December 21, 2022, the Kick-off meeting of the Research Infrastructure Network called I-PHOQS – Integrated Infrastructure Initiative in Photonic and Quantum Science took place in Rome at the Conference Hall of the National Research Council (CNR). This initiative connects excellent facilities in the strategic fields of Photonics, Nanotechnology, and Quantum Technologies.

I-PHOQS is funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU, as part of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) that provides unprecedented funding of great importance for research and innovation in our country.

There are eight Italian sites that will benefit from a total funding of 50 million euros over three years. Four of them are located in Southern Italy, receiving over 40% of the funding, while the other four are in the North. The National Research Council (CNR) is the proposing institution, along with the Politecnico di Milano, and the four participating infrastructures are: LENS – European Laboratory for Non-Linear Spectroscopy, CUSBO – Centre for Ultrafast Science and Biomedical Optics, ELI – Extreme Light Infrastructure, and Beyond_Nano – Materials and processes BEYOND the NANO scale.

The agenda of the meeting includes renowned scientists and researchers from institutions participating in the partnership, active in the field of photonics, nanotechnology, and quantum technologies. For the CNR, these institutions include: the National Institute of Optics (CNR-INO), the Institute of Nanotechnology (CNR-Nanotec), the Institute of Photonics and Nanotechnologies (CNR-IFN), the Institute for Microelectronics and Microsystems (CNR-IMM), and the Department of Physics and Technologies for Matter (DSFTM), in addition to the Politecnico di Milano.

“This is a significant investment in the scientific and technological future not only of Italy but of the whole of Europe, considering that over 90% of the funding will be used for the development of cutting-edge equipment and the recruitment of young, talented scientists,” emphasizes Paolo De Natale, CNR-INO research manager and scientific coordinator of I-PHOQS.

“The development of technology, starting from frontier research, is a common characteristic of both the CNR and the Politecnico di Milano. At the Politecnico, we have worked extensively on transferring technologies to existing companies as well as innovative startups that have emerged within our institution,” explains Antonio Pifferi, Full Professor at the Politecnico di Milano and representative of the CUSBO Infrastructure.

I-PHOQS will allow scientists from European universities, research centers, and interested companies to access the facilities of the infrastructure and develop new technologies.

Here the official webpage https://www.i-phoqs.eu/