International Mobility and Training in Photonics Programme

Project Information

MULTIPLY

Grant agreement ID: 713694

DOI

10.3030/713694

Project closed

EC signature date 22 April 2016

Start date 1 October 2016

End date 30 September 2022

Funded under

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Total cost

€ 6 372 000,00

EU contribution

€ 3 186 000,00

Coordinated by

ASTON UNIVERSITY
United Kingdom

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - MULTIPLY (International Mobility and Training in Photonics Programme)

Reporting period: 2018-10-01 to 2022-09-30

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

MULTIPLY was an international Mobility and Training in Photonics Programme for Experienced Researchers, coordinated by the Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies, Aston University, United Kingdom, one of the largest photonics research centres in the UK with a world-class portfolio of research and research funding.

During its lifetime (2016-2022) MULTIPLY provided high-level interdisciplinary training for 49 outstanding international researchers commencing their professional development in the area of photonics science, technology and applications. Applicants from all over the world participated in this Programme, freely choosing their research topics and destinations from a group of MULTIPLY Partners.

Prominent scientific standing of the Programme was guaranteed by full backing of a consortium of 60 internationally leading academic partners of worldwide renown. The Partners maximised MULTIPLY Fellows’ career development opportunities and assisted them in becoming future academic and industrial leaders by offering them cutting edge facilities, excellence in post-doctoral training and mentoring, fast-paced innovation activities and established industrial links, as well as a vibrant, international, and interdisciplinary environments.

Enormous experience coming from decades of successful fundamental research and industrial applications at Partners domiciled in 23 countries form the foundation of the MULTIPLY Programme: non-linear and quantum photonics, integrated and ultra-fast optics and optical engineering, laser science and applications, industrial laser manufacturing, high-speed optical communications, sensing, imaging, optoelectronics, medical applications of photonics, nano-photonics, bio-photonics, and many other areas.

The projects were required to be interdisciplinary, inter-sectoral and international, with obligatory requirements for placements with academic and industrial organisations. In this context, during the second reporting period, the individual implemented projects by the 49 Fellows have resulted in 106 secondments, involving 52 industry partners, resulting in the international mobility of the Fellow cohort across 16 countries. The Fellows receive further tailored career development support at their respective host organisations, helping them develop their broader research knowledge and complementary skills.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

The Programme has organised 7 Calls during the Life-Time of the project. Experienced Researchers had the full liberty of choosing a Host Organisation from those participating in the respective Call, based on their own scientific and professional development needs, and could submit a proposal on a topic of their choice. Submitted proposals were evaluated by an Evaluation and Selection Committee, and a world-class panel of photonics experts completely independent of the co-ordinating and participating institutions.

In total, during the project’s Call 1 – Call 7, MULTIPLY has received 153 eligible applications, and employed 49 Fellows with 18 EU and UK-based host organisations in 7 countries.

From this aspect, MULTIPLY has been immensely successful in promoting high quality, mobility-driven intersectoral and interdisciplinary research over the EU region. The selected Fellows were employed with premier photonics research institutions located in UK and EU-Member states. As MULTIPLY is a training Programme, it places emphasis on the triple-I dimension of projects – i.e. international, interdisciplinary and intersectoral. MULTIPLY Fellows have committed to secondments with 106 premier research organisations The intersectoral aspect led to collaborative work with 52 non-academic/industrial partners.

In total, during the MULTIPLY project, Fellows published 125 papers and gave 96 conference and workshop talks, delivered 77 outreach and communication activities.

To further foster collaboration amongst different partner organisations and their Fellows, the MULTIPLY Programme Management Team has organised the following scientific events during RP2: Winter School on Nonlinear Photonics (20-26 January, 2019); Workshop on Machine Learning in Photonics (26-27 August, 2019); Summer School on Machine Learning in Photonics (15-19 March, 2021); Workshop on Nano and Integrated Photonics (19-22 April, 2021); Mini-Symposium on Parametric Interaction in Photonic Crystals (27 April, 2021); International Day of Light at Aston University (21 May, 2021); Workshop on Optical Frequency Combs: from Fundamentals to Applications (17-18 November 2021); Mini-Symposium on Machine Learning Techniques and Research Challenges (24 November, 2021); Mini-Symposium on Scaling up Systems and Application Complexity in Analogue Neuromorphic and Physical Computing (24 March, 2022); Workshop on Current and future Trends for Optical Communication Systems (7-8 April, 2022); Workshop on Optical Frequency combs (11-12 April, 2022); Workshop on Beyond Ultra-Wideband Optical Communications (16 May, 2022); Summer School on Machine Learning in Photonics (29 August – 2 September, 2022) . The networking activities between the Fellows and the academics, both at these events and beyond, have led to further scientific activities between MULTIPLY Partners beyond Fellowship-mediated collaborations.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

MULTIPLY was a six-year programme that maximised the career development of the next generation of researchers in photonics and related fields, which are currently presenting new and exciting opportunities for both the Worldwide photonics research community and for Worldwide photonics industry.

By way of obligatory academic secondments and industrial placements, MULTIPLY has encouraged multi-disciplinary and intersectoral mobility, which is especially relevant for photonics as it is an enabling technology. No restrictions or prescriptive modes of mobility were recommended – the Fellows were free to choose a secondment/placement plan best suited to their proposed projects and career objectives. This had significant impact for both the Fellow and the participating organisations.

MULTIPLY also remained a unique programme where participating organisations were strongly committed to their responsibilities towards the individual fellows to progress their career development. The MULTIPLY Training and Research Framework was designed to maximise the impact of the training offered within the MULTIPLY programme to fully support the European endeavour to develop the next generation of European scientists and researchers, trained both in science and in complementary areas such as project management, media training, leadership and IPR management that are key to career progression and research leadership.

The Programme has helped partner institutions attract the best researchers from all over the world and offer them the training they aspire to. Their contributions stand to enhance not only regional and national impact, but has the potential to increase the competitiveness of the EEA overall.

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