Megatrends such as the Internet of Things (IoT), Industry-4.0 paradigms, and cloud-based service delivery are combining to push data-center infrastructures to their limits. This applies in particular to Ethernet-based communication networks within large data centers, which limit further scalability of computing power and storage capacity already today. Compact power-efficient transceiver concepts are key to overcome these bottlenecks. SCOOTER aims at what the Ethernet Alliance has recently classified as the “Holy Grail” of the Ethernet ecosystem: Transceivers that enable serial transmission of 100 Gbit/s data streams, while fulfilling the stringent requirements of small-form-factor-pluggable (SFP) packages. The project exploits the concept of silicon-organic hybrid (SOH) integration that combines the economics of large-scale silicon photonic integration with the exceptional performance of organic electro-optic (EO) materials. In a series of experimental demonstrations, we have proven the superior performance of SOH electro-optic modulators, both in terms of speed and power consumption. The SCOOTER transceiver concept is expected to hit a strongly growing multi-billion Euro market. The study aims at an in-depth analysis of market opportunities and competitive boundary conditions, the specification of technical product concepts, as well as the associated IP strategy and risk analysis. The project shall result in a comprehensive business plan that allows to raise funds for the next phase of commercialization through a start-up company. We expect that the envisaged transceivers will not only help to overcome the communication bottlenecks in today’s networks, but may also have transformative impact on the long-term Ethernet roadmap, enabling interface rates of 400 Gbit/s, 800 Gbit/s, 1 Tbit/s, and beyond.

The controlled formation of well organised self-assemblies within multicomponent supramolecular systems remains a challenge for modern chemistry. Herein, the aim of this project is to construct a constitutionally dynamic library containing advanced supramolecular architectures (i.e. a molecular grid, a linear helicate and a macrocycle) through the combination of orthogonal self-assembly and self-sorting, then we intend to take advantage of the dynamic and orthogonal interactions developed to synthesise doubly-dynamic main-chain and crosslinked metallo-supramolecular polymers. A highly complex constitutionally dynamic library (CDL) will be developed. Six dissimilar organic components and three different metal cations are expected to self-sort into a Cu(I) [2x2] grid, a Fe(II) linear helicate and a Zn(II) metallo-macrocycle through the combination of orthogonal self-assembly and self-sorting. This CDL represents a major advancement of the field in term of: 1) the complexity of the orthogonal self-assembly and self-sorting used, 2) the complexity of the metal-directed self-assembly, 3) the complexity of the mixture of supramolecular architectures synthesised. A self-assembling “Janus” metallo-supramolecular polymer based on the self-sorting Cu(I) and Fe(II) complexes developed in the CDL described previously will be studied. This polymer will display both supramolecular and covalent molecular dynamics, allowing for a broad range of features, e.g. orthogonal double dynamics and constitutional dynamics. This polymer is highly innovative as: 1) it can operate via reversible metal-ligand coordination and reversible covalent bond formation or only via the latter, 2) a combination of two orthogonal metal-ligand coordination interactions can be used to induce the polymerisation, 3) these two features will grant the possibility to initiate the polymerization in four different ways leading selectively to different main-chain or crosslinked polymer.

LiVoX will make our NMR microchip sensor market-ready for novel applications such as foodstuff testing, compound screening for example on cell-based assays, or biopsy monitoring for hospitals. By turning NMR sensors into consumables, LiVoX will achieve a paradigm shift that will open up these new markets. We are convinced that the sensors will be readily accepted by the market, since they already work with established and installed NMR hardware, and provide dramatically increased NMR measurement sensitivity. LiVoX will take a mass-producible NMR microchip sensor that is currently at technology readiness level (TRL) 6 at a university laboratory, and scale up the manufacturing towards wafer-scale mass production, by outsourcing the majority of the manufacturing steps. LiVoX will implement quality control procedures for production and sensor function, and will perform extensive beta testing at application sites, to drive the microchip sensors right up to commercialisation readiness at TRL 9. It is the clear goal of LiVoX to transfer the microchip sensor manufacturing process to a startup company at the end of this one year ramp-up period. LiVoX will remove the last barriers that remain for introduction of the microchip sensors into the marketplace.