OP JAK project FERRMION

OP JAK structural fund project FERRMION in the years 2024-2028 was awarded to consortium of 3 academic institutes and two universities (UT AVCR, FZU AVCR, UJF AVCR, MFF UK, FJFI CVUT) lead by Prof Hanus SEiner from UT AVCR.

The FerrMion project focusses on the research and applications of ferroic materials such as ferroelastics and multiferroics, most of which are metallic materials (shape memory alloys and magnetic martensites) to be carried out through a wide spectrum of scientific fields. The gained knowledge will be used for the modelling design of advanced engineering applications of these materials. Bridging the barrier between basic research and application design of ferroic materials is a challenge requiring interdisciplinary research. The potential of ferroic materials for new, energy-saving, sustainable and environmentally friendly technologies is enormous.

The FerrMion team includes research teams of leading experts in the field of metallic ferroelastics and their applications (H. Seiner, P.Sedlak, M. Frost, O. Heczko, L. Heller, P. Sittner, J. Capek) and alloys with ferroic instabilities designed for biomedical applications (M. Janeček, J. Strasky). Ferroic phenomena will be also studied in dielectrics and composites, down to the level of nanocomposites (including nanotechnology for their fabrication). The project will focus on the search for unifying theoretical descriptions that will enable linking the behavior of metallic and non-metallic and possibly composite (multi-)ferroics, and the use of this description for the design of applications. The implementation team includes leading experts in the field of solid state physics and magnetism of non-metallic materials (J. Hlinka, J. Hamrle,T. Verhagen) as well as in the field of nanocomposites and nanotechnologies of their preparation (J. Vacík and P. Strunz).

An essential component of the project in terms of application potential is the involvement of experts from the fields of applied mathematics, thermodynamics and mechanical engineering, who will be responsible for the development of tools for the industrial use of ferroics (e.g. software for numerical simulations, protocols for experimental characterization). Here, the FerrMion project team includes with its expertise all the necessary levels of abstraction, from the formulation of models by calculus of variations (B. Benešová, S. Swarzacher), through the implementation of models into finite-element codes (M. Frost, M. Karlík, including also experts in refrigerants and energy conversion), to mechanical engineering software design of applications (P. Sedlák).

A first 3D atomic probe tomography center in the Czech Republic will be built in frame of the Ferrmin project. Though it will focus on ferroics research it will be made accessible to researchers working in the areas of metallurgy, solid state physics and nanotechnology.