03 August 2007

The Minister for Education and Science, Mary Hanafin, TD formally announced the outcome of PRTLI Cycle 4 at 11.00 am today. Under this scheme, DCU will receive €23m in research funding. This funding is based on 5 inter-institutional proposals:

- Nanoscience and Nanoscale technologies for Ireland (NANOTEIRE)

- National Biophotonics & Imaging Platform [NBIP]

- National Programme on (Bio)pharmaceutical & Pharmacological Sciences

- Humanities Serving Irish Society (HSIS)

- National Programme of Research on Knowledge, Innovation, Society and Space (KISS)

Significantly, the funding includes projects from across DCU, including science/engineering and humanities/social sciences.

Of particular interest to the Faculty of Engineering and Computing are the Nanoteire and NBIP programmes.

Nanoteire

Nanoteire (Nanoscience and Nano scale technologies for Ireland ) will create a shared national infrastructural capability by significantly upgrading and enhancing the laboratories and capital equipment holdings needed to establish top tier graduate education opportunities in nanoscience and nanoscale technologies for Ireland.

The DCU team, which comprises Professor Liam Barry, Dr. Pascal Landais and Professor Patrick McNally of the Research Institute for Networks and Communications Engineering (RINCE) and members of the National Centre for Plasma Science and Technology (NCPST), will focus on the theme, Ultrafast Photonic Processes and Interactions. To this end DCU will add very significantly to its high speed optical communications laboratories, nanomaterials growth and characterization facilities and high power laser facilities.

NBIP

Professor Paul F. Whelan of the Centre for Image Processing & Analysis (CIPA-RINCE), in conjunction with the Biomedical Diagnostics Institute (BDI) at DCU has been awarded funding as part of the National Biophotonics & Imaging Platform (NBIP). The mission of the NBIP is to provide an integrated national access and training infrastructure in research, education, technology development and industry collaboration for the State’s investment in Biophotonics and Imaging.

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