – ranging from nanoelectronics to ligand clustering in biology. However, classical surface science methods for controlling chemical environments at molecular scales often face significant challenges in extensibility, particularly to soft materials relevant to biomedical applications. Here, we describe the powerful chemical impacts of functional polydiacetylene striped phases, which can be assembled on graphite, MoS2, and other 2D materials. On-surface reactions create unconventional precision polymer layer structures that provide surprisingly robust and scalable nm-resolution chemical patterning, which can direct further material assembly. Recently, we have also demonstrated that these patterns can be assembled on hard, crystalline 2D materials, then transferred to soft, amorphous materials including PDMS and hydrogels, creating new opportunities for nanostructured material design. This talk will discuss the relationship between structure, reactivity and assembly in the molecular template layer, as well as applications of the templates in directing the assembly of inorganic nanocrystals and in designed cell scaffolds for regenerative medicine.

Abstract: Addressing climate change is one of the most daunting challenges that humanity faces in this century. This significant challenge faced by our global society could be solved if we can find sustainable, efficient, and affordable materials required for clean energy technologies. The functionality of the materials used for energy applications is critically determined by the physical properties of small active regions such as dopants, dislocations, interfaces, grain boundaries, etc. The capability to manipulate and utilize the inevitable disorder in materials, whether due to the finite-dimensional defects (such as vacancies, dopants, grain boundaries) or due to the complete atomic randomness (as in amorphous materials), can bring innovation in designing energy materials. With the increase in computational material science capabilities, it is now possible to understand the complexity present in materials due to various defects resulting in pathways required for optimizing their efficiencies. In this talk, I will provide a critical overview of such computational advancements specifically for designing catalysts that have intrinsic or extrinsic disorder due to various types of defects. Specifically, I will discuss our recent advancements on improving the transition metal alloy catalyst performances for sustainable NH3 synthesis [1,2]. Using in-depth Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations, this study investigated the (111) surface of bimetallic CuNi alloy catalyst and trimetallic single-doped alloys (SDAs) based on CuNi alloy doped with Ag, Au, Pd, Pt, Co, Ru, and Fe, evaluating their catalytic potential for ammonia synthesis. This study analyzed their activity and selectivity toward N2 and H2, as well as the rate-limiting steps in associative and dissociative reaction pathways, specifically N2H formation and NH3 desorption. This work established the fundamental guidelines for engineering the alloy catalysts for efficient ammonia production, which will be elaborated in this talk.

Abstract: The current trend in various energy applications, ranging from batteries to electrolizers, lays in the control of structural, physicochemical and morphological properties of materials and their interfaces. During this presentation, recent scalable strategies for nanostructured materials synthesis, targeting energy and environmental applications will be discussed. Especially, we will focus on one-pot strategies for the fabrication of hybrid and complex nanomaterials focusing on the importance of the organic-inorganic and inorganic-inorganic interfaces. Among the examples presented, we will discuss the synthesis of complex nanostructures and the stabilization of metastable phases for applications in energy storage and conversion. We will see that nowadays the available strategies allow a control in terms of composition, crystalline structure, morphology and nanostructuration that would have been unimaginable just few years ago. Finally, the open challenges the field is currently facing and possible further developments which are needed to meet the always growing demand for high performing materials will be also discussed.

Abstract: Advanced materials are driving innovation across all fields of technology, ranging from construction and mechanical engineering, automotive and electromobility, to medical technology, energy storage and conversion technologies, and microelectronics. Given their technological impact, functional materials represent an essential segment of industrial technologies with significant value creation potential for both established markets and emerging technologies. Especially in the context of sustainable production techniques, substitution of critical raw materials, and energy- and resource-efficient manufacturing, tailored surfaces and interfaces are gaining increasing importance in the future. In this context, chemical processing of nanostructured ceramics in tuning the functional and interfacial properties for better charge transport, higher corrosion protection and enhanced performance. The examples will include the role of functionalized inorganic surfaces in electrolysers for hydrogen production, and advances in photon-harvesting technologies for perovskite-based photovoltaics. This talk will emphasize the power of chemical synthesis in designing new materials for energy transition. This talk will discuss the potential benefits of nanoparticle design towards energy conversion processes, precision drug delivery and recent developments in energy harvesting materials.

Dr. Abu-Lebdeh is a Senior Research Officer and Leader of the Battery Materials Innovation Team at the National Research Council of Canada in Ottawa. His research focuses on electrochemical energy storage and conversion materials and devices, with focus on lithium batteries. Dr. Abu-Lebdeh earned his PhD in Electrochemistry from the University of Southampton (UK) in 2001, his Master’s degree in Material Science from the University of Manchester (UK) in 1997 and his bachelor’s degree in Industrial Chemistry from Jordan University of Science and Technology in 1995. He joined the NRC in 2005 as an NSERC Postdoctoral Fellow and before that he was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Montreal’s International Laboratory on Electro-active Materials. He contributed to more than 120 technical reports, peer-reviewed publications and patents and co-edited a book on Nanotechnology for Lithium-ion batteries. Dr. Abu-Lebdeh is also an adjunct professor at the University of Toronto’s Material Science and Engineering Department and a part-time professor at the University of Ottawa teaching a course on Battery Technology.

Prof. Joshua Caldwell is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering and the current Director of the Interdisciplinary Materials Science graduate and NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) programs at Vanderbilt University. He was awarded his Bachelors in Chemistry from Virginia Tech in 2000 before heading to the University of Florida where he received his PhD in Physical Chemistry in 2004. He accepted a postdoctoral fellowship at the Naval Research Laboratory in 2005 and transitioned to permanent staff in 2007 and was promoted to Senior Staff in 2012. He is a three-time recipient of the NRL Nanoscience Institute grants and was awarded a sabbatical at the University of Manchester with Prof. Kostya Novoselov in 2013-2014. In 2017 he accepted a tenured Associate Professorship at Vanderbilt University within the Mechanical Engineering Department. He was elected as a Fellow of the Materials Research Society in 2020, SPIE and Optica in 2023, and was promoted to Full Professor in 2022. He has published over 200 papers, >13000 citations and 12 patents. In 2022 he and Simone De Liberato started Sensorium Technological Laboratories working towards the realization of novel mid-infrared technologies for a variety of applications ranging from semiconductor gas monitoring to green house gas detection.

Prof. Lucia Gemma Delogu is an Associate Professor at Khalifa University of Science and Technology, Abu Dhabi, UAE and head of the Immune-Nanolab at the University of Padua, Italy. Her research lies at the intersecEon of materials chemistry, immunology, and nanobiotechnology, where she invesEgates the chemical properEes and biological interacEons of engineered nanomaterials. Prof. Delogu’s extensive background was developed during her postdoctoral research at the University of Southern California (Los Angeles, USA) and the Sanford-Burnham InsEtute (San Diego, USA). Previously an Assistant Professor at the University of Sassari, Italy, she was recruited to the University of Padua in 2019 and promoted to Associate Professor. She has also held visiEng posiEons at Technische Universität Dresden (Germany) and New York University Abu Dhabi (UAE), where she collaborated on projects exploring the chemical and bioacEve properEes of nanomaterials in biomedical applicaEons. As ScienEfic Coordinator for mulEple interdisciplinary projects funded by the European Commission, Prof. Delogu has directed research iniEaEves involving over 20 academic and industrial partners in Europe, the USA, and the Middle East. With more than €6 million in funding, her projects focus on the chemical engineering of nanomaterials and their immunomodulatory properEes, pushing boundaries in areas such as nanotoxicology, surface chemistry, and immune compaEbility. Her contribuEons have been widely recognized with numerous awards, including the Marie S. Curie Individual Fellowship, inclusion among Italy’s "200 Young Best Talents" by the Italian Ministry of Youth, and the NIH’s "Bedside to Bench & Back Award." Prof. Delogu pioneered the “NanoImmunity-by-design” concept, where she uses principles of chemical engineering to design nanomaterials with tailored immune responses. Her work in high-dimensional single-cell mass cytometry, parEcularly with 2D materials and air pollutant parEcles, provides novel insights into the molecular interacEons and potenEal hazards of engineered materials. Her research has been published in leading journals such as Nature Nanotechnology, Advanced Materials, Nature CommunicaEons, Nano Today, and ACS Nano.

Dr. Shimaa Eissa is an Assistant Professor at the Chemistry Department at Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE, where she joined in August 2022. She earned her PhD in Materials Science from the Université du Québec, INRS-EMT Centre, Canada, specializing in developing electrochemical biosensors using aptamers and graphene nanomaterials. She also spent two years as a visiting researcher at Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), deepening her expertise in nanomaterials and biosensing. Prior to her current role, Dr. Shimaa served at Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (2016–2022), where she advanced from Assistant to Associate Research Professor. Among her achievements, she received the prestigious L'Oréal-UNESCO "For Women in Science" Middle East Award (2016) for her work on aptamer-based biosensors for glycated hemoglobin detection. In 2022, she was elected to the Arab-German Young Academy of Sciences and Humanities (AGYA), highlighting her exceptional contributions as an early-career researcher.

Dr. Wesley Cantwell is the Director of the Aerospace Research and Innovation Center (ARIC), the Associate Dean for Research and a Professor in Aerospace Engineering at Khalifa University. He received his BSC in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering from the University of Southampton and MSc and PhD degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Imperial College, UK. He then worked as a Research Scientist in the Department of Materials at the Ecole Polytechnique Federal de Lausanne for nine years and as a Lecturer/Reader/Professor at the University of Liverpool for eighteen years. During this time he directed a research team focusing on the impact behavior of lightweight structures. He joined Khalifa University in 2012 to establish and direct the Aerospace Research and Innovation Center (ARIC). Wesley Cantwell’s research interests are in composite materials, additive manufacturing, the impact response of structures and smart materials. He has published more than 320 Scopus-listed journal papers on these topics. He has presented a number of keynote addresses at leading international conferences since joining ARIC, including at the 2014 European Conference on Composite Materials and the 2017 International Conference on Composite Structures. He currently works with a number of international partners on this topic, including the University of Cape Town, Tokyo University of Science and Tongji University.

Bio: Ali Trabolsi is a Professor and Program Head of Chemistry at New York University Abu Dhabi. He received his B.Sc. in Chemistry from the Lebanese University in Beirut (Lebanon). In 2002, he moved to Strasbourg (France), where he obtained an M.Sc. in Analytical Chemistry (2003) and a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry (2006). He then joined the group of Sir J. Fraser Stoddart (2016 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry) as a postdoctoral scholar at UCLA (USA), where he spent one year before relocating with the Stoddart group to Northwestern University in Evanston (USA). From 2009 to 2011, he worked at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia as a research scientist in the Advanced Membranes and Porous Materials Center. In 2011, Professor Trabolsi joined New York University Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) in the United Arab Emirates as an Assistant Professor and was promoted to tenured Associate Professor in September 2017 and to Professor of Chemistry in 2021. At NYUAD, The Trabolsi group pursues research in the areas of molecular topology, supramolecular chemistry, and materials chemistry for health and environmental applications.

Dr. Amani Al-Othman is an Associate Professor of Chemical engineering and Petrofac Endowed Chair in Renewable Energy at the American University of Sharjah. Her core research is on the development of novel proton conductors for fuel cells. She also has extensive experience on the synthesis of nano-composite membranes, catalyst ink preparation, assembling the membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) for fuel cell operation, building and designing (PEM) fuel cells with inter-digitated flow fields, and building a full operating fuel cell test station. Dr. Al-Othman’s expertise also extend to the hydrogen production and electrolysis. She is currently leading the energy group at the department of Chemical Engineering/AUS. The group aims at developing novel coatings for self-cleaning PV-Cells. Other research activities involve the development of implantable electrodes for neural sensing/stimulation and solar desalination. Dr. Al-Othman is a trustee as Sharjah Futurist Award and has been an invited speaker at several international and national conferences.