Prof Behnam Akhavan, an Australian Research Council (ARC) DECRA Fellow and an Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Newcastle, Australia, heads the Plasma Bio-engineering Laboratory at the School of Engineering and the Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI).
Since obtaining his PhD in Advanced Manufacturing from the University of South Australia in 2015, he has held postdoctoral and academic positions at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research and Fraunhofer Institute of Microtechnology in Germany, and the University of Sydney.
AProf Akhavan's pioneering work in plasma surface bio-engineering, published in over 90 journal articles, has led to innovative applications in healthcare and beyond. He is recognised by Engineers Australia as one of the nation’s Most Innovative Engineers.

Carlos Baleizão is an Associate Professor at the Department of Chemical Engineering of the Instituto Superior Técnico (University of Lisbon), coordinator of the "Master in Molecular Science and Engineering", member of the Executive Commission and coordinator of the "Functional Materials Chemistry" thematic line of the Centro de Química Estrutural. He graduated in Applied Chemistry at the NOVA University of Lisbon in 1999 and obtained a PhD in Chemistry at the Technical University of Lisbon in 2004 (experimental part at UPV-Spain). Between 2004-2007 he was a postdoctoral fellow at CQFM-IN (Portugal) and at the Institute of Analytical Chemistry, Chemo- and Biosensors (University of Regensburg, Germany). His research interests settles down in the development of silica nanoparticles, functional polymeric vectors, and hybrid nanostructures for theranostic, energy and environmental remediation.

Giuseppe Barillaro is Full Professor at the Information Engineering Department of the University of Pisa.
Research at Barillaro´s group is focused on the preparation of materials, structures, and systems at the micro and nanoscale by additive and substrative technologies with applications in the fields of (nano)photonics, microelectronics, (bio)sensing, and (nano)medicine. G. Barillaro is author of more than 140 papers in peer-reviewed international journals and holds over 20 patents. He has led more than 35 research expenditures, at international and national levels, on micro and nanostructured materials and platforms for (bio)sensing and (nano)medicine.
He is the PI of the project “RESORB” (https://www.resorb-project.eu) funded by the EC with ~3 M€ for the development of implanted bioresorbable chemical sensor systems for tracking biomarkers and drugs in vivo.

Dr Chiappini is Senior Lecturer in Nanomaterials and Biointerfaces at King’s College London . His research combines nanotechnology, bioengineering and cell biology to develop nanomaterials for advanced therapies and spatial biology. He has developed new approaches for topical gene therapy to the eye and skin for the treatment of inherited diseases; advanced regenerative medicine for periodontal disease; and developed new approaches for longitudinal sampling in spatial biology . His research has been funded by the ERC Starting Grant, UKRI, CureEB and Fight for Sight. In 2021 Dr. Chiappini was recognised as emerging biomaterial scientist by the Royal Society of Chemistry. He was Marie Curie Fellow and Newton International Fellow at Imperial College London from 2011 until 2016, and holds a doctorate from the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Chiappini authored more than 50 publications with over 7000 citations and 4 international patents

Frédérique Cunin is director of research of the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) in Montpellier, France. Her research focuses on the elaboration of biocompatible porous silicon nanostructures for application in nanomedicine. This includes targeted anti-cancer therapies, gene and cell-based therapies and tissue engineering. Her activity particularly focuses on the material synthesis methods, the control of the morphology and texture of the material, and the development of new surface chemical treatments for biofunctionalization. Her research is also on the comprehension and exploitation of the electronic and optical properties of nanostructured silicon. In 2015, she co-founded the French society of Porous SemiConductors and Oxides (SCOPe). She received the Chercheur d’Avenir prize from the Region Occitanie in 2015, and she was awarded the ACS/SCF Franco-American Lectureship Prize in 2019.
Trained as a chemist, she received a master degree from the University of Montpellier in 1996 and a PhD degree from the University of Montpellier in 2000. She had a one year appointment as an assistant-professor, and a 3 year post-doctoral fellow in MJ sailor Lab at UCSD. She started her academic career at CNRS in 2003, received her habilitation in 2015 and was promoted to director of Research in 2020.

Prof. Thierry Djenizian is the head of the flexible electronics department at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Saint-Etienne (Campus Georges Charpak). In 2002, he received his PhD degree in Materials Chemistry for microelectronics from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne and the Friedrich Alexander University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. His research activities are mainly focussed on the nanostructuring of materials by electrochemical techniques for applications in energy storage and conversion at the micrometer scale & design of flexible microelectronic devices for wearable technologies He is the author of over 140 publications in international journal. He is one Conference Chair of Porous Semiconductors Science and Technology international conferences.

Dr. Duran graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Chemical Engineering from Yıldız Technical University in Istanbul, Turkey, in June 1997. She then earned her PhD in Polymer Engineering from the University of Akron in Akron, Ohio, USA, in May 2004. Following her doctoral studies, she joined the Materials Science group, led by Professor Dr. Wolfgang Knoll, at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research (MPI-P) in Mainz, Germany, as a postdoctoral fellow. During this time, she was awarded the Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship for her research. In December 2010, she transitioned to her current position at TOBB University of Economics and Technology (TOBB UET). Since April 2013, she has served as an Associate Professor and, as of October 2024, as a full Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Nanotechnology Engineering and the Micro and Nano Technology Graduate Program at TOBB UET. She also leads the Micro and Nano Interface Engineering Research Group (MiNiERG).

Paula Ferreira is a coordinator researcher at CICECO-DEMaC/UA. Her main scientific interests include the design and characterization of functional materials, namely ferroelectrics, piezoelectrics, multiferroics, and electric conductive materials. She also works with biomaterials such as polysaccharides for sustainable applications. She published over 169 papers and 5 book chapters, with ca. 4571 citations (h-index 39 (SCOPUS)). She has given over 130 scientific and technical talks at international conferences and 28 invited talks. Paula Ferreira was Principal Investigator of over 10 research project awards. She participates in several projects with industry During the last 20 years, she is(had) supervising(ed) 13 post-doctoral fellows, 20 PhD (12 already concluded and 8 in progress), 47 Master (3 in progress) and 40 last year project students and more that 40 initial research fellows.

Anton FICAI (born 1981) is full professor and PhD advisor in the Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnologies, National University of Science and Technology POLITEHNICA Bucharest being actively involved in both academic and scientific life of the university. His major research interests cover tissue engineering, drug delivery systems, multifunctional materials, composite materials, coatings, antimicrobial / antitumoral materials, nanoparticles synthesis and characterization, surface modification,etc. Till now, over 300 ISI papers and 23 books or chapters were published along with 10 granted patents. The international recognition of the R&D activity can be highlighted by the multiple invitations for participate as speaker at international conferences, the positions of guest editors, member of the editorial boards of different national and international journals as well as Section Editor in Chief of Coatings or the awarded Gold Medals, Special Awards or Best Paper Awards (>150). He is also full member of The Academy of Romanian Scientists and several professional societies.

Petra Granitzer degreed in Physics at the University of Graz studying “Mesoporous Silicon as a Matrix for Ferromagnetic Nanostructures”. Then she worked 3 years at Philips in Klagenfurt, Austria before taking a PostDoc position at the Institute of Physics at the University of Graz till 2008. Afterwards she joined the FELMI (Institute for Electronmicroscopy) at the University of Technology in Graz for one year and returned to the Physics Institute at the University of Graz in 2009. Since 2013 she holds a Senior Scientist Position there. Her work focuses on nanostructuring of silicon and the filling thereof with magnetic materials to achieve semiconducting/ferromagnetic composite systems.

Prof. Xu Hou received his B.S. degree in 2006 from Sichuan University, China. He completed his Ph.D. in 2011 at the National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, China, and conducted postdoctoral research at Harvard University, USA, from 2012 to 2015. He subsequently obtained a position as a Lecturer in the Harvard-MIT Program in Health Sciences and Technology. In 2016, he joined Xiamen University as a Full Professor. In 2022, he was appointed Director of the Institute of Electrochemical Science and Engineering and Associate Director of the State Key Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces. To date, he has published more than 150 papers in high-level journals such as Nature, Science, PNAS, and National Science Review, and holds over 30 authorized patents domestically and internationally as the first inventor. He has also authored six academic books. His pioneering research on "Liquid Gating Technology" was recognized by IUPAC as one of the “Top Ten Emerging Technologies in Chemistry” in 2020. In recognition of his outstanding contributions to chemistry, he has been honored as a Fellow of the Chinese Chemical Society, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry

Dr. Jan M. Macak is a Senior Researcher and a group leader at the Center of Materials and Nanotechnologies of the University of Pardubice, Czech Republic and at the Central European Institute of Technology (CEITEC) in Brno, Czech Republic, as the leader of the research group Advanced Low-Dimensional Nanomaterials. He got his Ph.D. in 2008 at the FAU Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany. He received several prestigious awards and in 2015 also ERC Starting grant „Chromtisol“ devoted to development of new type of solar cells based on nanotubular titania. His research is focused on the synthesis of new low-dimensional structures such as nanotubes, nanoparticles, nanofibers, in various ways and their applications, especially in electrochemically driven applications. He currently serves as the Chairman of the European Section of the Electrochemical Society. The presention will focus on the synthesis of valve metal oxide nanotubular and nanoporous layers by electrochemical anodization.

Prof. Dr. Nataša Novak Tušar has been the head of the Laboratory for Catalysts at the Department of Inorganic Chemistry and Technology at the National Institute of Chemistry in Ljubljana since 2020. Since 2018 she has been a full professor and director of the PhD program "Materials" at University Nova Gorica, Slovenia. After obtaining her PhD in Chemistry, she was Individual Marie Curie Fellow at the synchrotron ELETTRA and at the University of Trieste, Italy, from 2003-2004. She is a member of the governing bodies of ENMIX (European Nanoporous Materials Institute of Excellence) and EFCATS (European Federation of Catalysis Societies). Research interests: design and development of catalysts/photocatalysts in heterogeneous catalysis for environmental and energy applications. A special focus: air purification from volatile organic compounds at low temperatures and water cleaning from organic pollutansts CEC (chemicals of emerging concern) under neutral pH and solar light

Michael J. Sailor is Distinguished Professor at the University of California, San Diego, Director of the UC San Diego Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (an NSF MRSEC), and Director of the UC San Diego Institute for Materials Discovery & Design. He holds Affiliate Appointments in the UCSD Bioengineering Department, the Nanoengineering Department, and the Materials Science and Engineering program. He was trained at Harvey Mudd College (BS Chemistry), Northwestern University (PhD Chemistry), Stanford (Post-doctoral), and Caltech (Postdoctoral). Other appointments include: Invited Professor, CNRS Institut Charles Gerhardt in Montpellier, France (2012); Visiting Professor, High Level Talent Program, Key Laboratory of Organosilicon Chemistry and Material Technology, Hangzhou Normal University, China (2018-2020); and Visiting Professor, Zhejiang University, China (2019- 2020). He has supervised more than 160 undergraduate, graduate, and post-doctoral students, he is the author of more than 260 peer-reviewed research publications, one book, and 39 issued patents. He has an H-Index (Google Scholar) of 101. He has founded or co-founded four companies, including Lisata Therapeutics (NASDAQ: LSTA). He also serves on the scientific advisory board of TruTags, inc, which developed a GMP process to manufacture medical grade porous silicon suitable for oral, injectable, or inhalation administration. He is an elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the U.S. National Academy of Inventors, and the Royal Society of Chemistry.

Prof, Jarno Salonen is currently head of the Industrial Physics Laboratory and vice head of the Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Turku, Finland. He earned his M.Sc. in 1995 and his Ph.D. in 1999 from the University of Turku. He has studied porous silicon since 1994 and he has over 300 publications (h-index = 81). His latest research interests included photoluminescence, optical properties and multilayers, drug delivery, cancer treatments, in vivo imaging

Abel Santos studied chemical engineering at the Jaume I University in Castellon de la Plana, where he graduated in 2005. In 2007 and 2011 he was awarded his MEng and PhD in electronic engineering by the Rovira i Virgili University in Tarragona, respectively. He is currently associate professor at the School of Chemical Engineering of The University of Adelaide (Australia). His research focuses on electrochemical engineering of nanoporous anodic alumina structures and their integration in photonic and electronic technologies such as sensors, lasers, iontronics, and photocatalysts and photo-electrocatalysts.

Prof. Santos (D.Sc. Tech., Chem. Eng.) is a Full Professor and Chair in Biomedical Engineering, and the Head of the Department of Biomaterials and Biomedical Technology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen. He was also a former Full Professor at the University of Helsinki, Faculty of Pharmacy. Prof. Santos is also the co-founder of the startups Capsamedix Oy and Medixmicro Oy, and was the Coordinator of a large MSCA-ITN P4 FIT network in tendon repair (~ 4.1 m€). He helds an Honorary Adjunct Fellow at the University of Technology Sydney, and held previously Visiting Professorships at the Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine and University of Tartu. Prof. Santos research interests include the development of nanoparticles/nanomedicines and biomaterials for biomedical applications, particularly cancer and heart diseases. Currently, he supervises 22 PhD students and co-supervises 5 PhD students and 6 MSCA-postdoctoral fellowships. His lab makes the unique bridge between medical engineering, pharmaceutical nanotechnology, and tissue engineering by combining unique techniques to develop novel therapeutic formulations for translation into the clinic. He is co-author of more than +550 publications (+31000 citations; h-index = 98) and 6 patents. He has +300 invited talks around the world. He is also in Editorial board member of Advanced Healthcare Materials, Advanced Therapeutics, Chemical Society Reviews, Journal of Controlled Release, VIEW, Journal of Functional Materials, Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology and Materials, Frontiers in Biomaterials, Precision Nanomedicine, among many others. He is Associate Editor of Nano Select, Smart Materials in Medicine, and Drug Delivery and Translational Research, among others. Prof. Santos has received prestigious honours, awards and grants, such as the "Talent Prize in Science" in 2010 attributed by the Portuguese Government, the European Research Council Starting Grant in 2013, the European Research Council Proof-of-Concept Grant in 2018, the Young Researcher Award in 2013 attributed by the University of Helsinki, the Academy of Finland Award for Social Impact in 2016, and the Controlled Release Society Young Investigator Award 2021. Altogether, Prof. Santos has secured since 2009 +35 research grants nationally and internationally worth of +20 M€.

Ester Segal is a Full Professor and the Beatrice Sensibar Chair in Engineering, and currently serves as Dean of the Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. She earned her Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering at the Technion and completed postdoctoral training as a Rothschild Fellow at the University of California, San Diego.
Her research lies at the interface of nanomaterials science and biotechnology, with applications ranging from medical diagnostics and therapeutic delivery to sustainable solutions for food and agriculture. She has authored over 120 peer-reviewed publications and has received numerous prestigious awards, including the 2019 Advances in Measurement Science Lectureship Award from the American Chemical Society. She also serves on the Advisory Boards of leading journals, including ACS Sensors and ACS Measurement Science Au. She has successfully led and coordinated national and EU-funded consortia, bringing together academia and industry to translate nanomaterials-based innovations into practical technologies.

Professor Vasilev Completed PhD in Max-Plank Institute for Polymer Research (Mainz, Germany) in 2005. He is currently a Matthew Flinders Professor, NHMRC Leadership Fellow and the Director of the Biomedical Nanoengineering Laboratory in the College of Medicine and Public Health at Flinders University. His research interests are in developing innovative nanoengineered materials and coatings that benefit various medical applications and other areas. Professor Vasilev has attracted in excess of 25M dollars in research funding from competitive Government grants and Industry, published more than 330 papers, > 15,000 citation and H-index=68 (m-index>3). He has been awarded several prestigious Research Fellowships from ARC, NHMRC and the Humboldt Foundation, and other awards such as the John A. Brodie Medal from Engineered Australis for achievements in Chemical Engineering.

Professor Nicolas Voelcker is the Director of the Melbourne Centre for Nanofabrication (MCN) and Professor at the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Monash University. The core research activity in his laboratory is the study of silicon-based nanostructures at biointerfaces. Following from this more fundamental research, his focus is on the application of silicon-based nanostructured materials in biosensors, biochips, drug delivery and regenerative medicine. He has authored over 500 peer-reviewed journal articles with over 27,000 citations, h-index 78, and has filed over 50 patents many of which have led to licensing deals and start-ups. He has received fellowships from the German Research Foundation (DFG), the CSIRO and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. He has served on the College of Experts of the Australian Research Council, is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering, a winner of a Humboldt Research Award and a current Australian Research Council Laureate Fellow. As Director of the MCN, he is overseeing the largest joint venture in the Australian university system, and is supporting over 30 companies in their commercialisation endeavours

We study on fundamentals and applications of nanofluidic membranes. Current research interests include microfluidics and nanofluidics, MOF/COF/2D Materials/AAO membranes, ionic diode, and nanofluidic energy conversion.