Three projects at Tyndall National Institute, based at University College Cork, have received funding worth €1.3 million through the US-Ireland programme – a tripartite research and development (R&D) partnership between the United States of America (USA), Republic of Ireland (RoI) and Northern Ireland (NI).
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Under the Programme, a total of six awards were announced, with a combined investment exceeding €7 million, spanning 11 institutions, which will support more than 11 research positions in the Republic of Ireland, 10 research positions in Northern Ireland, and over 20 positions in the United States. The funded projects, covering three to four years, include research in the areas of sustainable collection and management of water, photonic integrated circuits, wearable sensors to monitor health, telecommunications, and microbial activity.
This is the second time Professor Alan O’Riordan’s group at Tyndall has received the US-Ireland Programme award. His group is working on using digital technologies such as AI to better understand and predict how microbes are likely to behave.
Professor Brian Corbett and his team received an award for their work in designing and developing new photonic integrated circuits which will improve health devices in diagnosing more quickly and effectively.
Professor Saibal Roy’s project aims to develop a new type of ‘magnetoelectric’ antenna that can be smaller and work effectively across many different radio wave frequencies, from high-frequency (e.g. 5G telecommunications) to low-frequency (e.g. working in or communicating through underground settings). The team seeks to transform traditional antennas into devices that can meet various future needs.
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Project Title & Award Details |
Lay Abstract |
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Title: Visible Light-wave Generation and Manipulation through Non-Linear Waveguide Technology (VIBRANT) Lead applicant: Brian Corbett Co-applicants: Robert Bowman & Shamsul Arafin Lead RoI institution: Tyndall National Institute Value of award: RoI: €444,289 NI: £295,720 US: $425,000 Partner Institutions: Queens University Belfast & Ohio State University |
Photonic integrated circuits (PICs) are microchip-like devices that can generate, detect and process light signals. They have widespread uses, including in medical devices, sensors, telecommunications and making different types of measurements. These types of circuits are currently quite effective at using ‘infrared’ light but more work is needed to make them more efficient at using ‘visible’ light. The research in this project, led by teams in the ROI, NI and US with expertise in working with lasers, new PIC materials and in manipulating light behaviour, will seek to design and develop new PICs capable of generating and working with green light. These green light PICs could be particularly useful for health devices to diagnose more quickly and effectively. |
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Title: Highly efficient magnetoelectric nano-antenna array with wide operational bandwidth Lead applicant: Saibal Roy Co-applicants: Gareth Conway & Shad Roundy Lead RoI institution: Tyndall National Institute Value of award: RoI: €450,399 NI: £298,097 US: $385,000 Partner Institutions: Queens University Belfast & University of Utah |
The larger size and efficiency of traditional communications antennas are linked to the nature of the radio waves they send out and receive back, placing limitations on how effective they are. In this project, the aim is to develop a new type of ‘magnetoelectric’ antenna that can be smaller and work effectively across many different radio wave frequencies, from high-frequency (for example, in 5G telecommunications) to low-frequency (for example, while working in or communicating through underground settings). They could even have potentially uses in very small scale settings – for example, in wireless implants. Researchers from the ROI, NI and US with complementary expertise in magnetoelectric materials and wireless communications will lead these studies to transform traditional antennas into devices that can meet various future needs. |
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Title: Bacterial-based Biosensor Digital Twin for Microbial Community Sensing Lead applicant: Alan O'Riordan Co-applicants: James Dooley & Sasitharan Balasubramaniam Lead RoI institution: Tyndall National Institute Value of award: RoI: €446,798 NI: £299,994 US: $399,974 Partner Institutions: Ulster University & University of Nebraska-Lincoln |
In the 21st century, a major challenge is our understanding of the relationship microbes such as bacteria have with people and the wider environment around them. By having a deeper understanding of microbial behaviour and activity as they evolve and change will enable us to develop new strategies to take appropriate actions before the microbes can result in harmful impact. The microbial community and their activities and behaviours are continuously evolving due to various effects, including actions by humans. In this project, the researchers think that applying digital technologies will allow us to better understand and predict how microbes are likely to behave. In two settings – bacterial communication in infected wounds and bacterial communities in the soil – they will use sensors and artificial intelligence-based approaches to create a toolkit for sensing microbial communication and behavioural changes. What they learn could be applied to various settings related to environmental protection and healthcare delivery. |
Launched in 2006, the US-Ireland Research and Development Partnership is a unique initiative that aims to increase the level of collaborative R&D amongst researchers and industry professionals across the three jurisdictions. The programme involves multiple funding partners across the three jurisdictions, working collaboratively to support excellent, impactful research.
Prof. Philip Nolan, Director General of Science Foundation Ireland, welcomed the announcement, saying: “I am delighted to congratulate the award recipients and their collaborators on their work addressing challenges in the realms of sustainability, telecommunications, healthcare, biosensors and engineering. The US-Ireland R&D Partnership Programme continues to support and encourage strong, collaborative relationships between our countries. These are world-class, innovative research projects that will greatly benefit our collective societies and economies.”
“With increased global competition in STEM research and talent across every field, it is more important than ever that the U.S. collaborate with countries that share our values and vision for science, engineering, and technology for a more equitable and prosperous world,” said NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan.
The U.S.-Ireland R&D Partnership program plays an important role in generating, at speed and scale, valuable discoveries and innovations that will lead to advancements in health, climate resilience and telecommunications to improve our world.
Mark Lee, Interim Director of Higher Education at Northern Ireland’s Department for the Economy, said: “International research partnerships have a key role to play in driving forward Northern Ireland’s economic vision for prosperity, higher productivity and a better quality of life for all of our people. The US-Ireland R&D Partnership, as a flagship trans-Atlantic initiative, is playing a crucial role in the delivery of this vision, supporting Northern Ireland-based researchers to make a global impact through the discovery and development of new and ground-breaking technologies that can benefit all in our society.”
The funding agencies involved in the recent announcement are Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) in RoI; the National Science Foundation (NSF) in the USA, and the Department for the Economy (DfE) in NI.
Since the US-Ireland programme started, agencies have committed €148.4 million of government funding across a total of 92 awards.
For more information about the US-Ireland R&D Partnership Programme visit the programme webpage.