ICFO

📝 Researchers refine Raman spectroscopy to characterize melanin more reliably ICFO researchers, José Javier Ruiz and Dr. Pablo Loza Alvarez, Chief of the SLN Facility, together with Ismael Galván from the National Museum of Natural Sciences (CSIC), have developed a strategy that overcomes the challenges associated with Raman spectroscopy when characterizing the two main forms of melanin. The methodology, published in Microchemical Journal, reduces signal distortions and facilitates comparisons between differently pigmentated samples and across varying experimental conditions. These results could guide future research on melanoma disease. ICFO News 👉 https://bit.ly/44fpeRn

El professor Lluís Torner, director fundador de l'ICFO, ha estat guardonat amb el prestigiós Premi Rei Jaume I en la categoria d'Investigació Bàsica. El premi reconeix la seva trajectòria investigadora en fotònica, les seves nombroses contribucions pioneres als solitons òptics, les ones guiades òptiques i la fotònica topològica, i una trajectòria que ha ajudat a situar el país a l'avantguarda de la recerca de fronterera. ICFO News 👉 https://lnkd.in/e2X377QT

We're #hiring a new Project Researcher Engineer Position in Colloidal Quantum Dot Synthesis and Nanomaterials Development in Castelldefels, Catalonia. Apply today or share this post with your network.

🧐 What is it like to work at one of the world's leading photonics research centers? The "Be an ICFOnian for a Day" program gives undergraduate and master's students a real, hands-on look into life at ICFO. Would you like to join the fifth edition? Over four dedicated events throughout the academic year, you will: 🔹 Visit ICFO labs and meet the researchers behind frontier science 🔹 Experience the day-to-day life of a scientist 🔹 Build transferable skills to accelerate your career 🔹 Take part in activities during Women in Science Month The program is entirely free of charge and conducted in English, and welcomes cis and trans women as well as genderqueer and non-binary people passionate about science and innovation🌈 📅 Application deadline: June 28, 2026 🔗 Apply here: https://bit.ly/4d6RvPG

📝The challenges of studying mechanical properties in cells In a Nature Nanotechnology perspective article, an international team of researchers highlights the major challenges that the field of mechanobiology currently faces. The article, co-led by ICFO Prof. Michael Krieg, combines the efforts of several experts in mechanobiology from institutions across the globe, including the ETH Zürich, the University of California, the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC), the Institute of Human Biology (IHB), the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI), the Max-Planck-Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems, the Center for Systems Biology Dresden, PSL University, the SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, the University of Basel, and the University of Glasgow. Addressing these hurdles could improve the analysis, monitoring and prediction of mechanobiological processes, ultimately leading to improvements in biotechnological and medical applications. ICFO News 👉https://bit.ly/4orcJMb 📸 Cells in a biological sample. Source: ICFO.

Congratulations to New ICFO PhD Graduate! We congratulate Dr. Philipp Stammer who defended his thesis this morning in ICFO’s Auditorium. Dr. Stammer obtained his MSc in Theoretical Physics from the Technical University Berlin, before joining the Quantum Optics Theory research group led by ICREA professor Dr. Maciej Lewenstein. His thesis titled "Photons and Information - A modern approach to strong-field quantum optics" was supervised by ICREA Prof. Dr. Maciej Lewenstein. Congratulations Philipp!!! 👏 ICFO News 👉 https://lnkd.in/ePAXAzGN

🌻 May was packed with different scientific discoveries, results and findings that have sparked different stories to share. Whether you missed a few of them or just want a quick recap, our summary of May’s top scientific news has you covered! Dive in and catch up on everything that happened last month! 👉 https://lnkd.in/e7XdtixM #ICFOScienceRecap

🎮 Ciència, videojocs i vocacions científiques 🔬 El passat dijous 21 de maig va tenir lloc la gala final de Científiks en Joc, amb la participació de la #ICFOnian Pilar Pujol Closa qui ha col·laborat amb l’Escola La Monjoia de Sant Bartomeu del Grau, fent una feina excel·lent plegades! Aquest programa educatiu, impulsat pel Departament de Recerca i Universitats, apropa la ciència a l’alumnat de 5è de primària a través del disseny de videojocs. D’una manera creativa i participativa, els estudiants treballen en equip per crear un videojoc inspirat en la vida i la recerca d’una investigadora catalana en actiu. En aquest procés, la científica esdevé una peça clau com a referent i mentora: comparteix la seva recerca, acompanya l’alumnat i vetlla pel rigor científic dels projectes, alhora que ajuda a trencar estereotips de gènere i fomentar vocacions científiques. A la gala final, les escoles van presentar els seus videojocs i es van lliurar diversos reconeixements, i ens fa especial il·lusió compartir que l’Escola La Monjoia va rebre la menció al millor repte o trencaclosques 🙌

📣Applications are still open for the CQA Undergraduate Quantum Summer School, co-hosted by ICFO this July. Don’t miss the chance to join this first edition and explore the Catalan quantum ecosystem. This five-day intensive programme offers undergraduate students a comprehensive introduction to the Catalan quantum ecosystem, covering topics including Quantum Computing, Quantum Sensing, Quantum Optics and Photonics, Quantum Communications, and more. What to expect: 🔬 Lectures and hands-on lab sessions 🤝 Direct contact with researchers, institutions and industry 💬 Panel discussions and networking fair Who can apply? Undergraduate students enrolled in physics, engineering physics or adjacent programmes at Catalan universities, with prior training in Quantum Physics. 📅 Deadline to apply: 10 June 2026 Register👉 https://lnkd.in/dZWVhmhH Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Universitat de Barcelona, IFAE, Institut Català de Nanociència i Nanotecnologia (ICN2), i2CAT Research Centre, Centre Tecnològic de Telecomunicacions de Catalunya (CTTC), Institute of Microelectronics of Barcelona (IMB-CNM, CSIC), Barcelona Supercomputing Center

🧠 Join the MINDLAB Hands-On Course at ICFO! If you are a student or early-stage researcher in physics, biology, neuroscience, engineering, or a related field, this is a unique opportunity to dive deep into the cutting-edge #photonics technologies shaping modern brain research. The MINDLAB school brings together world-leading experts from UCL, the University of Barcelona, IRB Barcelona, Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC), and ICFO for a week of lectures, real lab experience, and collaborative group projects. 📍 ICFO, Castelldefels (Barcelona) 📅 July 13–17, 2026 💶 Free of charge, no registration fee ⏳ Application deadline: June 7, 2026 Participants will get hands-on access to ICFO's state-of-the-art labs in super-resolution microscopy, neurophotonics, medical optics, single molecule biophotonics, and more. This event is a satellite of the FENS Forum 2026 and part of the ICFO Frontiers Research Schools series, in collaboration with the Lasers4EU project. Apply now 👉 https://lnkd.in/dusnEjcs More at 🔗 https://mindlab.icfo.eu/ #FENS2026 | Federation of European Neuroscience Societies - FENS