Supervisors' project proposals

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Guido Raos

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The 3MOST lab comprises 2 full, 4 associate and 2 junior professors, and several postdocs, PhD and master students.  The central endeavor is identifying and detailing key structure-property relationships in molecular or polymeric materials. We exploit experimental techniques and theoretical modelling, that we jointly adopt to characterize crystalline, semicrystalline or amorphous, organic, inorganic, and hybrid materials. These find application in organic and metal-organic electronics, sustainable energy production and storage, biomaterials for health care.

Brief project description
Soft matter comprises a broad range of materials (e.g., polymers, gels, colloids, surfactants, etc.) that occur across the healthcare, energy, food and construction sectors. They are typically loosely structured, where the structural units may extend over mesoscopic length scales (10-1000 nm) and persist in non-equilibrium states for very long times (from seconds to years).

Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations are indispensable tools for characterizing molecular systems, providing atomic-scale insights into their structure and properties. However, their predictive capabilities depend on a number of factors, and two emerge as prominent. The first one is the accuracy and generality of the employed force fields. These have been boosted by the recent application of machine learning to parametrize the interaction among atoms across the whole periodic table. Another key requirement is the availability of reasonable starting models for the structure of a material, from the atomic scale up. Obtaining realistic structures is almost trivial for crystalline materials but can be extremely complex and time-consuming for nanostructured and soft materials.

The aim of this project is to implement a general methodology to rapidly obtain realistic structures for complex materials, but without compromising the ability of the force fields to correctly predict properties. The new methodology will integrate experimental information (mainly from X-ray and neutron scattering experiments) and MD simulations at different resolutions (atomistic or coarse-grained, with traditional or machine learning force fields). Experimental data will be used to nudge the simulations towards a desired structure, and their outcome will provide a solid interpretation of the data. Depending on the background and scientific interests of the candidates, following the implementation within a high-performance MD code such as LAMMPS, the method may then be applied to systems such as nanostructured polymers, gels, building materials, ionic liquids, solid electrolytes and biomolecular aggregates. 

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Maria Enrica Di Pietro

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering is built on four core areas (Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Materials Engineering and Biomedical Engineering) that come together into a dynamic research environment spanning from atomic scale investigations to industrial processes. The NMR group for Smart Materials and Sustainable Solvents is well recognized for its work on the structure and dynamics of molecular and supramolecular systems, including fundamental properties and selected applications of ionic liquids, deep eutectic solvents and low-melting mixtures.

Brief project description
Clean water is essential for life and is at the heart of the European Green Deal’s Zero Pollution Action Plan. However, current state-of-the-art water remediation technologies are based on toxic volatile organic solvents and/or unsustainable sorbents with limited capacity/selectivity. Coupled with increasing urbanization and pollution, these challenges highlight the urgent need for cost-effective and environmentally friendly extraction systems.

To this end, Hydrophobic (Deep) Eutectic Solvents (HES) have emerged as promising sustainable alternatives to traditional volatile organic solvents in liquid-liquid extraction. To further expand their applicability, an innovative approach involves integrating these solvents into gel or semi-solid matrices. Supramolecular gels based on hydrophobic non-ionic type V (D)ES and a sugar-derived low-molecular weight gelator (LMWG) have been developed in our lab, but a variety of possible combinations exists, including systems based on natural polymers. 

This project aims to develop and understand hydrophobic eutectic-based materials (HEM) as novel soft extractants for environmental remediation. By combining liquid DES with structured matrices, these materials are expected to offer enhanced stability, tunability, and extraction performance in solid–liquid systems.

The research will focus on three main objectives:

1. Preparation of HEM: Design and synthesis of tailored materials using hydrophobic precursors and a diverse range of gelators, from LMWGs to biopolymers.

2. Multiscale characterization: Investigation of structural, physicochemical, and functional properties through complementary macroscopic and molecular-level techniques.

3. Application in water remediation: Evaluation of HEM performance in removing contaminants of emerging concern, including pesticides, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), and sunscreen-derived pollutants.

While the primary focus is water treatment, the potential application of these materials in contaminant removal from food and beverage matrices will also be explored.

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Maria Enrica Di Pietro

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering is built on four core areas (Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Materials Engineering and Biomedical Engineering) that come together into a dynamic research environment spanning from atomic scale investigations to industrial processes. The NMR group for Smart Materials and Sustainable Solvents is well recognized for its work on the structure and dynamics of molecular and supramolecular systems, including fundamental properties and selected applications of ionic liquids, deep eutectic solvents and low-melting mixtures.

Brief project description
(Deep) eutectic solvents ((D)ESs) have gained significant attention as sustainable alternatives to traditional volatile organic solvents, thanks to their low environmental impact and promising techno-economic advantages. Eutectic systems consist of two or more components interacting through a complex network of intermolecular forces, resulting in a marked melting point depression at the eutectic composition. In DESs, this depression is much greater than what would be expected for an ideal solution. A key advantage of (D)ESs is their tunability, enabled by the vast number of possible combinations of precursors-typically low-cost bio-based organic compounds. 

Among these systems, switchable deep eutectic solvents (SDESs) represent an innovative class of “smart” solvents capable of reversibly changing their properties in response to external stimuli such as temperature, pH, or CO₂. This switchability enables controlled phase behavior, simplifies sample processing, reduces solvent consumption, and enhances recyclability, aligning with the principles of green chemistry. Despite initial demonstrations in separation processes and CO₂ capture, the physicochemical properties and full application potential of SDESs remain largely unexplored.

This project aims to advance the fundamental understanding and practical implementation of SDES as adaptive platforms for sustainable separation technologies. The research will focus on three main objectives:

1. Design and preparation of SDES: Development of tailored systems based on both hydrophilic and hydrophobic precursors.
2. Multiscale characterization: Comprehensive investigation of structural, physicochemical, and responsive properties using complementary techniques to elucidate switching mechanisms and phase behavior.
3. Applications of SDES: Evaluation across key domains, including (i) extraction of high-value compounds from food and agricultural waste, (ii) removal of contaminants from water, beverages, and food matrices, and (iii) CO₂ capture.

Particular emphasis will be placed on developing and optimizing experimental protocols, understanding separation mechanisms, and tuning selectivity and affinity to enable efficient and sustainable processes.

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Andrea Mele

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department integrates Chemistry, Chemical and Materials Engineering, and Biological Engineering in a dynamic, multidisciplinary environment. Mele’s group focuses on the physical chemistry of ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents. With expertise in advanced NMR spectroscopy, molecular dynamics, SAXS/SANS and Raman methods, the group studies structure, dynamics and applications of DES, ILs and eutectogels for drug delivery, extraction, waste valorisation and energy storage.

Brief project description
Ionic liquids (ILs) and deep eutectic solvents (DESs) are attractive both for fundamental studies on liquid structure and for applied research. Their solvent properties can be tuned by selecting different molecular components, and both hydrophilic and hydrophobic DESs can be prepared, covering a wide range of polarity. This combination of fundamental and applied aspects—understanding how intermolecular networks create microheterogeneity while exploring new applications—is the main motivation of this project.
One research line of my group concerns the valorisation of industrial waste. We focus on recovering critical elements through advanced solvometallurgical or hybrid hydro/solvometallurgical processes. In this context, we study ILs and DESs as extraction media. According to the waste type, our main targets are spent electrodes from lithium ion batteries and electronic waste from consumer devices. The project will develop several activities in parallel:
i) We will investigate the complexation of Li⁺ and transition metal ions in DESs using multinuclear NMR spectroscopy. State of the art techniques based on ⁷Li–¹H and ³¹P–¹H NOE, together with ¹H, ³¹P, and ⁷Li relaxation measurements, will be applied. Systems containing phosphine oxide groups-known as efficient leaching components—will be studied first. Other DES families, including ketoacids, ketoesters and terpenes, will also be explored as chelating or leaching agents.
ii) NMR data will be complemented by Raman spectroscopy and small  and wide angle X ray scattering. This combined approach will provide detailed insight into atomic contacts, complexation and leaching mechanisms, local dynamics, and mesoscopic organisation. When required, advanced computational studies will support the interpretation.
iii) The DESs will then be tested as leaching agents for Li, Co, Mn and other transition metals and rare earths. Extraction yields, selectivity and solvent recyclability will be evaluated. Both hydrophilic and hydrophobic DESs will be considered, including the role of water as a possible co solvent, to support the design of an efficient and scalable process.
iv) Finally, we will identify and assess suitable metrics for the techno economic evaluation of the different approaches, with the goal of supporting future scale up.
The research will be carried out in a multidisciplinary environment and within a network of national and international collaborations.

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Andrea Mele

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department integrates Chemistry, Chemical and Materials Engineering, and Biological Engineering in a dynamic, multidisciplinary environment. Mele’s group focuses on the physical chemistry of ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents. With expertise in advanced NMR spectroscopy, molecular dynamics, SAXS/SANS and Raman methods, the group studies structure, dynamics and applications of DES, ILs and eutectogels for drug delivery, extraction, waste valorisation and energy storage.

Brief project description
Deep Eutectic Solvents (DES) from molecular hydrogen bond donors (HBD) and acceptors (HBA) open the possibility to use the natural chiral pool to generate DES with enantiopure components. Natural HBD and HBA are often available in enantiopure form and exist as two mirror‑image configurations, commonly referred to as dextrorotatory (+) and levorotatory (−). Beyond potential differences in biological activity, enantiomers introduce a unique set of intermolecular interactions due to their specific three‑dimensional structure. Our research aims to exploit these interactions inside DES to create a new class of eutectic systems, referred to as Diastereomeric DES (DIADES). By combining homochiral components, DIADES integrate chirality‑driven interactions with established dynamic processes such as intermolecular hydrogen bonding.
The DIADES chemical space, built from enantiopure DES components, offers exciting opportunities for fundamental studies on molecular interactions and for innovative applications that have not yet been explored. This research will advance knowledge in three main directions:

1. Preparation and Characterization of Drug‑Loaded DIADES
   Homochiral drugs will be dissolved in selected DIADES to create unexplored solvating environments with controlled stereochemistry. Molecular interactions will be studied through NMR, Raman and UV‑Raman spectroscopy, with the goal of understanding how the chirality of the DIADES affects solvation behavior.
2. Nanostructuration and Solvation
   Nuclear relaxation measurements and self‑diffusion coefficients will provide insight into the rotational and translational motion of the chiral solute. Mesoscopic ordering will be investigated using small‑ and wide‑angle X‑ray scattering to clarify the dynamics of an active enantiopure compound in a stereochemically defined liquid environment.
3. DIADES - Membrane Interface
   For potential applications in targeted nanomedicine, in silico studies of the interaction between drug‑loaded DIADES and model membranes will be carried out through molecular dynamics simulations, in collaboration with the University of Milano (Department of Biology). The aim is to model membrane permeability as an indicator of selective drug release, depending on the chirality of DIADES components.

This research will be carried out within a network of national and international collaborations, with opportunities for secondments.

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Claudia Pigliacelli

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The candidate will be hosted at the Department of Chemistry, Materials, Chemical Engineering “Giulio Natta” and will be supervised by Prof. Claudia Pigliacelli and Dr. Nina Bono. Prof. Pigliacelli has consolidated expertise in peptide science and nanoscale systems for biomedical applications. Dr. Nina Bono is an expert in antimicrobial materials and bioengineered platforms for probing their activity. The hosting department and laboratories are equipped for peptide design (peptide synthesizer, HPLC,MS) and nanomaterials characterization (DLS, Zetapot, SAXS, EM), as well as for in vitro studies.

Brief project description
As antimicrobial resistance (AMR) continues to escalate, and the pipeline of new antibiotics remains severely depleted, the need for alternative therapeutic strategies to treat bacterial infections has become increasingly urgent. Although antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) represent a highly promising class of anti-infective agents, their clinical translation is still limited by major challenges, including proteolytic instability, potential toxicity toward host cells and the limited availability of specific predictive platforms for antimicrobial assessment. This project aims to address such limitations through the development of innovative AMPs capable of self-assembling into nanostructures with finely tunable antimicrobial and antibiofilm activity. Exploiting supramolecular assembly is expected to enhance peptide performance by improving chemical and colloidal stability, increasing biocompatibility, and prolonging functional persistence in biologically relevant environments. At the same time, rational sequence engineering will enable precise control over peptide-microbe interactions, promoting bacterial capture, selective membrane targeting, and effective membrane disruption/translocation. To maximize translational relevance, the project will combine AMP design with advanced bioengineered platforms for efficacy testing in physiologically meaningful settings. In vitro evaluation against susceptible and drug-resistant bacterial strains, together with toxicity profiling in eukaryotic cells, will identify lead candidates and define their mechanisms of action. Their antibiofilm potential will be quantified using three-dimensional bacterial biofilm models, while co-culture infection systems and haemolysis assays will provide critical information on host compatibility and resistance-associated responses. By integrating molecular design, supramolecular nanoscience, and predictive bioengineering, this project will generate both novel AMP-based therapeutic candidates and an advanced evaluation pipeline, opening new avenues for the development of next-generation anti-infective strategies.

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Claudia Pigliacelli

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The candidate will be hosted at the Department of Chemistry, Materials, Chemical Engineering “Giulio Natta” and will be supervised by Prof. Claudia Pigliacelli. Prof. Pigliacelli has consolidated expertise in peptide science and in the design of nanoscale systems for biomedical applications. The hosting department and laboratories are equipped for peptide design (peptide synthesizer, semi-preparative and analytical HPLC, MS), as well as for nanomaterials synthesis and characterization (DLS, Zetapot, SAXS, EM, CD, UV-Vis).

Brief project description
Peptides have emerged as powerful tools for engineering metal-based nanoscale systems, combining exceptional chemical versatility with molecular recognition and distinctive self-assembly behaviour. By incorporating sequence-defined motifs that provide selective binding and/or reactive sites, peptides offer a versatile toolbox of templates for the controlled synthesis of metal nanostructures with tailored size and shape.

This project will investigate short peptide sequences as templates for the synthesis of gold nanoclusters and nanoparticles, as well as their subsequent self-assembly into custom higher-order superstructures. The overarching goal is to exploit peptide sequence features to achieve precise control over morphology and, consequently, the optical response of the resulting hybrid nanomaterials, enabling advanced sensing platforms for biomarker detection. Morphology will be comprehensively characterized using scattering methods and electron microscopy, while optical properties will be investigated through spectroscopic techniques. Finally, the sensing performance of the peptide–gold nanostructures will be evaluated against a range of biomarkers.

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Chiara Bertarelli

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Chemistry, Materials, Chemical Engineering “Giulio Natta” (DCMC) is a leading research and education center in the fields of chemistry and materials science, covering a wide array of domains.

The FunMat group within DCMC focuses on the design, synthesis and characterization of innovative stimuli-responsive materials where its interdisciplinary approach enables the creation of advanced materials tailored for impactful applications in biomedicine, diagnostics, and responsive technologies.
Info: https://www.cmic.polimi.it/en/ricerca/elenco-gruppi-di-ricerca/funmat/

Brief project description
Photoactive materials revolutionized light-based technologies in medicine and biotechnology, as light combined with molecular photoswitches provides high spatiotemporal control over biological events. Light triggers can precisely target tissues, cells, and even specific subcellular regions, enabling the modulation of these elements to control cellular functions in vitro and in vivo. (Castagna et al. 2022).

In this framework, our research focuses on the design, synthesis, characterization and application of membrane-targeted photoswitches aimed at modulating cellular signaling, neuronal activity and bacterial communication. By leveraging light-induced membrane dynamics, this approach offers a novel avenue for the progress of light-based therapies and treating neurodegenerative conditions without the need for genetic modifications. The research line stems from the pioneering development of Ziapin2, an amphiphilic azobenzene-based photoswitch designed to integrate into neuronal plasma membrane(DiFrancesco et al. 2020). Upon exposure to visible light, Ziapin2, undergoes a trans–cis isomerization, leading to reversible changes in membrane thickness and capacitance. These biophysical alterations modulate neuronal excitability, enabling precise control over action potential firing without directly targeting ion channels A series of different application of these photoactuators have been proposed and are currently under study (e.g. neuron firing DiFrancesco et al. 2020; bacterial activity de Souza-Guerreiro et al. 2023; cardiomyocites Vurro et al. 2023).

Research in collaboration with leading international universities (K. Parker-Harvard University, Peter Kohl-University of Freiburg).

Supervisor: Prof. Chiara Bertarelli has significantly contributed to the advancement of intelligent materials, particularly in the realm of photochromic systems. Her research has focused to the rational design and synthesis of photoactive materials that respond dynamically to light, driving innovations in areas such as biomedical stimulation and adaptive optics.
One of her most notable breakthroughs is the development of nanoactuators based on amphiphilic azobenzenes which spontaneously integrate into cellular membranes and modulate biological responses upon light irradiation. Her work has been featured in leading journals, including (Nature Nanotechnology 2020, Advanced Science 2023, Communication Biology 2023, Light: Sci. & Applications 2025, Nature Communication 2025).

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Francesca Baldelli Bombelli

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The candidate will be hosted at the Department of Chemistry, Materials, Chemical Engineering “Giulio Natta” and will be supervised by Prof. Francesca Baldelli Bombelli. FBB is expert in soft matter and nanomedicine. This project is in collaboration with Dr Cristina Chirizzi and Dr Serena Pellegatta at Carlo Besta Neurological Institute and this synergy will enable the candidate to acquire broad and diverse competences in chemistry, nanomedicine and biology on the development of new technologies for personalized and precision medicine.

Brief project description
Glioblastoma (GB) is the most common and lethal primary brain cancer, representing about 17% of all diagnosed tumors1. Outcomes remain poor, with recurrence rates reaching 88.8% within two years and a median survival of only 18.8 months. Surgical resection is the main strategy to minimize relapse, focusing on maximum tumor removal while sparing healthy brain tissue. GB's aggressiveness, treatment resistance, and intratumoral heterogeneity pose substantial treatment challenges, including accurate surgical delineation. Identifying universal tumor microenvironment (TME) biomarkers that remain consistent despite GB heterogeneity and invasiveness is essential for improving treatment approaches, with acidic pH being a promising candidate. Cancer cells regulate their intracellular pH, resulting in a significantly lower extracellular pH at the cell surface, even in well-perfused areas. This surface acidity presents a targetable opportunity for advancements in preoperative tumor mapping. In this context, we developed and characterized a fluorescein-conjugated pH-sensitive peptide (FL-pHLIP) for GB imaging, with the intention of enhancing fluorescence-guided GB resection surgery. We linked the peptide to fluorescein (FL) to generate a tracer compatible with standard neurosurgical workflows to meet the medical needs associated with the microsurgical resection of GB in preparation for clinical development, such as being detectable using conventional surgical microscopes and being administered simultaneously during surgery2. This project aims to optimize pHLIP sequence by synthesizing a library of fluorescent-pHLIP sequences to select the most pH-responsive through in vitro studies with membrane and GB cell models. The selected sequence will be then conjugated with fluorinated groups to better visualize the tumoral area by in vivo preclinical studies by 19F-magnetic resonance imaging (19F-MRI). Fluorescent and 19F-MRI active pH-LIP variants will be tested in vitro and in vivo on cultures of primary GB cell lines and on GB xenograft models, respectively. 

1P. Sharma et al., Neuro-Oncology Adv. 2023. https://doi.org/10.1093/noajnl/vdad009
2C. Chirizzi et al., Colloids and Surfaces B, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfb.2025.115398

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Claudia Pigliacelli

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The candidate will be hosted at the Department of Chemistry, Materials, Chemical Engineering “Giulio Natta” and will be supervised by Prof. Claudia Pigliacelli and Prof. Francesca Baldelli Bombelli. Prof. Pigliacelli has consolidated expertise in peptide science and drug delivery. Prof. Baldelli Bombelli is an expert in soft matter and nanomedicine. The hosting department and laboratories are equipped for peptide design (peptide synthesizer, HPLC, MS), nanomaterials design and characterization (DLS, Zetapot, SAXS, EM, CD, microfluidics), as well as for in vitro studies.

Brief project description
Biologics are among the most promising therapeutic modalities for a wide range of diseases. However, despite the advantages of oral administration in terms of convenience and patient adherence, their clinical use remains largely restricted to parenteral routes. Oral delivery of biologics remains challenging due to the harsh gastrointestinal environment, characterized by low pH, enzymatic degradation, and limited permeability across the intestinal epithelium, which collectively results in poor bioavailability. Nanoscale delivery systems have shown potential to mitigate these barriers by reducing aggregation, protecting biomacromolecules from enzymatic degradation, and enhancing intestinal uptake.

This project aims to engineer polymer- and lipid-based nanoscale carriers for the oral delivery of biologics. Protease-resistant peptides will be integrated to enable gastrointestinal transit, protect the payload from degradation, and promote permeation across the intestinal epithelium. Interactions with intestinal fluid components (e.g., bile salts and lipids) will be investigated to elucidate nanoparticle interfacial properties under biorelevant conditions and to determine how these interactions affect drug uptake and absorption. Carrier performance will be evaluated using Caco-2 cell models to assess epithelial transport and absorption. In vivo studies on selected nanoparticle formulations will be carried out through a dedicated secondment, which will also include a placement in a non-academic setting.

Department
DENG

Supervisor
Carlo Spartaco Casari

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Energy has more than 350 people working in experimental and modelling and has been awarded by the Italian Ministry of Research as “Department of Excellence” in 2018.
The NanoLab group is focused on the experimental development and understanding of novel materials with 750 m2 of laboratories. NanoLab hosted ERC, EIC projects, and MSCA grantees. Prof. Carlo S. Casari coordinated ERC and EIC projects. He won innovation prizes, and in 2023, he founded the startup (and spinoff of POLIMI) ENIGMA srl.
www.energia.polimi.it
www.esplore.polimi.it

Brief project description
Carbon-based materials have attracted a strong interest in recent decades, from graphene to nanotubes. More recently, sp-hybridized carbon has emerged as a system with intriguing properties and as a promising building block for new carbon nanostructures [1,2]. In particular, sp-carbon is at the basis of carbyne, the ultimate one-dimensional (1D) carbon allotrope, and of graphyne and graphdiyne structures, which represent a new class of two-dimensional (2D) materials beyond graphene. However, the experimental development and control of these systems are still limited and represent an open challenge.
The project is focused on the experimental investigation of sp–sp² carbon materials for energy-related applications (e.g., supercapacitors [3]). The activity will address the synthesis, assembly, and characterization of sp-carbon atomic wires (carbyne-like systems) and/or graphdiyne-like materials, as well as their organization into materials in the form of thin films, freestanding membranes, and nanocomposites.
The research will mainly deal with the control of key parameters such as length, termination, interaction between sp and sp² domains, and environmental effects, which are known to strongly affect the structural, electronic, and optical properties of these systems.
The experimental work will be based on advanced spectroscopic techniques, with particular focus on Raman and UV–vis spectroscopies, also in in-situ and in-operando conditions. Additional surface and optical characterization methods will be used when needed. The investigation will follow a multiscale approach, from single nanostructures to assembled systems and extended films and materials.
The activity is mainly experimental. Theoretical modelling (e.g., density functional theory), available through collaborations, will support the interpretation of the experimental results.
The project can be further developed together with the candidate within this framework, focusing, for instance, on synthesis optimization, interface control, and integration into functional materials for specific energy applications.
The final goal is the development of experimental approaches for the fabrication and control of sp–sp² carbon-based materials and their implementation in functional systems for energy technologies.

[1] C.S. Casari et al. Nanoscale 8, 4414 (2016)
[2] J.M.A. Lechner et al. Nature Communications 16:4360 (2025)
[3] S. Ghosh et al. Carbon 234, 119952 (2025)

Department
DEIB

Supervisor
Luca Mottola

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Electronics, Informatics, and Bioengineering (DEIB) is one of the largest ICT departments in Europe. The Networked Embedded Software Lab (NESLab) at DEIB develops new technologies at the frontier of the Internet of Things. These technologies have been downloaded 10,000+ times, have been used by half a dozen companies to create new products, and are currently running in hundreds of embedded devices around the world. To date, NESLab is the only European lab to be granted multiple times with the ACM SigMobile Research Highlight. More info at https://www.neslab.it/.

Brief project description
Small satellites are resource-constrained space vehicles exposed to varying energy patterns and the woes of outer space. They are transforming access to space by shrinking satellite technology down to units weighing less than a kilogram while dramatically lowering costs and development time. Design, implementation, construction, and deployment of PicoSats, however, incur key challenges at the crossroads of different disciplines. In particular, space-rated hardware is costly and lags several generations behind Commercial Off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware, which is an obstacle for computationally intensive applications. COTS hardware, on the other hand, is susceptible to faults due to space radiation as they are exposed to high-energy, charged particles from sources like the sun, supernovae, and radiation trapped in planetary magnetic fields. 

Notwithstanding the challenges in running a local processing pipeline on COTS hardware aboard a PicoSat, deploying non-trivial application logic is unavoidable. Due to severe bandwidth limitations, for example, PicoSats are expected to pre-process, compress, filter, and even classify sensed data before transmission. Both staple compression algorithms and modern machine learning models should run efficiently and accurately. The goal of the project is to explore robust and intelligent design, implementation, construction, and deployment of intelligent small satellites. Robustness is here meant as the capability to achieve progress in the application logic despite variable energy patterns and unavoidable data faults due to space radiation. Intelligence indicates the capability to execute machine learning workloads locally, enabling a form of orbital edge computing that allows designers and users to trade accuracy of the high-level application outputs with longer operational lifetimes. 

To achieve this goal, the researcher will build upon past experience, system implementations, and experimental space data of NESLab, including two real-world CubeSat missions that occurred in 2020 and 2024. The researcher will combine formal and statistical analysis, prototype system implementations, simulation/emulation experiments, and possibly deploy a subset of the solutions developed within the project on a PicoSat mission scheduled for the end of 2027.

Department
DMEC

Supervisor
Luca Michele Martulli

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
DMEC at Polimi is equipped with several testing machines, both for destructive and non-destructive evaluation of materials. The research group has a strong expertise in fibre reinforced composites and bonded joints, spanning different areas including mechanical characterisation, analytical and numerical modelling and non-destructive monitoring techniques. The aim is to characterise and model materials to design and test actual composite bonded components.

Brief project description
Adhesive bonding is increasingly used in lightweight and multi-material structures across aerospace, automotive, and energy sectors. Despite its advantages, the reliable prediction of adhesive joint performance—particularly under cyclic loading—remains challenging due to complex damage mechanisms and the sensitivity of adhesives to loading conditions. This project aims to improve the understanding and predictive modelling of adhesive behaviour by combining advanced experimental characterisation with physics-based modelling.
The research will first focus on the mechanical characterisation of conventional structural adhesives under both static and fatigue loading under different modes of fracture. Experimental campaigns will include fracture and joint-level tests designed to capture the response of adhesive layers under representative service conditions. To obtain deeper insight into internal deformation and damage processes, the project will develop in situ experimental methods coupled with Digital Volume Correlation (DVC). This approach will enable the observation of damage initiation and progression at the microscale, providing unprecedented information for model calibration and validation.
Based on the experimental results, the project will develop predictive numerical models for adhesive joints under static and cyclic loading, with emphasis on fatigue crack growth and damage accumulation at different load ratios. The models will integrate insights obtained from DVC measurements to better represent internal deformation mechanisms and failure processes.
In addition to conventional adhesives, the study will explore advanced adhesive systems, including vitrimer-based adhesives and nanotube-reinforced adhesives. Vitrimers offer the potential for reprocessability and improved durability due to their dynamic covalent networks, while nanotube reinforcement may enhance mechanical strength, toughness, and fatigue resistance. Their mechanical performance and damage mechanisms will be experimentally assessed and incorporated into the modelling framework.
Overall, this project aims to establish a comprehensive experimental–numerical methodology for the characterisation and prediction of adhesive joint behaviour. The outcomes will contribute to improved design tools for bonded structures and support the development of next-generation high-performance and sustainable adhesive materials.

Department
DENG

Supervisor
Carlo Spartaco Casari

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Energy has more than 350 people working in experimental and modelling and has been awarded by the Italian Ministry of Research as “Department of Excellence” in 2018.
The NanoLab group is focused on the experimental development and understanding of novel materials with 750 m2 of laboratories. NanoLab hosted ERC, EIC projects, and MSCA grantees. Prof. Carlo S. Casari coordinated ERC and EIC projects. He won innovation prizes, and in 2023, he founded the startup (and spinoff of POLIMI) ENIGMA srl.
www.energia.polimi.it
www.esplore.polimi.it

Brief project description
Carbon-based materials have attracted a strong interest in recent decades, from graphene to nanotubes. More recently, sp-hybridized carbon has emerged as a system with intriguing properties and as a promising building block for new carbon nanostructures [1,2]. In particular, sp-carbon is at the basis of carbyne, the ultimate one-dimensional (1D) carbon allotrope, and of graphyne and graphdiyne structures, which represent a new class of two-dimensional (2D) materials beyond graphene. However, the experimental development and control of these systems are still limited and represent an open challenge.
The project is focused on the experimental investigation of sp–sp² carbon materials for energy-related applications (e.g., supercapacitors [3]). The activity will address the synthesis, assembly, and characterization of sp-carbon atomic wires (carbyne-like systems) and/or graphdiyne-like materials, as well as their organization into materials in the form of thin films, freestanding membranes, and nanocomposites.
The research will mainly deal with the control of key parameters such as length, termination, interaction between sp and sp² domains, and environmental effects, which are known to strongly affect the structural, electronic, and optical properties of these systems.
The experimental work will be based on advanced spectroscopic techniques, with particular focus on Raman and UV–vis spectroscopies, also in in-situ and in-operando conditions. Additional surface and optical characterization methods will be used when needed. The investigation will follow a multiscale approach, from single nanostructures to assembled systems and extended films and materials.
The activity is mainly experimental. Theoretical modelling (e.g., density functional theory), available through collaborations, will support the interpretation of the experimental results.
The project can be further developed together with the candidate within this framework, focusing, for instance, on synthesis optimization, interface control, and integration into functional materials for specific energy applications.
The final goal is the development of experimental approaches for the fabrication and control of sp–sp² carbon-based materials and their implementation in functional systems for energy technologies.

[1] C.S. Casari et al. Nanoscale 8, 4414 (2016)
[2] J.M.A. Lechner et al. Nature Communications 16:4360 (2025)
[3] S. Ghosh et al. Carbon 234, 119952 (2025)

Department
DMEC

Supervisor
Sara Bagherifard

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
https://www.archeslab.polimi.it/

Brief project description
COLD-HEAL will develop and evaluate hydrogen-resistant HEA coatings for aerospace turbine repair. The project focuses on understanding hydrogen transport in cold-sprayed coatings and its influence on mechanical degradation. 
The specific objectives are:

• SO1: Deposit dense (>90%) AlCoCrFeMo HEA using the HPCS system through parametric optimization.
• SO2: Quantify hydrogen permeation through coated systems and compare degradation resistance (wear, erosion, scratch adhesion) against the industry benchmark (Inconel 718).
• SO3: Establish structure–property–performance relationships that explain differences under hydrogen exposure.

Department
DENG

Supervisor
Francesco Causone

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Energy at Politecnico di Milano addresses the challenges of the energy transition by developing innovative and sustainable energy solutions, providing scientific evidence to support industrial investments and essential sector policies
The CRANES Lab (part of BEES Group) expertise includes energy and indoor environmental quality assessment in the built environment.

Brief project description
The vast amount of data available on the Internet has recently revealed to people the significant potential of artificial intelligence (AI). Specifically, large deep learning models pre-trained on internet-scale datasets have become increasingly popular for their ability to mimic human brain and to assist in various daily activities. Examples of these models, known as foundation models (FMs), include large language models (LLMs) like the well-known ChatGPT and vision-language models such as BLIP. All FMs leverage the transfer learning paradigm to the extreme, achieving state-of-the-art performance on diverse tasks with zero or few-shot prompting.

Geodata represents an interesting application for FMs. The increase availability of remote sensing data, street view imagery and spatial distribution information provides an enormous opportunity to accelerate the development of smart cities. However, due to this inherently multimodal nature of geodata, current evidence indicates that FMs might exhibit less reliable performance compared to task-specific approaches such as computer vision models. For instance, FMs are unable to perform geospatial reasoning, relying instead on internal text-based knowledge to provide spatial information. This might potentially increase the risk of generating nonsense answers, also called hallucinations. 

Based on the previous considerations, the aim of this project is to explore and leverage the recent advances in foundation modeling and GeoAI. Drawing on the knowledge gained, the final goal is to develop a framework that can offer a simplified end-to end solution to assist researchers and policy makers in the urban planning of sustainable and smart cities.

Department
DENG

Supervisor
Francesco Causone

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Energy at Politecnico di Milano addresses the challenges of the energy transition by developing innovative and sustainable energy solutions, providing scientific evidence to support industrial investments and essential sector policies
The CRANES Lab (part of BEES Group) expertise includes energy and indoor environmental quality assessment in the built environment.

Brief project description
The project aims to advance the role of buildings as active and flexible components of future low-carbon energy systems. While buildings are traditionally designed to minimise energy demand, their potential to interact dynamically with the electricity grid remains underexploited. With the increasing penetration of renewable energy sources, electrification of heating and cooling, and diffusion of smart technologies, buildings can provide valuable flexibility services such as peak reduction, load shifting, and enhanced self-consumption. However, this requires modelling approaches able to capture the dynamic interactions among building physics, system operation, user behaviour, weather conditions, and grid signals.
The proposed research will develop an integrated framework for dynamic building energy modelling and flexibility-oriented design. It will combine physics-based simulation, data-informed calibration, and optimisation methods to assess how building form, envelope properties, HVAC systems, thermal mass, storage technologies, and control strategies influence grid-responsive performance. The project will investigate flexibility at different scales, from individual buildings to clusters and energy communities, and will define indicators to evaluate the trade-offs among energy efficiency, indoor environmental quality, resilience, and grid support.
A central objective is to transform advanced modelling outputs into actionable design guidance for early-stage decision-making and retrofit strategies. The project will produce innovative workflows, performance metrics, and optimisation methods to support the design of buildings that are not only efficient, but also adaptive and grid-interactive under uncertain future climate, occupancy, and market conditions.
The research is highly relevant to European decarbonisation goals and the transition to smart, resilient energy systems. It will also provide strong interdisciplinary training opportunities for the postdoctoral fellow at the intersection of building performance simulation, digital modelling, optimisation, and energy system integration, while fostering collaboration with academic and non-academic stakeholders. This will strengthen both the scientific profile and long-term career development of the selected candidate.

Department
DENG

Supervisor
Francesco Causone

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Energy at Politecnico di Milano addresses the challenges of the energy transition by developing innovative and sustainable energy solutions, providing scientific evidence to support industrial investments and essential sector policies
The CRANES Lab (part of BEES Group) expertise includes energy and indoor environmental quality assessment in the built environment.

Brief project description
This project aims to develop a next-generation multi-physics Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) framework for the performance-based design and optimisation of Urban Green Infrastructure (UGI) in sponge cities. As urban areas face increasing risks from extreme rainfall, flooding, overheating, and climate change, UGI systems such as green roofs, permeable pavements, bioswales, rain gardens, and vegetated open spaces are emerging as key engineered solutions for resilient urban development. However, current design approaches still rely on simplified or fragmented methods that cannot fully capture the coupled processes governing runoff, infiltration, evapotranspiration, airflow, heat exchange, and the interaction between vegetation, water, soil, and built form.
In terms of excellence, the project will deliver an innovative CFD-based framework integrating hydraulic, thermal, and microclimatic processes within a unified engineering platform for sponge city design. The research will combine advanced numerical modelling, parametric analysis, calibration and validation strategies, and scenario-based simulations to assess how geometry, material properties, vegetation characteristics, and spatial configuration affect UGI performance across scales, from single interventions to neighbourhoods.
In terms of impact, the project will generate robust engineering tools, performance indicators, and design criteria to support planners, engineers, and public authorities in optimising UGI for stormwater control, heat mitigation, and environmental quality. By translating high-resolution simulations into actionable design guidance, the project will strengthen the scientific basis for climate-resilient urban infrastructure and nature-based solutions, directly supporting European priorities in climate adaptation and sustainable cities.
In terms of training and career development, the fellowship will provide the selected researcher with advanced expertise in CFD, heat and mass transfer, multi-physics modelling, and performance-based design. Through interdisciplinary and intersectoral collaboration, the fellow will also strengthen skills in scientific leadership, proposal development, and knowledge transfer, enhancing long-term career prospects in both academia and applied research.

Department
DENG

Supervisor
Francesco Causone

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Energy at Politecnico di Milano addresses the challenges of the energy transition by developing innovative and sustainable energy solutions, providing scientific evidence to support industrial investments and essential sector policies.
The CRANES Lab (part of BEES Group) expertise includes energy and indoor environmental quality assessment in the built environment.

Brief project description
This project aims to develop a dynamic carbon accounting framework to support the engineering and deployment of climate-neutral city strategies. Current urban carbon accounting methods are mainly based on static annual balances and fail to capture the temporal variability of energy demand, renewable generation, storage operation, mobility, and construction-related emissions. This limits their usefulness for designing urban systems in which the timing of emissions and mitigation actions strongly affects carbon performance, infrastructure sizing, and system efficiency.
In terms of excellence, the project will create an engineering-oriented framework able to quantify carbon flows across interconnected urban sectors with high temporal resolution. The research will integrate operational and embodied emissions, building and district energy use, distributed renewable generation, storage, electrified mobility, and demand-side flexibility within a unified modelling environment. Through scenario and sensitivity analysis, the project will assess how design choices, control strategies, and the sequencing of interventions influence carbon-neutrality pathways. The novelty lies in moving from static inventories to a time-resolved representation of urban carbon dynamics that better reflects real system behaviour and supports planning.
In terms of impact, the project will deliver modelling tools and decision-support metrics for engineers, urban planners, and public authorities. The framework will help identify effective combinations of technologies and interventions, reduce temporal mismatches between low-carbon supply and demand, and improve the technical credibility of climate-neutrality roadmaps. By linking carbon accounting with system operation and infrastructure design, the project will support more effective urban decarbonisation and contribute to European goals on climate neutrality, resilient infrastructure, and smart urban transition.
In terms of training and career development, the fellowship will equip the selected researcher with expertise in urban energy systems, carbon modelling, scenario-based engineering analysis, and decision-support methods. Through interdisciplinary and intersectoral collaboration, the fellow will strengthen skills in scientific leadership, stakeholder engagement, and proposal development, enhancing long-term career prospects in academia and applied research.

Department
DABC

Supervisor
Francesco Calvetti 

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The mission of the ABC Department is to address key challenges in construction, architecture, and the built environment, with a strong focus on risk mitigation and climate adaptation. The Geotechnical group has over 30 years of experience in rockfall and debris avalanche modelling using DEM and has more recently used also continuum-based large-deformation approaches such as MPM and SPH. This expertise supports innovative, multiscale analyses and fosters interdisciplinary research on natural hazards in changing alpine environments.

Brief project description
In recent decades, the frequency and intensity of extreme natural events have increased and are expected to worsen due to climate change. More intense rainfall, rapid snowmelt, and shifting temperature patterns can trigger hazards such as landslides, debris flows, rockfalls, and snow avalanches. These phenomena involve large deformations, rapid propagation, and complex solid–fluid interactions, making them difficult to predict and analyse.

At the same time, advances in numerical methods and growing computational power have enabled the widespread use of simulation tools in geotechnical and environmental engineering. These tools allow researchers to study complex processes that are difficult or dangerous to investigate experimentally, especially at large scales. Numerical modelling has therefore become essential for understanding natural hazards and improving risk assessment and mitigation strategies.

This project focuses on developing advanced numerical approaches to simulate highly dynamic processes involving large displacements, including the propagation, impact, and deposition of dry and saturated granular flows, as well as rockfalls and snow avalanches. These systems exhibit strong nonlinearity, evolving material properties, and complex interactions with the surrounding environment, including infrastructure.

The research will employ the Discrete Element Method (DEM) and the Material Point Method (MPM). DEM explicitly models individual particles and their interactions, making it suitable for analysing micromechanical behaviour and its influence on overall flow dynamics. MPM, in contrast, enables the simulation of continua undergoing large deformations without mesh distortion. Advanced constitutive models will be implemented within MPM to capture the behaviour of snow and geomaterials under dynamic conditions.

Overall, the project aims to improve the predictive capability of numerical tools for large-scale granular, rock, and snow mass movements, contributing to more reliable hazard assessment and more effective risk mitigation in mountainous and alpine regions.

Department
DICA

Supervisor
Valentina Zega

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Politecnico di Milano promotes interdisciplinary research across structures, materials, and infrastructure systems. Within it, the Mechanics of Materials and Structures section and the MEMS group focus on modelling and design of microsystems, addressing multiphysics and nonlinear phenomena. In this context, Valentina Zega leads research on mechanical design and linear and nonlinear multiphysics modelling of MEMS devices.

Brief project description
This research project aims to model, analyze, and exploit nonlinear dynamics in MEMS gyroscopes to enhance their performance in high-precision applications such as inertial navigation, aerospace, and advanced sensing systems. While nonlinearities in MEMS devices are traditionally viewed as limiting factors, emerging approaches indicate that they can be deliberately harnessed to improve sensitivity, dynamic range, and robustness.

The project will develop a comprehensive modelling framework to capture the key sources of nonlinearity in MEMS gyroscopes, including geometric nonlinearities, electrostatic actuation effects, nonlinear stiffness, damping, and mode coupling between drive and sense axes. Rather than suppressing these effects, the research will investigate how they can be leveraged to enable advantageous operating regimes.

Analytical and numerical methods—such as perturbation techniques, nonlinear system identification, and bifurcation analysis—will be combined with simulation and experimental validation to characterize system behavior across a wide range of amplitudes and operating conditions. Reduced-order and data-driven models will also be explored to efficiently describe complex nonlinear responses.

A central objective is to identify and exploit nonlinear phenomena that can enhance device performance. These include nonlinear resonance, parametric amplification, internal resonances, and amplitude-dependent frequency tuning, which may be used to boost sensitivity, improve signal-to-noise ratio, and extend dynamic range. The project will also investigate excitation and control strategies that intentionally drive the system into beneficial nonlinear regimes.

By reframing nonlinearities as a resource rather than a limitation, this research seeks to establish new design and operational paradigms for MEMS gyroscopes. The expected outcomes include improved device performance, innovative sensing strategies, and practical guidelines for leveraging nonlinear dynamics in next-generation high-performance MEMS inertial sensors.

Department
DICA

Supervisor
Enrico Masoero

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Politecnico di Milano promotes interdisciplinary collaboration to address sector issues with an integrated approach. The researcher will work in the research groups of computational mechanics and of concrete-based structures. They will join a team of 4 professors, 2 PhD students, and 3 postdocs, involved in large research projects on related topics, such as high-temperature degradation of concrete and multi-scale mechanics of structural materials. The project in collaboration with the MAST department of Université Gustave Eiffel.

Brief project description
This project addresses two pressing challenges in the concrete construction sector: creating pathways to deploy new concrete formulations with reduced carbon footprint and extending the use of existing structures beyond their initially planned service life (the latter is particularly risky for critical infrastructure such as bridges or nuclear power plants). Both challenges share a common barrier: a lack of long-term experimental data to assess whether performance and resistance against degradation (e.g. Delayed Ettringite Formation - DEF, Alkali-Silica Reaction - ASR, carbonation or rebar corrosion) will safely be maintained over the decades. As decisions on new concretes and life extension must be made now, we cannot wait decades for data.

To address these fundamental limitations, this project aims to build trust in physical predictions of long-term degradation through an original combination of advanced simulations, experimental characterisation, and degradation tests, all pivoted on a novel methodology to produce aged-equivalent concrete samples. Specific objectives are to: (O1) Define mix designs and curing protocols to rapidly obtain (e.g. in 28 days) concrete samples whose microstructure and properties reflect those of aged samples, in terms of mineral composition, mechanical strength, porosity, permeability, etc.; (O2) Define a simulation methodology to predict the long-term chemo-mechanical degradation of concrete depending on its mix design; (O3) Extrapolate the long-term degradation of concrete samples by alternating short-term model predictions and accelerated aging experiments on reconstructed aged-equivalent samples. The methods to develop and adopt will be: for O1, literature review on reconstruction techniques, thermodynamic modelling for mix-designing equivalent sample, plus dedicated experimental characterisation at the macroscale (density, total porosity by water absorption, unconfined compressive strength, etc.) and at the microscale (phase assemblages of cement paste and aggregates, through SEM-EDS, XRD, XRF, Raman spectroscopy, TGA-MS and ICP-MS); for O2, Mesoscale modelling of concrete degradation (LDPM – Lattice Discrete Particle Model) informed by microstructural chemo-mechanical simulations (Kinetic Monte Carlo); for O3, accelerated degradation tests of degradation processes, such as DEF, ASR, carbonation or chloride ingress.

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Alessandro Filippo Maria Pellegata

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The project will be hosted by the DCMC, which offers leading expertise and facilities aligned with the project aims. The PI, Prof Pellegata, currently holds an ERC Consolidator and an ERC PoC grant related to this research. The group focuses on innovative tissue engineering approaches for prenatal medicine and disease modelling, including bioprinting, fetal surgery, and organoids. It brings together postdocs and PhD students with diverse expertise (stem cell biology, biomaterials, bioinformatics, pediatric surgery), fostering a highly interdisciplinary and stimulating environment.

Brief project description
Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) is a severe prenatal condition diagnosed during gestation and characterized by impaired lung development, leading to high neonatal morbidity and mortality. Prenatal interventions such as fetoscopic tracheal occlusion have demonstrated significant improvement in lung growth by promoting lung expansion and development. In parallel, experimental evidence indicates that the localized delivery of pro-angiogenic factors, particularly vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), can further enhance lung maturation by stimulating vascular development. Building on this rationale, this project aims to develop an advanced hydrogel biomaterial designed to simultaneously provide mechanical tracheal occlusion and controlled VEGF delivery. Specifically, the research will focus on engineering a watertight, injectable hydrogel suitable for an in-situ fetoscopic bioprinting application, capable of forming a stable occlusive barrier while incorporating and releasing VEGF in a controlled and sustained manner. The gel will be designed with tunable rheological and biochemical properties to ensure effective sealing of the trachea, biocompatibility, and appropriate degradation or reversibility, addressing key limitations of current occlusion strategies. A central objective will be the optimization of the hydrogel network to achieve precise control over VEGF release kinetics, enabling localized and prolonged bioactivity while minimizing systemic exposure. The project will integrate expertise in biomaterials science and bioengineering to tailor polymer composition, microstructure and bioprinting properties. Advanced characterization techniques (both wet and in-silico) will be employed to assess rheological properties, permeability, and release profiles, alongside in vitro validation using Amniotic Fluid Cells to evaluate biological activity and pro-angiogenic potential. By combining mechanical functionality with controlled biochemical signaling, the proposed innovative biomaterial represents a significant advancement beyond current approaches, which are primarily limited to passive occlusion. This research will establish a new class of therapeutic materials for prenatal applications, enabling targeted interventions, which has the potential to improve CDH outcomes while potentially address other prenatal regenerative strategies.

Department
DICA

Supervisor
Giovanni Muciaccia

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
Led by the Principal Investigator, the research team includes 1 assistant professor, 1 Post-Doc, 10 PhD students, and 2 visiting PhDs. They maintain strong industry ties with collaborations at UGent, IWB Stuttgart, CSTB, Purdue, and Rostock. Their work covers basic and applied science in the fields of connections in civil structures, including product development, and code contributions (Eurocodes, fib Model Code, ACI codes). Over 20 industry partnerships across Europe have led to innovative fastening solutions and €4M in funding. The supervisor is also Co-PI in MUSA, focusing on 3D printing.

Brief project description
In both new construction and refurbishment of existing buildings, fastening systems are widely used. This applies not only to conventional concrete and steel structures but increasingly to timber structures, which are valued in sustainable construction. In timber buildings, fasteners join beams, columns, panels, and secure non-structural elements like cladding and insulation. These connections are crucial for ensuring the structural integrity and durability of timber assemblies, particularly when adapting older buildings or integrating hybrid designs.
Fastening systems connect structural components and support non-structural parts, providing essential mechanical performance for safety and building operation. Timber structures require fasteners that address wood’s unique properties, such as its anisotropy and sensitivity to moisture, which can affect performance over time. To improve reliability and safety in timber connections, especially in regions prone to environmental stress, specialized connectors and anchorages have been developed. 
In retrofitting, connections must often use post-installed solutions such as anchorages, reinforcing bars, screws, and adhesives suitable for both concrete and timber. For timber structures, retrofitting requires fasteners compatible with wood substrates, enabling integration of modern standards in older buildings and hybrid connections with other materials, expanding the versatility and resilience of retrofit projects. 
The environmental impact of fastening systems is considerable, as fasteners are present throughout buildings, including timber structures. Most fasteners are produced from non-recycled materials and generally do not follow established sustainable processes, with manufacturing largely concentrated in the Far East. In timber construction, the sustainability of fasteners is especially important, as the environmental benefits of wood can be undermined by unsustainable fastener production. Promoting recycled materials, greener manufacturing, and local production. Promoting recycled materials, greener manufacturing, and local production is vital to reducing the environmental footprint of both concrete and timber construction.

Department
DABC

Supervisor
Maria Giuseppina Limongelli

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
https://www.dabc.polimi.it/it/personale/mariagiuseppina.limongelli

Brief project description
European exposure models estimate 145 million buildings are at the risk of earthquakes. After major earthquakes, vast number of affected buildings must be assessed for safe re-occupancy. After 2016-17 Central Italy earthquake sequences, about 220,000 visual inspections were carried out. These inspections are slow, labour-intensive, expert-dependent yet subjective. It highlights the urgent need for rapid, reliable Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) and Digital Twin (DT) modelling to enhance resilience in earthquake-prone
regions. Such a method can support sustainable mid- to high-rise timber construction, where uptake is constrained by seismic performance uncertainties, despite its advantages of up to 26% lower construction-related carbon emissions and 30% shorter building times.The most reliable DT technology to date are only applicable after damage occurs in monitored buildings, meaning we must wait for a damaging earthquake to develop the DT, significantly limiting its value and efficiency. MAgnoLIATwins (Material-Agnostic Lifetime Integrity Assurance Twins) address this problem by introducing generic basis functions derived from geometry and material properties to relate force-deformation hysteresis loop (HL) changes, and structural damage like stiffness reduction, to structural responses. The HL-based DT framework is validated using structural element tests, calibrated Finite Element (FE) models, shake-table experiments, and real buildings. MAgnoLIATwins is the first to create HL-based DTs for undamaged and noninstrumented buildings. MAgnoLIATwins is a material-independent framework extendable to other civil and non-civil structural systems, such as masonry heritage buildings, bridges, and wind turbines, whose dynamic behaviour can be modelled using HLs, paving the way for future research. This research project positions the fellow as a leading expert in SHM and DT, while expanding
academic and industry networks and enhancing future career prospects.

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Emanuela Jacchetti

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The research group is highly interdisciplinary, integrating physics, biology, pharmacology, and engineering to develop advanced bioengineered systems. We design substrates with controlled mechanical properties, create tools for cell stimulation, and apply multiphysical modelling to study complex biological processes. The project is hosted at the Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering at Politecnico di Milano, which provides state-of-the-art facilities for biofabrication, imaging, and scaffold development.

Brief project description
Cellular mechanisms of physical signal reception and transduction are central to tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. The study of intra- and intercellular signalling, particularly driven by mechanical stimuli, enables understanding of how cells integrate and amplify external cues to regulate biochemical responses, gene expression, and cell fate. In this framework, cells are viewed as dynamic systems capable of sensing and processing environmental signals under physiological and pathological conditions.

The Mechanobiology lab where I work includes a biosafety level II facility for cell culture, transfection, and biochemical assays, as well as bioreactors for applying controlled mechanical stimuli (shear stress, tension, compression). Advanced imaging is supported by epifluorescence, confocal, and multiphoton microscopy with FLIM capabilities. The lab also features 3D printing and two-photon polymerization platforms for custom scaffold fabrication, alongside computational resources for modelling and finite element analysis.

In this environment, I develop advanced tools for cellular modelling, including systems for stem cell expansion, microfluidic bioreactors, and miniaturized platforms for intravital imaging. By integrating static and dynamic culture systems, I investigate how mechanical cues regulate cell behaviour, migration, and metabolism, supporting new strategies for regenerative medicine and drug discovery.

My research focuses on two main directions. The first develops in vitro platforms for drug testing by correlating epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) with fibrosis, immune response, and mechanotransduction. Using microporous scaffolds, I recreate tumour microenvironments to study how mechanical and biological factors influence therapeutic response and identify new targets.

The second focuses on stem cell and immune mechanoregulation. I investigate the immunoregulatory properties of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), analysing how mechanical cues affect their ability to modulate immune responses. Building on my work on macrophages and MSCs, I develop implantable, cell-laden devices to enhance MSC-driven immunomodulation, guiding macrophage polarization toward a pro-regenerative phenotype and promoting tissue regeneration.

Department
DICA

Supervisor
Liberato Ferrara

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
Liberato Ferrara is an international renown expert on advanced multifunctional cementitious composites and their structural applications. PI/co-PI in international research projects (> 20M€ funding in the last five years), he authored 130+ peer-reviewed journal papers (h-index: 47). He currently supervises, at Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 14 PhD candidates and 5 Postdocs (3 MSCA).  His research group provides a unique combination of deep technical expertise, strong international leadership and consistent mentorship of early-stage researchers.

Brief project description
3D concrete printing is revolutionizing construction through automated, rapid, and sustainable construction, yet its reliability is fundamentally limited by the lack of real-time control over the evolving properties of fresh concrete. Extrusion-based 3D concrete printing is critically governed by fresh-state rheological properties such as viscosity, static yield stress, and stiffness gain, which must evolve within a precise window to sustain buildability. Furthermore, layer-by-layer deposition inherently induces interlayer interfaces whose bond strength is governed by the thixotropic recovery rate, surface moisture, and the interlayer time gap. These factors are critical for structural integrity. 
To assess these properties, laboratory-based tests, rheometry, flow table, and penetration, for rheology, tensile, and shear tests for bond strength were conducted under controlled conditions. Techniques for continuously, non-destructively, and in situ measuring these properties during printing are currently unavailable. 
The candidate is required to prepare a project to address this gap, e.g. through the use ofembedded miniaturized piezoelectric (Lead Zirconate Titanate, PZT) sensors operating on the Electromechanical Impedance (EMI) principle directly into concrete during printing. When excited by a swept harmonic voltage, the sensor simultaneously senses and actuates the mechanical response of the surrounding medium, producing an admittance signature Y(𝛚). The resulting admittance signature Y(ω) reflects the mechanical state of the material, where viscosity influences damping, yield stress and stiffness govern resonance, and interlayer contact captures bond quality. Monitoring the continuous evolution of Y(𝛚) enables real-time, non-destructive assessment of these properties without disturbing the print.
Fundamentally, EMI sensing is a mechanistic approach; sensor responses are interpreted through coupled PZT-viscoelastic concrete impedance models extended to a fresh viscoplastic regime, ensuring physical interpretability across the mix designs and environmental conditions. 
Validated transfer functions train a physics-informed LSTM neural network, constrained by cement hydration thermodynamics to predict all fresh-state properties in real time from raw admittance sequences, enabling closed-loop adaptive control of print speed and inter-layer interval.

Department
DENG

Supervisor
Francesco Causone

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Energy at Politecnico di Milano addresses the challenges of the energy transition by developing innovative and sustainable energy solutions, providing scientific evidence to support industrial investments and essential sector policies.
The CRANES Lab (part of BEES Group) expertise includes energy and indoor environmental quality assessment in the built environment.

Brief project description
This project aims to develop a next-generation multi-physics Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) framework for the performance-based design and optimisation of Urban Green Infrastructure (UGI) in sponge cities. As urban areas face increasing risks from extreme rainfall, flooding, overheating, and climate change, UGI systems such as green roofs, permeable pavements, bioswales, rain gardens, and vegetated open spaces are emerging as key engineered solutions for resilient urban development. However, current design approaches still rely on simplified or fragmented methods that cannot fully capture the coupled processes governing runoff, infiltration, evapotranspiration, airflow, heat exchange, and the interaction between vegetation, water, soil, and built form.
In terms of excellence, the project will deliver an innovative CFD-based framework integrating hydraulic, thermal, and microclimatic processes within a unified engineering platform for sponge city design. The research will combine advanced numerical modelling, parametric analysis, calibration and validation strategies, and scenario-based simulations to assess how geometry, material properties, vegetation characteristics, and spatial configuration affect UGI performance across scales, from single interventions to neighbourhoods.
In terms of impact, the project will generate robust engineering tools, performance indicators, and design criteria to support planners, engineers, and public authorities in optimising UGI for stormwater control, heat mitigation, and environmental quality. By translating high-resolution simulations into actionable design guidance, the project will strengthen the scientific basis for climate-resilient urban infrastructure and nature-based solutions, directly supporting European priorities in climate adaptation and sustainable cities.
In terms of training and career development, the fellowship will provide the selected researcher with advanced expertise in CFD, heat and mass transfer, multi-physics modelling, and performance-based design. Through interdisciplinary and intersectoral collaboration, the fellow will also strengthen skills in scientific leadership, proposal development, and knowledge transfer, enhancing long-term career prospects in both academia and applied research.

Department
DENG

Supervisor
Francesco Causone

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Energy at Politecnico di Milano addresses the challenges of the energy transition by developing innovative and sustainable energy solutions, providing scientific evidence to support industrial investments and essential sector policies
The CRANES Lab (part of BEES Group) expertise includes energy and indoor environmental quality assessment in the built environment.

Brief project description
The vast amount of data available on the Internet has recently revealed to people the significant potential of artificial intelligence (AI). Specifically, large deep learning models pre-trained on internet-scale datasets have become increasingly popular for their ability to mimic human brain and to assist in various daily activities. Examples of these models, known as foundation models (FMs), include large language models (LLMs) like the well-known ChatGPT and vision-language models such as BLIP. All FMs leverage the transfer learning paradigm to the extreme, achieving state-of-the-art performance on diverse tasks with zero or few-shot prompting.

Geodata represents an interesting application for FMs. The increase availability of remote sensing data, street view imagery and spatial distribution information provides an enormous opportunity to accelerate the development of smart cities. However, due to this inherently multimodal nature of geodata, current evidence indicates that FMs might exhibit less reliable performance compared to task-specific approaches such as computer vision models. For instance, FMs are unable to perform geospatial reasoning, relying instead on internal text-based knowledge to provide spatial information. This might potentially increase the risk of generating nonsense answers, also called hallucinations. 

Based on the previous considerations, the aim of this project is to explore and leverage the recent advances in foundation modeling and GeoAI. Drawing on the knowledge gained, the final goal is to develop a framework that can offer a simplified end-to end solution to assist researchers and policy makers in the urban planning of sustainable and smart cities.

Department
DENG

Supervisor
Francesco Causone

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Energy at Politecnico di Milano addresses the challenges of the energy transition by developing innovative and sustainable energy solutions, providing scientific evidence to support industrial investments and essential sector policies.
The CRANES Lab (part of BEES Group) expertise includes energy and indoor environmental quality assessment in the built environment.

Brief project description
This project aims to develop a dynamic carbon accounting framework to support the engineering and deployment of climate-neutral city strategies. Current urban carbon accounting methods are mainly based on static annual balances and fail to capture the temporal variability of energy demand, renewable generation, storage operation, mobility, and construction-related emissions. This limits their usefulness for designing urban systems in which the timing of emissions and mitigation actions strongly affects carbon performance, infrastructure sizing, and system efficiency.
In terms of excellence, the project will create an engineering-oriented framework able to quantify carbon flows across interconnected urban sectors with high temporal resolution. The research will integrate operational and embodied emissions, building and district energy use, distributed renewable generation, storage, electrified mobility, and demand-side flexibility within a unified modelling environment. Through scenario and sensitivity analysis, the project will assess how design choices, control strategies, and the sequencing of interventions influence carbon-neutrality pathways. The novelty lies in moving from static inventories to a time-resolved representation of urban carbon dynamics that better reflects real system behaviour and supports planning.
In terms of impact, the project will deliver modelling tools and decision-support metrics for engineers, urban planners, and public authorities. The framework will help identify effective combinations of technologies and interventions, reduce temporal mismatches between low-carbon supply and demand, and improve the technical credibility of climate-neutrality roadmaps. By linking carbon accounting with system operation and infrastructure design, the project will support more effective urban decarbonisation and contribute to European goals on climate neutrality, resilient infrastructure, and smart urban transition.
In terms of training and career development, the fellowship will equip the selected researcher with expertise in urban energy systems, carbon modelling, scenario-based engineering analysis, and decision-support methods. Through interdisciplinary and intersectoral collaboration, the fellow will strengthen skills in scientific leadership, stakeholder engagement, and proposal development, enhancing long-term career prospects in academia and applied research.

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Nina Bono

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
Prof. Nina Bono's group is hosted at the Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering "G. Natta", Politecnico di Milano (www.polimi.it). The group works at the intersection of mechanobiology, bioengineering, and nanomedicine, focusing on how mechanical cues regulate cell behavior from the ECM to the nucleus. The group operates within the Joint Research Platform Politecnico di Milano – Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori (INT, Milan), providing access to patient-derived samples and clinical-translational oncology expertise.

Brief project description
Lung cancer is the world's leading cause of cancer mortality (~1.8 million deaths/year), with 5-year survival below 20%. A critical determinant of therapeutic failure is desmoplasia: the pathological remodeling of the extracellular matrix (ECM) resulting in stromal stiffening up to 10-fold above healthy parenchyma, which independently predicts poor prognosis regardless of mutational status. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) and human bronchial epithelial cells (HBECs) establish a self-amplifying loop sustaining tumor progression. The central mechanistic gap — how progressive ECM stiffening propagates to the nucleus, reshaping 3D chromatin architecture and stabilizing pro-fibrotic, therapy-resistant transcriptional programs — has never been systematically investigated in desmoplastic lung cancer.
ECHO addresses this gap by developing two complementary 3D biomimetic platforms: CAFs embedded in hydrogel matrices with progressive stiffness (from ~1 kPa to >20 kPa), and HBECs cultured on basement membrane-mimicking substrates of increasing rigidity. Mechanonuclear readouts will include: 3D nuclear deformation, nuclear envelope tension (FRET-based NespTS sensors), euchromatin–heterochromatin transitions, chromosomal territory mapping (3D FISH), chromatin accessibility (ATAC-seq), and transcriptional profiling (scRNA-seq). Causal relationships will be established through CRISPR/RNAi perturbation of nuclear lamina components and mechanosensitive transcription factors (YAP/TAZ).
A conceptually distinctive element is the systematic comparison of isogenic cell pairs — genetically normal (wild-type) vs. oncogene-primed cells (e.g., activating KRAS mutation, TP53 loss) — to isolate the independent contribution of the biomechanical microenvironment from genetic background in driving nuclear reprogramming.
The expected impact is threefold: (i) the first mechanonuclear atlas across pathological stiffness gradients in CAFs and HBECs; (ii) the first systematic evidence that the biomechanical environment shapes 3D chromatin independently of genetic mutation; (iii) proof-of-concept identification of intervention nodes capable of disrupting the self-amplifying fibrotic loop and restoring therapeutic sensitivity. All findings will be validated on patient-derived samples in collaboration with INT Milan, ensuring immediate translational relevance.

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Alessandro Filippo Maria Pellegata

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The project will be hosted by the DCMC, which offers leading expertise and facilities aligned with the project aims. The PI, Prof Pellegata, currently holds an ERC Consolidator and an ERC PoC grant related to this research. The group focuses on innovative tissue engineering approaches for prenatal medicine and disease modelling, including bioprinting, fetal surgery, and organoids. It brings together postdocs and PhD students with diverse expertise (stem cell biology, biomaterials, bioinformatics, pediatric surgery), fostering a highly interdisciplinary and stimulating environment.

Brief project description
Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) is a severe prenatal condition diagnosed during gestation and characterized by impaired lung development, leading to high neonatal morbidity and mortality. Prenatal interventions such as fetoscopic tracheal occlusion have demonstrated significant improvement in lung growth by promoting lung expansion and development. In parallel, experimental evidence indicates that the localized delivery of pro-angiogenic factors, particularly vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), can further enhance lung maturation by stimulating vascular development. Building on this rationale, this project aims to develop an advanced hydrogel biomaterial designed to simultaneously provide mechanical tracheal occlusion and controlled VEGF delivery. Specifically, the research will focus on engineering a watertight, injectable hydrogel suitable for an in-situ fetoscopic bioprinting application, capable of forming a stable occlusive barrier while incorporating and releasing VEGF in a controlled and sustained manner. The gel will be designed with tunable rheological and biochemical properties to ensure effective sealing of the trachea, biocompatibility, and appropriate degradation or reversibility, addressing key limitations of current occlusion strategies. A central objective will be the optimization of the hydrogel network to achieve precise control over VEGF release kinetics, enabling localized and prolonged bioactivity while minimizing systemic exposure. The project will integrate expertise in biomaterials science and bioengineering to tailor polymer composition, microstructure and bioprinting properties. Advanced characterization techniques (both wet and in-silico) will be employed to assess rheological properties, permeability, and release profiles, alongside in vitro validation using Amniotic Fluid Cells to evaluate biological activity and pro-angiogenic potential. By combining mechanical functionality with controlled biochemical signaling, the proposed innovative biomaterial represents a significant advancement beyond current approaches, which are primarily limited to passive occlusion. This research will establish a new class of therapeutic materials for prenatal applications, enabling targeted interventions, which has the potential to improve CDH outcomes while potentially address other prenatal regenerative strategies.

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Emanuela Jacchetti

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The research group is highly interdisciplinary, integrating physics, biology, pharmacology, and engineering to develop advanced bioengineered systems. We design substrates with controlled mechanical properties, create tools for cell stimulation, and apply multiphysical modelling to study complex biological processes. The project is hosted at the Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering at Politecnico di Milano, which provides state-of-the-art facilities for biofabrication, imaging, and scaffold development.

Brief project description
Cellular mechanisms of physical signal reception and transduction are central to tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. The study of intra- and intercellular signalling, particularly driven by mechanical stimuli, enables understanding of how cells integrate and amplify external cues to regulate biochemical responses, gene expression, and cell fate. In this framework, cells are viewed as dynamic systems capable of sensing and processing environmental signals under physiological and pathological conditions.

The Mechanobiology lab where I work includes a biosafety level II facility for cell culture, transfection, and biochemical assays, as well as bioreactors for applying controlled mechanical stimuli (shear stress, tension, compression). Advanced imaging is supported by epifluorescence, confocal, and multiphoton microscopy with FLIM capabilities. The lab also features 3D printing and two-photon polymerization platforms for custom scaffold fabrication, alongside computational resources for modelling and finite element analysis.

In this environment, I develop advanced tools for cellular modelling, including systems for stem cell expansion, microfluidic bioreactors, and miniaturized platforms for intravital imaging. By integrating static and dynamic culture systems, I investigate how mechanical cues regulate cell behaviour, migration, and metabolism, supporting new strategies for regenerative medicine and drug discovery.

My research focuses on two main directions. The first develops in vitro platforms for drug testing by correlating epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) with fibrosis, immune response, and mechanotransduction. Using microporous scaffolds, I recreate tumour microenvironments to study how mechanical and biological factors influence therapeutic response and identify new targets.

The second focuses on stem cell and immune mechanoregulation. I investigate the immunoregulatory properties of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), analysing how mechanical cues affect their ability to modulate immune responses. Building on my work on macrophages and MSCs, I develop implantable, cell-laden devices to enhance MSC-driven immunomodulation, guiding macrophage polarization toward a pro-regenerative phenotype and promoting tissue regeneration.

Department
DFIS

Supervisor
Giuseppe Maria Paternò

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Physics at Politecnico di Milano conducts internationally competitive research in Physics of Matter and Applied Physics, developing advanced technologies with high social impact. My work is within Research Line 1, “Ultrashort Light Pulse Generation and Applications to the Study of Ultrafast Phenomena in Matter”. I study light-driven dynamics in low-dimensional materials and their use as biointerfaces. My current research is mainly focused on the ERC Starting Grant EOS, on the photomodulation of bacterial bioelectricity and related functions.

Brief project description
Electrical signalling is a fundamental physical principle of living systems, but in bacteria it remains poorly understood. Although bacterial membrane potential fluctuates in response to environmental perturbations, we still do not know whether these dynamics encode information, how signals propagate within and across cells, or how they shape collective phenotypes. This gap is critical, because bioelectric signalling may represent an overlooked regulatory layer underlying stress adaptation, coordination and antibiotic tolerance.
This project aims to uncover the physical principles of bacterial bioelectric signalling by exploiting existing tools to perturb bacterial electrophysiology and focusing on what follows: how electrical states are processed, transmitted and converted into biological responses. The central hypothesis is that bacteria use transient membrane-potential dynamics as a signalling layer coupling external perturbations to downstream functional decisions.
The fellow will combine membrane biophysics, quantitative fluorescence imaging and modelling to identify signalling regimes in bacterial cells and communities. Key questions include whether bioelectric responses remain local or propagate spatially, whether they generate reproducible dynamical patterns, and whether specific electrical signatures correlate with altered motility, collective behaviour, stress resilience or drug tolerance. Particular emphasis will be placed on distinguishing passive electrical relaxation from active signalling, and on defining the timescales, thresholds and coupling mechanisms governing these responses.
By establishing quantitative descriptors of bacterial electrical signalling, the project seeks to move from phenomenology to predictive understanding. This physics-based framework will clarify whether membrane-potential fluctuations are merely by-products of physiological stress or instead constitute a communication channel in microbial systems.
The expected impact is both fundamental and applied. The project will position bacterial electrophysiology as an emerging area of biological physics and may reveal signalling pathways linked to antibiotic tolerance, persistence or biofilm-associated states, opening routes for antimicrobial diagnostics and for targeting phenotypes that evade conventional susceptibility testing. It is interdisciplinary, connecting physics, microbiology and quantitative biology, with strong MSCA potential for training and career development.

Department
DFIS

Supervisor
Giuseppe Maria Paternò

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Physics at Politecnico di Milano conducts internationally competitive research in Physics of Matter and Applied Physics, developing advanced technologies with high social impact. My work is within Research Line 1, “Ultrashort Light Pulse Generation and Applications to the Study of Ultrafast Phenomena in Matter”. I study light-driven dynamics in low-dimensional materials and their use as biointerfaces. My current research is mainly focused on the ERC Starting Grant EOS, on the photomodulation of bacterial bioelectricity and related functions.

Brief project description
Bacterial motility is a remarkable form of active matter in which membrane energetics drive flagellar rotation, propulsion and navigation. This coupling between membrane potential and motor activity makes bacteria attractive building blocks for biohybrid microswimmers. Yet, despite growing interest in bacteria-based microrobotics, we still lack strategies to control their motion in a programmable way and exploit this control for targeted cargo transport.
This project aims to establish light-based control of bacterial motility as a foundation for truly biohybrid swimmers. The central idea is that optical modulation of membrane potential can regulate the flagellar motor and tune swimming behaviour in real time. By exploiting light-responsive biointerfaces and optical stimulation schemes already developed in the host lab, the project will investigate how photomodulation of bacterial electrophysiology can be translated into control of speed, directionality and transport performance.
The fellow will combine quantitative motility assays, fluorescence imaging and modelling to identify the rules linking optical input, membrane-potential changes and mechanical output. Key questions include how light-driven modulation affects propulsion, whether these responses can be used to photoguide individual cells or populations, how cargo attachment alters motility, and which parameters determine the trade-off between steering, swimming efficiency and payload. Particular emphasis will be placed on hybrid constructs in which bacteria retain viability and motility while acquiring transport functions.
The ambition is to move from empirical demonstrations to a predictive framework for light-programmed bacterial transport. This means defining descriptors such as speed, persistence, steering response and cargo compatibility that can guide the rational design of living microswimmers.
The expected impact is both fundamental and translational. Fundamentally, the project will clarify how membrane-potential modulation controls bacterial motility and establish principles for directing active biological matter. Translationally, it will enable biocompatible biohybrid swimmers that can be remotely guided by light toward hard-to-reach locations for therapeutic or diagnostic cargo delivery.

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Guido Raos

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The 3MOST lab comprises 2 full, 4 associate and 2 junior professors, and several postdocs, PhD and master students.  The central endeavor is identifying and detailing key structure-property relationships in molecular or polymeric materials. We exploit experimental techniques and theoretical modelling, that we jointly adopt to characterize crystalline, semicrystalline or amorphous, organic, inorganic, and hybrid materials. These find application in organic and metal-organic electronics, sustainable energy production and storage, biomaterials for health care.

Brief project description
Soft matter comprises a broad range of materials (e.g., polymers, gels, colloids, surfactants, etc.) that occur across the healthcare, energy, food and construction sectors. They are typically loosely structured, where the structural units may extend over mesoscopic length scales (10-1000 nm) and persist in non-equilibrium states for very long times (from seconds to years).

Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations are indispensable tools for characterizing molecular systems, providing atomic-scale insights into their structure and properties. However, their predictive capabilities depend on a number of factors, and two emerge as prominent. The first one is the accuracy and generality of the employed force fields. These have been boosted by the recent application of machine learning to parametrize the interaction among atoms across the whole periodic table. Another key requirement is the availability of reasonable starting models for the structure of a material, from the atomic scale up. Obtaining realistic structures is almost trivial for crystalline materials but can be extremely complex and time-consuming for nanostructured and soft materials.

The aim of this project is to implement a general methodology to rapidly obtain realistic structures for complex materials, but without compromising the ability of the force fields to correctly predict properties. The new methodology will integrate experimental information (mainly from X-ray and neutron scattering experiments) and MD simulations at different resolutions (atomistic or coarse-grained, with traditional or machine learning force fields). Experimental data will be used to nudge the simulations towards a desired structure, and their outcome will provide a solid interpretation of the data. Depending on the background and scientific interests of the candidates, following the implementation within a high-performance MD code such as LAMMPS, the method may then be applied to systems such as nanostructured polymers, gels, building materials, ionic liquids, solid electrolytes and biomolecular aggregates. 

Department
DENG

Supervisor
Carlo Spartaco Casari

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Energy has more than 350 people working in experimental and modelling and has been awarded by the Italian Ministry of Research as “Department of Excellence” in 2018.
The NanoLab group is focused on the experimental development and understanding of novel materials with 750 m2 of laboratories. NanoLab hosted ERC, EIC projects, and MSCA grantees. Prof. Carlo S. Casari coordinated ERC and EIC projects. He won innovation prizes, and in 2023, he founded the startup (and spinoff of POLIMI) ENIGMA srl.
www.energia.polimi.it
www.esplore.polimi.it

Brief project description
Carbon-based materials have attracted a strong interest in recent decades, from graphene to nanotubes. More recently, sp-hybridized carbon has emerged as a system with intriguing properties and as a promising building block for new carbon nanostructures [1,2]. In particular, sp-carbon is at the basis of carbyne, the ultimate one-dimensional (1D) carbon allotrope, and of graphyne and graphdiyne structures, which represent a new class of two-dimensional (2D) materials beyond graphene. However, the experimental development and control of these systems are still limited and represent an open challenge.
The project is focused on the experimental investigation of sp–sp² carbon materials for energy-related applications (e.g., supercapacitors [3]). The activity will address the synthesis, assembly, and characterization of sp-carbon atomic wires (carbyne-like systems) and/or graphdiyne-like materials, as well as their organization into materials in the form of thin films, freestanding membranes, and nanocomposites.
The research will mainly deal with the control of key parameters such as length, termination, interaction between sp and sp² domains, and environmental effects, which are known to strongly affect the structural, electronic, and optical properties of these systems.
The experimental work will be based on advanced spectroscopic techniques, with particular focus on Raman and UV–vis spectroscopies, also in in-situ and in-operando conditions. Additional surface and optical characterization methods will be used when needed. The investigation will follow a multiscale approach, from single nanostructures to assembled systems and extended films and materials.
The activity is mainly experimental. Theoretical modelling (e.g., density functional theory), available through collaborations, will support the interpretation of the experimental results.
The project can be further developed together with the candidate within this framework, focusing, for instance, on synthesis optimization, interface control, and integration into functional materials for specific energy applications.
The final goal is the development of experimental approaches for the fabrication and control of sp–sp² carbon-based materials and their implementation in functional systems for energy technologies.

[1] C.S. Casari et al. Nanoscale 8, 4414 (2016)
[2] J.M.A. Lechner et al. Nature Communications 16:4360 (2025)
[3] S. Ghosh et al. Carbon 234, 119952 (2025)

Department
DCMC

Supervisor
Emanuela Jacchetti

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The research group is highly interdisciplinary, integrating physics, biology, pharmacology, and engineering to develop advanced bioengineered systems. We design substrates with controlled mechanical properties, create tools for cell stimulation, and apply multiphysical modelling to study complex biological processes. The project is hosted at the Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering at Politecnico di Milano, which provides state-of-the-art facilities for biofabrication, imaging, and scaffold development.

Brief project description
Cellular mechanisms of physical signal reception and transduction are central to tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. The study of intra- and intercellular signalling, particularly driven by mechanical stimuli, enables understanding of how cells integrate and amplify external cues to regulate biochemical responses, gene expression, and cell fate. In this framework, cells are viewed as dynamic systems capable of sensing and processing environmental signals under physiological and pathological conditions.

The Mechanobiology lab where I work includes a biosafety level II facility for cell culture, transfection, and biochemical assays, as well as bioreactors for applying controlled mechanical stimuli (shear stress, tension, compression). Advanced imaging is supported by epifluorescence, confocal, and multiphoton microscopy with FLIM capabilities. The lab also features 3D printing and two-photon polymerization platforms for custom scaffold fabrication, alongside computational resources for modelling and finite element analysis.

In this environment, I develop advanced tools for cellular modelling, including systems for stem cell expansion, microfluidic bioreactors, and miniaturized platforms for intravital imaging. By integrating static and dynamic culture systems, I investigate how mechanical cues regulate cell behaviour, migration, and metabolism, supporting new strategies for regenerative medicine and drug discovery.

My research focuses on two main directions. The first develops in vitro platforms for drug testing by correlating epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) with fibrosis, immune response, and mechanotransduction. Using microporous scaffolds, I recreate tumour microenvironments to study how mechanical and biological factors influence therapeutic response and identify new targets.

The second focuses on stem cell and immune mechanoregulation. I investigate the immunoregulatory properties of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), analysing how mechanical cues affect their ability to modulate immune responses. Building on my work on macrophages and MSCs, I develop implantable, cell-laden devices to enhance MSC-driven immunomodulation, guiding macrophage polarization toward a pro-regenerative phenotype and promoting tissue regeneration.

Department
DESIGN

Supervisor
Marzia Mortati

Brief description of the Department and Research Group
The Department of Design at Politecnico di Milano promotes interdisciplinary research at the intersection of design, innovation, and public sector transformation. An important research focus concerns service design, digital innovation, and the role of design in governance and policy-making.
In this context, Marzia Mortati has developed a strong focus on AI for public services, co-delivering an Executive Master in Artificial Intelligence for Public Services and contributing to international initiatives such as the UNESCO SPAARK AI Alliance.

Brief project description
This project explores how generative artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming professional writing practices in public administration. While AI is widely framed as a tool for efficiency, its integration into everyday bureaucratic work remains poorly understood. Existing research often treats AI as a generic technology or focuses on organisational adoption, overlooking how it is embedded in routine practices and how frontline professionals engage with it in context.

Focusing on writing as a core function of the civil service, the project investigates how AI reshapes the production of documents such as case notes, reports, and assessments. It adopts a practice-theory perspective to analyse work as the interaction between materials (AI tools and infrastructures), competences (skills and judgement), and meanings (professional values and standards). By grounding this approach in empirical research, the project aims to develop a novel conceptual framework for understanding “AI-in-practice” in public services.

Empirically, the research will employ a comparative ethnographic approach across contrasting contexts. Through participant observation, shadowing, and interviews with frontline staff and stakeholders, it will examine how AI is integrated, adapted, or resisted in daily work, and how different regulatory environments and organisational cultures shape its use. Particular attention is given to emerging skills such as prompt design, critical verification, and the negotiation of bias, fairness, and accountability in AI-supported writing.

The project also considers how AI may differently affect diverse groups of workers and service users, including issues related to gender, experience, and digital skills. Building on these insights, it will translate findings into a practice-based framework accompanied by practical guidance for integrating generative AI into public sector writing.

By combining comparative ethnography, practice theory, and co-design, the project aims to generate new knowledge on how AI reconfigures professional practice while providing concrete guidance to support effective and responsible AI adoption in public services.