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Going abroad: two Casimir researchers receive Rubicon grant

[16-01-2023]

Two postdoctoral researchers from TU Delft have received a Rubicon grant from NWO, which enables them to gain research experience at a leading institute abroad for two years. The coveted grant was awarded to 15 researchers who recently received their PhDs in total.

These are the (former) researchers from Casimir sections in Delft (Quantum Nanoscience and Bionanoscience) who received a Rubicon and the research they will be doing with it:

Next generation electronics with magnetic graphene
Who? Dr. Talieh S. Ghiasi, postdoc at the Van der Zant Lab
What? To keep up with the rapidly growing information technology, our computational devices must become even smaller, faster and more energy efficient. As conventional electronics is reaching its limits, this project aims to develop a new type of nano-device with two-dimensional materials that combines quantum physics and magnetism to process information.
Where? Harvard University (United States)

Uncovering the biophysical principles that govern the interaction between cells and antimicrobial peptides
Who? Dr. Alessio Fragasso, former postdoc at the Cees Dekker Lab
What? The future of global healthcare is threatened by the rising antibiotic resistance. Antimicrobial peptides bear potential as promising alternatives to standard antibiotics. The researcher will focus on understanding what makes these peptides so effective at killing bacteria and engineer novel synthetic peptides with even better antimicrobial properties.
Where? Stanford University (United States)

Source: Communication TNW (TU Delft)

Rubicon grants
Research experience abroad is usually a vital aspect of building a career in academia.  Rubicon allows talented scientists and academicians who recently obtained their PhD in the Kingdom of the Netherlands to gain experience at a foreign knowledge institute for a period of 1-2 years. This increases the chance that they can continue working in academia.

Rubicon runs for an indeterminate time. Each year, Rubicon has three funding rounds with deadlines around 1 April, 1 September and 1 December. The deadlines in 2023 are: March 28, August 29 and November 28. Once the call is open, a link appears at the bottom of this NWO/Rubicon page. In 2023, the budget for each round is approximately 2.47 million euros.