Prof. Cees Dekker of the Kavli Institute of Nanoscience at TU Delft is one of the European researchers to have been awarded a European Research Council (ERC) Advanced Grant for his research ‘Nanostructures for biology’. The ERC Advanced Grant is a subsidy from the ERC for experienced scientists who carry out innovative, pioneering research. Dekker is expected to receive 2,5 million Euro over a period of five years to further develop his research.

ERC grants
The ERC is the European body entrusted with funding scientific research. There are two kinds of subsidies available: the ERC Starting Grant for beginning researchers and the ERC Advanced Grant for experienced scientists. Dekker is one of those receiving the ERC Advanced Grant, a grant typically awarded for highly-ambitious trail-blazing project proposals led by ‘exceptional leaders only’.