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The PHASE‐CHANGE SWITCH consortium has been constituted with the ambition to realise a productive synergy based on principles of complementarity between partners’ expertise, efficiency and excellence, and with a perfect coverage of the competences needed to address the challenges of the proposed research, developments and innovation, from a novel material to circuit and system applications.

The project gathers six organisations from four different countries. Together they form a unique and balanced network including two universities (EPFL and UCAM), one research center (MPG), two large industries (IBM and TRT) and one research-intensive SME (AMO).
EPFL (Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne or the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology of Lausanne) is one of the two national institute of technology in Switzerland. It delivers Masters and Ph.D. degrees in 12 engineering fields. The school has a staff of about 4,000 people including professors, scientists and administrative personnel and an annual budget of around 850 MCHF. There are more than 10,500 engineering students, while Ph.D. students count for more than 2,000. 150 Start-ups were created since 2000.

The Nanoelectronic Devices Laboratory (NANOLAB) research activities are centered on silicon micro/nano-electronics with emphasis on the technology, design and modeling of new device concepts including energy efficient and low power nanoscale solid-state devices and their integration into smart micro/nano-systems as steep slope transistors (tunnel FETs and ferroelectric FETs), RF MEMS, NEMS devices (low power resonators concept as the vibrating body transistor), and new materials to achieve novel analog and radio frequency functions and low power sensing, when integrated on silicon platforms.
AMO is a research-oriented company located in Aachen, Germany and headed by Prof. Max Lemme. Its role is to close the gap between basic research and industrial application. For this purpose a high level 350 m² cleanroom is available. AMOs activities are focused on the identification of potentials in nanotechnology for diverse application in information technology, biotechnology, photonics and sensor technology. AMOs special strengths are in the area of lithography, pattern transfer (e-beam lithography/UV-nanoimprint/RIE etching) and a highly sophisticated research team with experience in process technology and application. Besides its R&D infrastructure AMO offers services in consulting, prototyping and fabrication of nanostructures.
IBM Research – Zurich (IBM) is the European branch of the IBM Research Division. The scientific and industrial research activities are conducted with about 300 employees in five departments. The Science & Technology Department is well known for their research accomplishments including 2 Noble Prizes. The new Binnig-and-Rohrer Nanotechnology Center provides a state-of-the-art infrastructure with a variety of facilities to tackle projects in Nanoscience and Technology.
The MPI for Microstructure Physics Institute is 20 years old and has about 200 people including permanent scientists, postdoctoral, visiting scientists and Ph.D. students in two departments, an experimental and a theory one directed by Prof. Dr. Stuart Parkin and Prof. Dr. Eberhard Gross, respectively.
The focus of the experimental department is the creation of atomically engineered materials with novel properties. These “unnatural” materials are created by the deposition of atomically thick thin films using techniques ranging from molecular beam epitaxy, pulsed laser deposition, magnetron and ion beam sputtering to atomic layer deposition. Cognitive and spintronic materials are explored as well as research into hybrid and exotic materials such as: those that could support superconductivity at much higher temperatures than is possible today; materials that display unusual magnetic textures such as non‐collinear magnetism and skyrmions; materials that only exist at interfaces, for example,
between an ionic liquid and an oxide or metal; and materials that only exist on very short time‐scales. A second important theme is the creation and characterization of devices, particularly those that extend into the third dimension.
THALES Research and Technology (TRT) is the main multidisciplinary research unit of the THALES group, one of the major world players in civilian & professional electronics. Through its internal activities and scientific links with industries and universities, either in France or internationally, TRT is participating in the preparation of THALES industrial future in strategic R&D fields. TRT research teams perform pioneering work in the most advanced areas of optics & opto‐electronics, electronic components for microwave applications, advanced interconnect and packaging. S&T skills, ranging from materials elaboration, through component modelling, processing, testing, assembly and packaging, to integration in appropriate demonstrators are available on site and allow full validation of the technologies investigated before their transfer to operational divisions of the THALES Group. [http://www.thalesgroup.com/en].
The University of Cambridge is the top rated university in UK, and in the leading ten world‐wide. The Engineering Department (UCAM‐DENG) forms 10% of the university and is also the top ranked in UK. The Department has about 1,500 students and 150 academic staff. The department covers all branches of engineering, including mechanical, aeronautic, civil, electrical, information, and manufacturing engineering.
The Electrical Engineering Division participates in this project and covers physical electronics, electronic materials, nanoscience, photonic systems, displays, MEMs, sensors, power electronics and power engineering. It has wide contacts with industry, including the Centre for Advanced Photonics and Electronics, which is embedded in the department. It also has state‐of‐the‐art infrastructure capabilities and material characterization facilities: ALD, PLD, sputtering facilities, Atomic resolution STEM, FIB, e‐beam, XPS, etc.
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 737109 (PHASE-CHANGE SWITCH).