Technologies

Silicon nanowires (SiNWs) are 1D structures with diameter ranging from few tens to hundreds of nanometers and length varying from few tens of nanometers to millimiters. SiNWs are fabricated in the labs of the IMM-CNR, Rome Unit,  by using bottom-up technologies such as plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) at low growth temperature ((≤350°C), allowing the use of plastic and glassy substrates. Their electrical properties can be tuned by controlling the p/n doping during the growth.

Inert biomedical devices with modular load-bearing function designed with peculiar multi-domain composite microstructures. The reference compositional system is Zirconia-Alumina with a prevailing overall composition of customizable zirconia or alumina. Examples of devices are 3D structures consisting of parts with differentiated functional properties, due to different composition/microstructure/architecture, and further functionalizable ex-post to favor and improve the stabilization of the implantation by newly formed bone in superior quantity and quality.

We propose a portable chemical analysis system capable of identifying chemical substances at trace concentrations (sub-ppm), even in case of a complex matrix of interfering species.

The proposed technology takes advantages of the huge potentialities of the gellan gum microgels in the preservation of cultural heritage. Microgels are polymeric gels particles with the micro and nanoscale size, whose soft nature is due to the presence of the aqueous solvent inside the particle. For their small size, they can easily diffuse in the environment and penetrate in the porous structure of paper and wood to act as cleaner agent.

Geopolymers are synthetic inorganic polymers obtained from an aluminosilicate powder and an aqueous solution of alkaline hydroxides or silicates. The material is mesoporous and a multidimensional and functional porosity can be generated through the addition of fillers or the use of specific techniques.

The mix-design of the mixture, pure or composite, allows to change the chemical-physical properties of the final material, also thanks to the nucleation of zeolitic phases. Geopolymers also possess ion exchange and electrostatic interaction capabilities.

The current technology allows to achieve new macroporous superadsorbent polymeric materials able to remove toxic contaminants from water and soil showing excellent sequestering properties against arsenate As (V), chromate Cr (VI) and Borate B (III) ions. The material is obtained by radical cryopolymerization of the monomer 4'-vinyl-benzyl-N-methyl-D-glucamine and / or its mixtures with hydroxyethyl-methacrylate (HEMA).

In the last years, hop culture has spread throughout Italy, and the vegetative biomass disposal, after harvesting of cones, used for beer production, became a serious problem for hop growers. Hop plant contains in all parts, cones, shoots, leaves and roots, bioactive compounds, with proven and important antiviral, antibacterial and antioxidant properties.

Our idea come from the improving of the traceability technique in agro-food fisheries industries through the application of omics technologies in microbiota studies.  These latter would be capable of exploiting the huge pool of biological molecules contained in fishery resources (e.g. nucleic acids, proteins, metabolites) and use them as a powerful tools for the identification and reconstruction of fishery history, from the sea to the table.

22q11.2DS(DGS) deletion syndrome is a rare and phenotypically variable multiorgan syndrome, currently without any cure. Our aim is to develop a standardized approach to formulate pharmacological products useful for clinical trials direct to prevent some serious clinical manifestations of adolescence and adulthood, such as neuropsychiatric and musculoskeletal diseases, or to eliminate or improve cardiovascular defects during embryonic development.

NIRS is a non-invasive technique for the human brain cortex imaging based on the measurement of the NIR light emitted by suitable optical sources placed on the patient head and backdiffused to the surface after passing through the brain tissues. NIRS monitors the percentage of oxygenated and reduced hemoglobin  in the blood, and it allows the real time functional imaging of the brain cortex also in tomographic mode (Diffuse Optical Tomography - DOT).

The technology based on cell or tissue cultures is very useful for the production of bioactive compounds. These molecules, depending on the class they belong to, can be used in the food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industry. In particular, the developed technology is addressed to the optimization of bioactive compounds in plant cell/tissue cultures having the biosynthetic pathway of the compound of interest.

The herein described technology aims at the development of a platform of injectable hydrogels for application as drug carriers for localized delivery or in the regenerative medicine field. The use of ad-hoc synthesized poly(ether urethane)s (PEUs) as hydrogel forming materials is a common property which characterizes all the systems belonging to this platform.

Detection devices for the presence of molecules of interest (analytes) enjoyed a renewed burst with the introduction of biological components (biosensors). Their high specificity is often used in various fields, from environmental monitoring and biomedicine to the protection and promotion of agri-food products. However, the high cost of production and the lack of compatibility with mass sampling (high-throughput) sometimes limit their use.

Uniform coverage with porous layers over extended surfaces is beneficial for many purposes. Depending on the nature/composition, thickness and interfaces of the layer, this kind of special coverage can assure pivotal properties such as transparency, bendability, high surface reactivity, intermixing capability. In the long list of desired porous materials, transparent oxides find application in the fields of Photovoltaics, Sensing, Photocatalysis, Water Purification and Splitting, Lithium Batteries and many more.

This technology concerns the development of new eco-sustainable UV physical/mineral filters with the aim of offering important innovations per the cosmetic sector. This, encouraged by European initiatives in the Green-Deal context, is constantly looking for new components with improved protection of the human health and the environment.