Programmable Materials (OMA), letter of intent

Basic research in biosciences and environmental sciences, in the natural sciences as well as in medical sciences is nowadays increasingly the study of different materials. Experimental and computational methods are used to develop highly complex structures, starting from the understanding of basic phenomena. At the same time, boundaries between traditional materials research and the various host disciplines are becoming less distinct. The future of materials research is one of ever closer interdisciplinary collaboration. In Finland, the field of materials science has continued to expand and diversify since the turn of the millennium, very much in line with international trends.

The Research Programme on Programmable Materials follows up on the Academy’s strong commitment to materials research, but at the same time it focuses research efforts on an area where the future uses and properties of materials are anyone’s guess. Here, Finland has an excellent opportunity to bring together knowledge and expertise across disciplinary lines and to discover novel materials.

The aims of the research programme:

• The primary aim is to achieve internationally promising new breakthroughs in programmable materials research.
• Another aim is to identify areas where Finland can be in the international forefront of materials research.
• The research programme aims to integrate Finnish excellence from various disciplines.
• The targets must be ambitious by international standards and of a higher level than the current state-of-the art.
• The aim is also to collaborate with world-leading research teams and promote mobility between research teams.

Thematic areas

Programmable materials constitute a new, emerging field of research. New materials are constantly emerging with advances in nanotechnology and biotechnology, for instance, and programmable materials may revolutionise the utility of functional mater-ials.

The aim is to create a broad-ranging research programme that covers the various fields of research in which new materials properties are relevant and important. The projects selected for inclusion in the research programme can represent pure basic research, without having any immediate applications in mind. On the other hand, the participating projects can also be designed to develop new materials or their properties for some specific purpose.

The concept of programmability in materials can be understood in many different ways, and the programme will not preclude any particular definition of programmability. The programme memorandum provides some examples of potential areas of application.

Project plans for consideration shall aim to describe how the proposed method or technology changes or improves existing ones, and what benefits the use of that method or technology will bring. In particular, it is important to elaborate on how the concept of programmability is understood in the project and on what grounds the applicants consider their project to fall within the scope of this research programme.

Applicant

Funding can be applied for by individual research projects and by consortia composed of two or several research teams.

Funding period

The research projects within the research programme will be funded for four years. The Board of the Academy will decide on the funding for the programme in autumn 2011. The funding period starts 1 June 2012 at the earliest.

Programme memorandum

The programme memorandum contains more detailed information on the programme’s background, aims, themes, detailed application guidelines and the application appendices. The programme memorandum is available on the Academy’s website at www.aka.fi/oma, or upon request from the Registrar’s Office of the Academy. It is essential to carefully read the programme memorandum in order to submit a competitive application.

Appendices

See Appendix 1 B, Appendices to letter of intent.

How to apply

The research programme has a two-stage call. The deadline for letters of intent is 30 September 2011 at 16.15. The deadline is non-negotiable. Applications are drafted in the Academy’s online services, select Open calls > Programmable Materials (OMA), letters of intent.

Projects invited to submit full applications will be selected on the basis of the plans of intent in early December 2011. Applicants requested to submit full applications shall submit their applications in the online services no later than 15 February 2012 at 16.15. The deadline is non-negotiable.

In this call, the costs of a research project are calculated according to the full cost model. Applications shall be written so as to ensure that the Academy’s contribution to funding comes to no more than 80% of the estimated total costs of the project. See guidelines on how to enter the costs in the application on the Academy’s website under Full cost model.

More detailed application guidelines are available in the programme memorandum at www.aka.fi/oma.

More information

• Programme Manager Saila Karvinen (Programme Unit), tel. +358 9 7748 8335, +358 40 591 3518
• Programme Manager Anssi Mälkki (Programme Unit), tel. +358 9 7748 8300, +358 40 702 7921
• Project Officer Melisa Huhtakangas (Programme Unit), tel. +358 9 7748 8333, +358 40 154 5423
• www.aka.fi/oma

Updated according to September call 2011