CQM joins INL in European platform for the development of new semiconductor chips. 

The Madeira Chemistry Research Centre (CQM) has partnered with the INL – International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory to join the INFRACHIP, an European research platform dedicated to the sustainable development of the next generation of semiconductor chips.

Through INFRACHIP, researchers can access cutting-edge technologies installed across various parts of Europe free of charge.

CQM is participating in this initiative with the project "Heteroatom-doped and co-doped CDs: characterization", which was recently selected by a European panel to be part of the platform. This partnership will allow CQM researchers involved in the project to access highly specialized knowledge and advanced technologies in electron and X-ray microscopy available at INL. These are essential tools for the structural and morphological characterization of carbon nanomaterials, particularly carbon dots.

These nanomaterials, composed mainly of carbon but which may also contain oxygen and/or nitrogen atoms, exhibit unique optical properties and hold great potential for biomedical applications, especially in bioimaging. At CQM, carbon dots are being developed as part of the PhD project of junior researcher Ivo Martins, titled Fluorescent Carbon dot-cored dendritic polymers as novel cancer theranostics nanoarchitectures, funded by the Foundation for Science and Technology (Ref. 2021.05990.BD) and supervised by Professor João Rodrigues, Full Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Madeira and senior member of CQM.

The first results of this collaboration have already enabled the observation and identification of new carbon nanostructures, with further structural and biochemical characterization studies currently underway. These efforts aim to pave the way for new applications of these materials not only in the field of next-generation chips and bioimaging but also in catalytic processes of high scientific and technological interest.