Fp7: Energy (Finland)

Funding Source/Programme

OUEST-genopole (OGP), a regional research driven cluster, is seeking to join a consortium under construction as partner for the following FP7 call:

REGIONS-2007-1: Regions of Knowledge: Analysis, mentoring and integration of research actors

Key-words: regional research driven cluster in genomics – marine resources – agriculture – human health – biotechnology – knowledge and technology transfer – RTD investments at regional level – economic development needs

Description

Our competency: OUEST-genopole (OGP) is a regional research driven cluster in genomics with applications in the fields of Marine science, agriculture, food processing and human health.
The cluster gathers:

- 2 regional authorities, the Regional Councils of Bretagne and Pays de la Loire (which intervene both in the governance and the funding of OGP),

- 55 research units from universities and national research organizations (AFSSA, CNRS, IFREMER, INRA, INSERM, …)
- 5 technological platforms of high and new technologies ("omics" technologies) and innovation structures which use to develop cooperation with regional SMEs.

Current national and European collaborations: The OGP actors participate to many national programmes (Genoplante) or European projects. The original feature concerns the Marine science, with the coordination of the European Network of Excellence Marine Genomics. The Regional Council of Brittany, also member of the OGP cluster, is the coordinator of the ARRGOS project (Regions of knowledge II in FP6) which deals with the RTD governance at the regional level.

Context: The OGP cluster was launched in 2002 with the initial aim of fostering its capacity for investing and conducting RTD activities in genomics in the fields of marine biology, agriculture and human health, by:
- setting-up, improving and sharing technological core facilities,
- supporting large collaborative research projects and training in genomics,
- developing inter-regional projects,
- taking part into European research programs.

Today, the cluster is involved in the implementation of a new actions plan integrating the regional economic development strategy.

This actions plan includes the following issues:
- the cluster governance for both a higher involvement of each actors (including industry) and a higher investment in RTD projects
- enhancing knowledge and technological transfer between research entities and enterprises, through networking and taken into account the economic development needs
- the improvement of SMEs access to the research carried-out by research actors of the cluster
- mobilizing financial possibilities afforded at regional, national and European levels, especially concerning a coherent use of the Structural Funds
- the creation of biotechnological spin-offs
- the development of the territorial attractiveness.

Role in the project: The Region of knowledge program represents a real opportunity for OGP to define and implement its new actions plan for the coming years into the European wide context, especially thanks to a mutual learning of regional research-driven clusters dealing with issues of similar interest. Including the performing of a detailed analysis of its state of play, the organisation of workshops or seminars and the dissemination of good practice, OGP could have a significant role in the definition of a joint Action Plan of RTD activities at a regional level to drive economic development in genomics, especially in the marine, agriculture, food and human health fields.

Contact

Jocelyne Le Seyec
OUEST-genopole
Université de Rennes 1
2 avenue du Pr Léon Bernard
CS 34317
35043 Rennes Cedex
FRANCE
Tél. [phone]
[e-mail]
www.ouest-genopole.org
FP7: NMP (France, 05.03.)

Funding Source/Programme

FP7- NMP- 2007- large-1, -small-1, -CSA-1, SME-1

Description

University of Rennes, Lab. Glasses and Ceramics, UMR CNRS 6226 is seeking to join a research proposal in the course of elaboration as partner on the following theme

Theme: New phosphorescent materials with extremely high quantum efficiency for solid state lighting based on LED

Objective: We can have a significant role in projects of which one of the objectives is to demonstrate the feasibility of a totally new phosphorescent material that overcomes the limitations of phosphors currently used in the manufacturing of white LEDs for solid state lighting. This innovative material is a rare earth-doped glass ceramic based on oxy-sulphide-halide. The rare earth will benefit from the crystalline and low phonon energy environment, leading to extremely high quantum efficiency. Moreover, these new phosphors are expected to be far more stable with time and cheaper than the current ones.

Our competency: The development of new phosphorescent materials with extremely high quantum efficiency, based on patented glass ceramics with low phonon energy.

Context: First work on white LEDs started approximately 10 years ago. Since that time, white LEDs efficiency has continuously increased. However, for general lighting applications, efficiency is not the only important parameter, and  the Colour Rendering Index (CRI) of the emitted light, the device lifetime and the production costs become key issues. Today typical technology and process flow are essentially based on GaN on sapphire or SiC heteroepitaxy and usage of GaAlInN Multi-Quantum-Wells to achieve blue (450nm – 470nm ) LEDs. A fluorescent compound, so-called phosphor, usually made of cerium-doped yttrium aluminium garnet (Ce3+:YAG) crystals which have been powdered and mixed in an epoxy compound is coated on the LED to down-convert a part of the blue light in yellow, so achieving pseudo-white light. This approach was developed by Nichia and has been used since 1996 for manufacturing of white LEDs, but the CRI reachable by this technique is not satisfactory enough for application of this technology to lighting.

Around this basic concept, academia and companies work to improve the overall performances of white LEDs and increase their market shares in various lighting or back-lighting applications. Among them, many developments are being carried out to overcome the limitations associated to current industrial phosphors.

Within the project concerned by this proposal, we will try to overcome some of the white LED technology issues. We will focus on the development and characterization of innovative phosphors with highly demanded characteristics. They are based on rare earth doped oxy-sulphide-halide glass ceramics in order to benefit from
- A low phonon energy environment of sulphide and halide for the rare earths,
- A favourable crystalline environment of the rare earths,
- An economic production cost,
- And wide shaping possibility of glass and glass ceramics,to get new phosphors with

 very high wavelength conversion yield (>95%),

 high stability even at high temperature (250°C) and under UV excitation,
 as well as low manufacturing cost.