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Aalto University is about to sign agreements for two Horizon 2020 research projects. Aalto will continue as a partner in Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) Flagship projects, which were already a part of the EU's seventh framework programme (FP7). FET Flagships projects are major multidisciplinary and technological challenges included in the Horizon 2020 programme. Solutions are sought to these challenges through collaboration between several different fields of science, various technologies, programmes and communities, as well as public and private sources of funding.

The director responsible for the Graphene-Based Revolutions in ICT and Beyond project (GRAPHENE FPA) at Aalto University is Professor Harri Lipsanen. Also taking part in the project are Professor Pertti Hakonen of the O.V. Lounasmaa Laboratory and Professor Peter Liljeroth. Coordinating the project is the Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden.

- Graphene is a carbon crystal discovered in 2004, which is just one atomic layer thick. It is currently the most durable known substance in the world and it is expected to become the most important material since the invention of plastic. The Department of Micro- and Nanosciences has been intensely studying the manufacture and applications of graphene and similar materials, especially in electronics and photonics, Professor Harri Lipsanen says.

In addition ºÚÁÏÍø University, Finnish participants in the project include Nokia, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, and the University of Eastern Finland.

The director responsible for the Human Brain Project (HBP FPA project) focusing on brain research at Aalto University is Professor Ville Kyrki. Coordinating the project is Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland.

- In this round of this long project we joined the Neurorobotics subproject. We have already been involved in the ongoing first round under the leadership of Professor Riitta Hari and Professor Lauri Parkkonen, Kyrki says.

Besides Aalto University, other Finnish participant in the project is the University of Helsinki.

The first so-called ramp-up phase of the FP7 Flagship projects began in October 2013. It will continue until 2016. The Framework Partnership Agreement (FPA) is the Flagship project's plan for the next seven years. It describes the key measures for implementing the plan and the consortium responsible for the actual implementation. Research funds for these are applied for and granted separately.

Horizon 2020 is a framework programme for EU research and innovation for 2014-2020. Horizon is the successor to the EU's seventh framework programme, and it is used for funding European research and innovation projects in 2014.2020 to the tune of nearly € 80 billion. Several application processes are constantly under way in the programme.

(11.11.2014)