August 2019

The Sofja Kovalevskaja Award, Germany's most highly-endowned research award for early-research scientists, went this year to Dr Angelo Di Bernardo from Cambridge University. Dr. Angelo was awarded with 1.65 million Euros and will move to the University of Konstant in which he will establish a research hub in the field of superconducting spintronics.

Dr. Angelo's project that won the award is dealing with superconducting spintronics with oxides and 2D materials.

Researchers from Spain's ICN2, in collaboration with Imec and K.U. Leuven have developed a modified graphene-based nanodevice fabrication technique that can increase the spin lifetime and relaxation length by up to three times.

The researchers used CVD-made graphene grown on a platinum foil. By optimizing several standard processes, the researchers managed to reduce the impurity level of the graphene.