Paola Matozzo – ESR1

Institut des Sciences Chimiques de Rennes, France (CNRS)

I completed my Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry at University of Milano-Bicocca, spending the third year at University of Strasbourg and working on the nanoporous crystal structures supported by hydrogen bonds. In February 2019, I pursued my Master’s degree in Industrial chemistry at University of Milan with an experimental thesis on the synthesis of N^C^N platinum complexes and the study of their luminescent properties (for OLEDs) and the Non-Linear Optical behavior. In March 2019 I got a research fellowship with ENI S.p.a about the synthesis of catalysts for the copolymerization of epoxides and CO₂. Since Mars 2020, I am doing a PhD in Rennes, under the supervision of Dr. Jeanne Crassous.

Bibiana Fabri – ESR2

University of Geneva, Switzerland (UNIGE)

I carried out my University studies at the University of Bologna (IT) where I was awarded with a Bachelor Degree in chemistry in July 2017 and a Master Degree in photochemistry and molecular materials in March 2020. Thanks to the specialty of my graduate studies, I gained a strong background in photochemistry, supramolecular chemistry and molecular materials and I developed theorical and experimental skills to plan, synthesise and characterise new materials, being able to understand and exploit their interaction with electromagnetic radiation. The ability of certain molecules to interact with light has always fascinated me, and for this reason I decided to carry on my PhD studies strengthening my knowledge and understanding of such photoactive materials, under the supervision of Jérôme Lacour at Geneva University.

Katsiaryna Kutsenka – ESR3

Institute of Organic Chem & Biochemistry, Czech Republic (UOCHB)

I graduated with honors from the Belarusian State University, Faculty of Chemistry, specialize on Fundamental Chemistry (Minsk, Republic of Belarus). I am a Ph.D. student of the Faculty of Science, Charles University (Prague, Czech Republic) in the field of Organic Chemistry. I am conducting the research in the group of Ivo Starý “Chemistry of Functional Molecules“ at the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, under the supervision of prof. Irena G. Stará. The main focus of the experimental work is the development and synthesis of nonplanar nanocarbons – potential molecular systems with CPL and spin-selection property.

Oliver Willis – ESR 4

University of Pisa, Italy (UNIPI)

In 2020 I graduated from Durham University (UK) as a Master of Chemistry with First Class Honours. My final year project took place in a physical organic chemistry research group with Dr AnnMarie O’Donoghue. In the summer of 2019, I took part in the NCCR Bio-Inspired Materials research internship at the University of Fribourg (Switzerland) working with Professor Michael Mayer in his biophysical research group. I am currently at the University of Pisa (Italy), working with Professor Lorenzo Di Bari as part of the Innovative Training Network HEL4CHIROLED.

Juan Manuel Moreno – ESR5

Imperial College of London, UK (IMP)

Born in Madrid, I obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid in 2018. During my undergraduate studies I took part in different research projects and internships in institutions like CiQUS – USC or IMDEA. I carried out my Bachelor’s thesis on Carbon NanoDots chemical modifications at Prof. Nazario Martín’s lab.  In 2018, I was awarded one LaCaixa” Foundation Postgraduate Fellowships and I moved to Lausanne (Switzerland) to study a Master on Biological and Molecular Chemistry at EPFL. During this period, I got familiarized with spectroscopy experiments and techniques developing two different projects at Prof. Jacques-E. Moser’s lab. Besides, I’ve continued gaining skills in the field of organic synthesis by completing my Master’s thesis on organic photoanodes for water splitting at Prof. Kevin Sivula’s lab. I obtained my Master’s degree in 2020 and then moved to London for my PhD at Imperial College London. I am currently working at Prof. Matthew Fuchter’s group on chiral organic electronics and semiconductors.

Marco Preuss – ESR6

Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands (TU/e).

In 2017 I’ve obtained my Bachelor’s degree at the Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz under supervision of Pol Besenius in the field of supramolecular chemistry. During that period, I’ve worked on self-assembling, stimulus responsive metallopeptide amphiphiles, whose supramolecular polymerization could be triggered by pH changes. During my master studies I spend six months with Prof. Javier Read de Alaniz at University of California Santa Barbara, working on small molecule photo switches for material science. In winter 2019, I’ve obtained my Master’s degree out of the research group of Prof. Till Opatz in the field of computer aided drug development of covalent Tryparedoxin inhibitors. The latter showed promising activities against Trypanosoma Brucei, a parasite causing the African Sleeping Sickness.

In January 2020, I joined the group of Prof. Bert Meijer for my PhD thesis. My ultimate goal is to synthesize a chiral monomer which is able to form supramolecular aggregates of preferred helicity to exploit the chiral induced spin selectivity (CISS) effect for, example given, application in next generation opto-electronic devices.

Davide de Rosa – ESR7

University of Durham, UK (UDUR)

I graduated summa cum laude in 2020 with a Master’s degree in Theoretical Physics at University of Pisa, Italy, having worked with Prof. Benedetta Mennucci and Dr. Tarita Biver to study the interaction between terbium ions and DNA through computational and spectroscopic means. My interest in lanthanide systems and their applications has since taken me to Durham University, UK, as a doctoral student under the guidance of Assoc. Prof. Robert Pal and Prof. David Parker. Here, I am currently studying chiral lanthanide systems with a focus on their synthesis, chiroptical characterisation, and application for in vivo cell sensing.

Marta di Girolamo – ESR8.2

Imperial College of London, UK (IMP)

(Updated soon)

Rituparno Chowdhury – ESR9

University of Cambridge, UK (UCAM)

I pursued the Integrated BS-MS degree in the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Kolkata till 2021. While in India I worked on molecular crystals both in experiment and in theory under the supervision of Prof. C. M. Reddy and Prof. Arnab Mukherjee. I also pursued an internship with Professor Daan Frenkel in the University of Cambridge in 2019 which greatly strengthened my understanding of the physics of soft matter. Of particular interest to me were organic crystals capable of electronic properties and the molecular mechanism of deformation in such ordered materials. This formed a large part of my research in IISER, it is through this research that I became interested in optoelectronics and materials physics, both of which have huge impact in modern society and are nearly ubiquitous in their applications in current electronics. With my interests in mind, I was honored to join the Optoelectronics group at the University of Cambridge in May 2021 as a PhD(Physics) student under the supervision of Professor Sir Richard H. Friend. My current interests lie in combining what I have learned in the past while gaining new knowledge as well as experience in optoelectronics, semiconductor, device physics physics and materials science towards a goal of designing new optoelectronic devices and explore new materials that will be able to harness spin polarization and chirality in molecules. If successful we might be able to create exceptionally powerful new OLED and OFET technologies which can usher in a new era of display and photonic technologies.

Debsouri Kundu – ESR10

Institut des Sciences Chimiques de Rennes, France (CNRS)

My current research focuses on improving photophysical and chiroptical properties of organometallic helicene complexes for applications such as OLEDs on the group of Jeanne Crassous, at the ISCR. I am interested in the development of synthetic chemistry with good electronic and optical properties for applications like OLEDs, transistors, spin filters, in general. Previously, I have worked, during my Master’s thesis, on synthesis of non-fullerene acceptors for organic photovoltaics e.g. solar cells. Before joining Marie-Curie ITN project, I completed a Masters’ degree in Chemistry from University of Chicago.

Andrea Taddeucci – ESR11

Diamond Light Source, UK (DIAMOND)

I got my Master’s Degree in Organic Chemistry at the University of Pisa on July 2020. During my previous scientific experiences, I’ve worked on the synthesis and the chiroptical characterization (Circular Dichroism and Circularly Polarized Luminescence) of small chiral organic thiophene-based molecules, bringing forward the characterization on both thin film solid state and solution. I executed thin films studies dedicating a particular attention to the research of anisotropic effects, due to the simultaneous action of Linear Dichroism (or Fluorescence Anisotropy) and Linear Birefringence of solid samples. I am currently doing a PhD between Diamond Light Source and the University of Pisa under the supervision of Prof. Giuliano Siligardi and the co-supervision of Prof. Lorenzo Di Bari.

Francesco Furlan – ESR12

Imperial College of London, UK (IMP)

I received my master’s degree in materials science from Padova University in 2019. After my graduation I spent one year at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology as a visiting student, working on Perovskite and Silicon/Perovskite tandem solar cells under the supervision of Prof. Stefaan de Wolf. My main research interests are the study of novel semiconducting materials and their implementation in devices for opto-electronical applications. As part of the network I am now a PhD candidate in the Physics department at Imperial College, working on the development of novel devices based on chiral molecules and chiral semiconductors. I really appreciate to be part of this project, as I strongly believe that collaboration between scientists from different fields is fundamental to tackle new emerging scientific and technological challenges.

Stefano Cadeddu – ESR13

Institut des Sciences Chimiques de Rennes, France (CNRS)

My first experience in the field of research was in material chemistry. Under the supervision of Prof Abbotto from the University of Milano-Bicocca, I have synthesized a calixarene based dye used as a photosensitizer in dye sensitizer solar cells (DSSC). During my master, I worked on the synthesis of a new class of amphiphilic molecules called glycopeptoids. The project was directed by Prof Gaetano Angelici and Prof Valeria Di Bussolo from the University of Pisa. Currently, I am working on the development of chiral polymers for spin-filtering technology and opto-electronic devices, under the supervision of Dr Jeanne Crassous in Rennes, France.

Clement Gedeon – ESR14

Advent Technologies, Greece (ADVENT)

The interest I possess for chemistry started peculiarly 10 years ago when I was fortunate enough to process and etch my own silicon wafer in a cleanroom. Since then, I have investigated a variety of subjects, such as the synthesis of carboline derivatives with Lassagne F. and Prof. Mongin F. at the University of Rennes 1, the CBD precursor’s synthesis with Prof. Mascal M. at the UC Davis, and the uses of metallic nanoparticles for depollution with Denicourt A. and Prof. Roucoux A. at the ENSCR. In the meantime, I also obtained my master degree in molecular chemistry at the University of Rennes 1, ranking as the valedictorian. I am now working as a Ph.D. student with Chochos C. at Advent for the Hel4chiroled European project, where we try to unravel the link between the intrinsic chirality of BODIPY-based polymers and their 3D arrangement.