Led by the University of Siena in Italy, the Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) Open Coordination and Support Action project will, among other things, lay the foundations for further developing improved telecommunications beyond 5G, improving the sensing capabilities of remotely piloted aircraft in managing natural disasters.

Professor Anatoly Zayats, Head of the Experimental Biophysics and Nanotechnology research group at King’s said ‘It is great news that society and funding organisations recognize the importance of and invest in this futuristic technology. Now we should be able to develop a common strategy for the future applications in this new interdisciplinary area at the crossroads of Electromagnetics and Nanoelectronics. ‘

The research team have a number of goals for the project but top of the agenda are:

• Unifying concepts, methodologies, technologies and establishing  common theoretical foundations
• Initiating the future application-driven research in this area
• Developing a common strategy for the future

NTX research is truly multi-disciplinary and combines concepts, methods and techniques from Physics, Electronics, Electromagnetics, Material Science, Chemistry, Applied Maths, with a special emphasis on Nanotechnology, Microwave to Terahertz Engineering, Nanophotonics, Plasmonics, Nanoelectronics, and Advanced Materials. NTX also embodies a visionary idea which is emerging from both academic research and high-tech industrial needs: to systematize, homogenize and combine approaches in seemingly different technologies.

Professor Maci from the University of Sienna, and the academic lead says ‘The project aims to lay the foundation for an ever increasing synergy and progress for Nanoarchitechtronics, a new area of research that responds to the need of unifying concepts, methodologies and technologies in communication, sensing systems, safety and security, bio-sensing systems and imaging nanosystems, related to future applications in ICT, transport and environment”.