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Carbon nanotube opto-electronics and plasmonics exploit novel fascinating physical phenomena and are among the_x000D_ most promising research areas for nanotechnology providing functional nano-objects for data transfer and processing_x000D_ at ultimate device densities. We propose interfacing these two technologies to create the first efficient electricallydriven_x000D_ multiplexing surface plasmon source. In the first two steps, we explore the laws governing the near-field_x000D_ coupling between nanotubes and plasmon-guiding metallic nanostructures. Utilizing high-resolution optical microscopy_x000D_ we probe the electrical fields along single nanotube / metal waveguides visualizing both localized and propagating_x000D_ excitations. Finally, we use an electroluminescent nanotube to launch surface plasmons on demand in addressable_x000D_ waveguides. Our team is formed by peers in the field of plasmonics, near-field microscopy and carbon nanotube_x000D_ technology providing the expertise required to addressing this challenging project.

The aim of our project is to understand forgetting in adults and children, more especially short-term forgetting. Memory is the central cognitive characteristic of human cognition. All of our complex cognitive activities, such as learning, reasoning, and planning, require both the integration and the maintenance of new information and the retrieval of previously acquired knowledge. Within cognitive architecture, one specific structure, working memory, interfaces between these two types of information. Working memory (WM), the system that holds, organizes, and manipulates the contents of our current thoughts, can be seen as the central piece of deliberate cognition. Historically, the concept of WM emerges from the fusion of the attentional system to a short-term memory conceived as a simple store of information. Its limited capacity is a major determinant of our success in complex tasks such as text comprehension, reasoning, and problem solving, and measures of WM capacity have therefore been identified as major determinants of cognitive development in childhood and in old age as well as of individual differences in intellectual abilities. Although the amount of research focused on working memory has increased during the last 30 years, one of its most intriguing mechanisms is still unclear. Indeed, forgetting information stored at short term, that is when a small amount of time separates the acquisition of information and its retrieval for recall, has huge consequences for learning. This phenomenon, so incredibly frequent in our everyday life, is still poorly understood. Within the joint approaches of experimental cognitive psychology and computational science, our aim is to develop a model explaining the underlying mechanisms of forgetting and their development through life.

Cancer is a generic term for a group of diseases characterized by the uncontrolled growth and spread of cells with abnormal proliferating activity. Most of the anticancer drugs currently used in the clinic trigger irreversible DNA damages and thus, promote replicative stress. As an alternative of irreversible DNA strand breaks, the non-covalent small-molecule stabilization of unusual, non-B DNA structures has emerged as a promising way to create DNA damages. One of such non B-DNA structures is a three-way DNA junction that might fold both upstream and downstream of the replication fork. The stabilization of three-way junctions by small molecules therefore opens a promising way to induce replicative stress in a highly cancer-specific manner. The main goal of the project "STARFISH DNA" (for "Stalling the Replication Fork via the Impedimental Stabilization of Higher-order DNAs") is to identify a new series of compounds capable of creating DNA damages through three-way junction stabilization and to use them either as standalone therapeutic agent to fight against cancers or in combination with established drugs that disrupt cancer signaling pathways in a synergistic manner.