PhD School Opening at the University of Milano-Bicocca

Aims and activitiesFranca Morazzoni

Department of Material Science

The MIUR rules for the activation of PhD Courses aim :

1) to create a disciplinary and interdisciplinary environment 2) to offer courses at an advanced level specifically on

informatics project management

intellectual property technology transfer foreign languages for scholars

MIUR guidelines for PhD activation

ANVUR published the following requirements for opening a PhD Course:

A 1. Adequate location of the PhD Course A 2. Adequate scientific skillsA 3. Adequate tutoring in the course (quality and number) A 4. Adequate number of grants A 5. Adequate scientific structuresA 6. Organization of detailed and unified training activity

The courses should contribute to

the development of a thesis involving as many interdisciplinary aspects as possible in order to successfully complete the research project

the preparation of PhD graduates for positions in academic, public and industrial research, scientific management

Comments on the first PhD Schools of Milano-Bicocca

The PhD School of Science, given as satisfied the quality of the governance and of the location, suggested:

common enrollment criteria for all PhD courses (qualifications and interview)

organized courses with required annual exams

common standards for thesis compilation and defense.

In the 7 PhD Schools of Milano-Bicocca there was a lack of a common core program and research format.The probable reason is that either students or tutors were unable to recognize that a common behaviour is useful for optimizing professional results and also adds value to the PhD istitution

The decision of Milano-Bicocca was to constitute a unique PhD School composed of 19 PhD courses

The School will decide enrollment criteria

a minimum number of cfu corresponding to organized courses in advanced and elective disciplines

relative annual exams, together with scientific report on thesis activity

criteria for thesis compilation and defense

Innovation in the School of Milano-Bicocca 2014

2014 PhD Courses in Milano-Bicocca

ANTROPOLOGIA CULTURALE E SOCIALE                                      Prof. Ugo Fabietti 

ECONOMIA - DEFAP                                                                          Prof.ssa Giovanna  Iannantuoni

FISICA E ASTRONOMIA Prof. Giuseppe Chirico

INFORMATICA                                                                                    Prof.ssa Stefania Bandini 

MATEMATICA PURA ED APPLICATA Prof. Roberto Paoletti 

MEDICINA TRASLAZIONALE E MOLECOLARE - DIMET Prof. Andrea Biondi 

NEUROSCIENZE                                                                                    Prof. Guido Cavaletti 

URBEUR-QUASI, CITTA' E SOCIETA' DELL'INFORMAZIONE Prof.ssa Serena Vicari 

   

PSICOLOGIA, LINGUISTICA E NEUROSCIENZE COGNITIVE Prof.ssa Maria Teresa Guasti 

SANITA' PUBBLICA Prof. Guido Grassi 

SCIENZA E NANOTECNOLOGIA DEI MATERIALI                         Prof. Gianpaolo Brivio 

SCIENZE DELL’AMBIENTE, DELLA TERRA, SCIENZE CHIMICHE Prof. Marco Vighi 

SCIENZE DELLA FORMAZIONE E DELLA COMUNICAZIONE Prof.ssa Laura Formenti 

SCIENZE BIOLOGICHE E BIOTECNOLOGICHE Prof. Marco Vanoni 

SCIENZE GIURIDICHE                                                                       Prof.ssa Margherita Ramajoli 

SOCIOLOGIA APPLICATA E METODOLOGIA DELLA RICERCA     Prof.ssa Carmen LeccardiSOCIALE

STATISTICA E MATEMATICA PER LA FINANZA Prof. Giorgio Vittadini

PhD Grants in 2014

Bicocca Bursaries grants 104National Young Grants 7Company grants currently 6

Total grants 117Average per course 6.1

PhD School Governance

Franca Morazzoni President (MFFNN Science deputy)

Guido Cavaletti Medicine deputyMariateresa Guasti Human Science deputyGiovanna Iannantuoni Economics deputy

Ester Tagliavini Governance Secretary

The Governance refers to Senate and to CdA regarding the decisions on programs and resources

Horizon 2020 European program indicates course guidelines

1 Scientific Excellence

2 Industrial Leadership

3 Societal Challenges

Scientific Excellence

This will raise the level of excellence in Europe’s science base and ensure a steady stream of world class research to secure Europe’s long term competitiveness

The objective is typically pursued by individual PhD courses, respecting each discipline’s characteristicsThe activation of a limited number of advanced courses is recommended, as a cultural program, possibly at the inter-multi-disciplinary level. This will prepare students for innovation in research. Innovation in research is currently a real problem.

Pathways to scientific excellence

Students must attend courses corresponding to at least 8 cfu, concerning advanced disciplinary and avant-garde issues

They are also encouraged to attend schools at an advanced level which support their scientific formation

An internship of six months minimum at a foreign laboratory is suggested

Seminars on the resources of the digital library will be offered to all students and will be organized by the School

Examples of advanced and avant-garde courses

Topics in stochastic analysis (advanced course of PhD in Mathematics)

Advanced topics in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (advanced course of PhD in Informatics)

Experimental design, Statistics and Method (Advanced course of PhD in Pschology)

Econometrics ( Advanced course of PhD in Economics DEFAP)

Abelian varieties of low dimension ( elective course of PhD in Mathematics)

Computational approaches to Physical and Virtual Crowd Phenomena (elective course of PhD in Informatics)

Neuroimaging techniques (elective course of PhD in Psychology)

Banking and Finance (elective course of PhD in Economics DEFAP)

Industrial leadership

This will aim at making Europe a more attractive location to invest in research and innovation by promoting activities where businesses set the agenda. It will provide major investment in key industrial technologies, with dedicated support for nanotechnologies, advanced materials, biotechnology, advanced manufacturing and processing, and space.

The objectives imply different actions:

1) The organization of courses of research management and intellectual property (organized by the School)2) Internships at Companies to develop part of the PhD thesis, under the supervision of company tutors3) Collaborations with the most relevant organizations of industrial research (e.g.Assolombarda)4) Courses of scientific communication, also in foreign languages

Pathways in industrial leadership

4 cfu on the following subjects will be proposed to all PhD courses and will be organized by the School

Managing Research Projects

Organizational Design

Legal contracts

Scientific communication

In addition internalships at companies are suggested,an example is

the Interaction between Pirelli Tyre and the University of Milano Bicocca, through the funding of CORIMAV and Fondazione Tronchetti Provera.

All lectures will be held in Villa di Breme Forno Ed. U46 Via Martinelli, 23 - 20092 Cinisello Balsamo

06/05/14 07/05/14 08/05/14 09/05/14 12/05/14 13/05/14

  9.00-11.00 

Managing project 

(G. Barozzi)  

Managing project 

(G. Barozzi)   

Managing project 

(G. Barozzi)   

Managing project 

(G. Barozzi)   

Giovani e Impresa

  Il contesto d’impresa

 Il contesto del mercato del lavoro

 

Giovani e Impresa

  Il contesto d’impresa

 Il contesto del mercato del lavoro

 

  11.00-13.00  Organizational 

Design  (Pirelli)

Il rapporto di lavoro 

(E.Cazzulani) 

Organizational Design  (Pirelli)

Il rapporto di lavoro 

(E.Cazzulani) 

  14.00-16.00 

Intellectual Property Protection  (R. Nemni) 

 

Intellectual Property Protection  (R. Nemni) 

(14.00-17.00)

Intellectual Property Protection  (R. Nemni) 

(14.00-17.00) 

Organizational Design  (Pirelli) 

Pathways in industrial leadership

Courses

Activities in rubber materialsAdvances in devulcanization processes

New organic and inorganic fillersAdvances in Polymerization and polymer

characterization

Fondazione Tronchetti Provera

Consorzio CORIMAV

Ambiente Biotecnologie Scienza dei materiali

University Departments

Silica-based rubber nanocomposites

CORIMAV Action byProf.Franca Morazzoni, Prof.Roberto Scotti, Dr. Massimiliano D’Arienzo,

UniMib

Dr.Enrico Albizzati, Dr.Thomas Hanel, Dr.Raffaella Donetti. Dr. Luca Giannini, Pirelli Tyre

PhD UniMib students: Laura Wahba, Luciano Tadiello, Antonio Susanna, Matteo Redaelli, Charu Garg

Main objective

To suggest a rationale design for obtaining a network with suitable filler composition, nanoparticle shape and filler-rubber interface which optimizes the mechanical properties of rubber nanocomposite.

Open problems

To optimize the inorganic filler dispersion, by improving the inorganic-organic compatibilization

To design the filler network by controlling the threshold percolative properties

Solving methods

Performing in-situ filler syntheses

Investigation on the particle self assembly and alignment

Shape-controlled silica filler by ex-situ sol-gel synthesis of silica-rubber nanocomposites

• Shape controlled spherical and rod-like silica NPs with different aspect ratios (1-10) were synthesized by a sol-gel method using TEOS and MPTSM as silica precursors and the surfactant CTAB as structure directing agent. 

• Spherical and anisotropic rod-like particles form a  network of particles bridged by thin rubber layers throughout the  rubber (SBR)  matrix.  Moreover, differently oriented domains of rods aligned along the main axis occurred when the aspect ratio is > 2.

 • Rod-like particles with the highest aspect ratio provided stronger reinforcement of 

the rubber.  This was related to the self-alignment of the anisotropic particles and to their large filler/polymer interface, compared to that of spherical ones.

Shape controlled SiO2 nanoparticles

Shape controlled SiO2 /rubber nanocomposites

aspect ratio 2

aspect ratio 5

Polymer  (2013) submitted

• The filler dispersion is optimized by the in situ growth of filler nanoparticles, in non hydrolytic conditions

• Filler network constituted by anisotropic nanoparticles with high aspect ratio shows alignement along the elongation axis and displays enhanced mechanical response.

Silica as a filler: summary

PUBLICATIONS• R. Scotti, L. Wahba, M. Crippa, M. D’Arienzo, R. Donetti, N. Santo, F. Morazzoni, “Rubber-silica nanocomposites obtained by in situ sol-gel method: particle shape influence on the filler-filler and filler-rubber interactions”, Soft Matter, 2012, 8, 2131.• L. Wahba, M. D’Arienzo, R. Donetti, T. Hanel, R. Scotti, L. Tadiello, F. Morazzoni, “In situ solgel obtained silica-rubber nanocomposites: influence of the filler precursors on the improvement of the mechanical properties”, RSC Advances, 2013, 3, 5832.• L. Wahba, M. D’Arienzo, S. Diré, R. Donetti, T. Hanel, F. Morazzoni, M. Niederberger, N. Santo, L. Tadiello, R. Scotti “Novel non-aqueous sol-gel route for the in-situ synthesis of high loaded silica-rubber nanocomposites”, Soft Matter, 2013, in press.• R. Scotti, M. D’Arienzo, L. Conzatti, T. Hanel, L. Giannini, P. Stagnaro, L. Tadiello, F. Morazzoni, “Shape controlled spherical (0D) and rod-like (1D) silica nanoparticles in silica/SBR nanocomposites: role fo the particle morphology on the filler reinforcing effect”, Polymer, 2013, submitted.

Societal ChallengesThis reflects the policy priorities of the Europe 2020 strategies and addresses major concerns shared by citizens in Europe and elsewhere:

Health, demographic change and wellbeing; Food security, sustainable agriculture, marine and maritime research and the bio-economy; Secure, clean and efficient energy;Smart , green and integrated transport;Climate action ,resource efficiency and raw materials;Inclusive, innovative and secure societies.

The action involves a possible development of theses or part of them, which consider the combined approach of different disciplines to the general objective; preferentially using co-tutoring. These kinds of theses are not frequently present in the PhD courses, as the different disciplines are generally not equally balanced.

There will be foreign language and informatics courses to attend of 2 cfu each.

In this context the experience in a foreign country is obligatory, and a proper approach to the language has to be introduced in the PhD School.

Pathways in Societal Challenges

tentative hypothesis in Milano-Bicocca is to address a PhD course or PhD curricula on raw materials

which are non-food or energy materials, whose source are becoming scarse. This has negative consequences for companies.

Some of these arerare and precious metals,natural rubber,wood,paper,minerals for building materials

EC will give special support to train in this area formation projects on this subject. 

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Concluding remarks

The PhD School of Milano Bicocca aims:

To pursue important research objectives, through

the European calls: scientific excellence, industrial partnerships, societal challenges.

but mainly

to supply young researchers in all the scientific disciplines (both academic and research environments)

to be reference of the job market also supplying an aggregation point wherever advanced knowledge is required, mainly for companies

PhD Employment level in 2009-2010 (National)

three years after the diploma employment level is 92,8%

Specifically

in Industrial Engineering and Informatics 97%in MMFFNN, Medical and Agricultural Sciences 90-92%in Human Sciences 88-90%in Law and Economics 95%

Employment level of Milano-Bicocca PhD

Science 90%Biology and Earth Science 89.2Economics and Statistics 100 %Law and Social Sciences 86.1 %Medicine 100%

Employment type

• Post Doc Grant 6.6%• Research Contract 16.2%• Work Project 10.3%• Independent work 13-9%• Temporary job 15%• Permanent job 38%