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Life-Inspired Soft Matter

Objective

To fulfil the quest for increasingly functional materials, biology has already offered inspiration towards advances in materials science. So far, bioinspired materials include, e.g. liquid- and dirt-repelling surfaces, structural colours, biomimetic composites, strong fibers, tissue templating, and underwater adhesives. On the other hand, stimulus-responsive, shape memory, and reconfigurable materials have been presented with switchable functional properties. They are typically in global or local energy equilibrium and their properties do not evolve or learn to allow new responses.

The next challenge is to explore whether some of the characteristics considered typical for life could inspire new behaviours of artificial soft matter towards life-inspired materials.

Herein I suggest three approaches: 1) Voltage controlled dynamic out-of-equilibrium dissipative mechanical properties and temperature-based switching between dynamic and static properties. 2) Light and voltage-driven self-regulation with feedback loops for adaptation, homeostasis, and oscillations. 3) Optical spiking for dynamic structural colours.

The impact of this project arises from demonstrators and paradigm changing concepts for materials memory, biological learning-inspired processes, and dynamic feedback control. The underlying embodied intelligence and adaptibility pave ways to new materials concepts. In the long run, materials with such properties are foreseen, e.g. in human-device interfacing, artificial skin, prostheses, technical aids, wearables, soft robots, and medical applications.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

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Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants

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Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) ERC-2023-ADG

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Host institution

AALTO KORKEAKOULUSAATIO SR
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 2 500 000,00
Address
OTAKAARI 1
02150 Espoo
Finland

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Region
Manner-Suomi Helsinki-Uusimaa Helsinki-Uusimaa
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 2 500 000,00

Beneficiaries (1)

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