PhD School Opening at the
University of Milano-Bicocca
Aims and activities
Franca Morazzoni
Department of Material Science
MIUR guidelines for PhD activation
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
ANVUR published the following
requirements for opening a PhD Course:
A 1. Adequate location of the PhD Course
A 2. Adequate scientific skills
A 3. Adequate tutoring in the course (quality and number)
A 4. Adequate number of grants
A 5. Adequate scientific structures
A 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 MilanoBicocca
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
Innovation in the School of Milano-Bicocca
2014
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
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
SOCIALE
Prof.ssa Carmen Leccardi
STATISTICA E MATEMATICA PER LA FINANZA
Prof. Giorgio Vittadini
PhD Grants in 2014
Bicocca Bursaries grants
National Young Grants
Company grants currently
104
7
6
Total grants
117
Average per course
6.1
PhD School Governance
Franca Morazzoni
President (MFFNN Science deputy)
Guido Cavaletti
Mariateresa Guasti
Giovanna Iannantuoni
Medicine
Human Science
Economics
deputy
deputy
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 characteristics
The activation of a limited number of advanced courses is
recommended, as a cultural program, possibly at the inter-multidisciplinary 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
PhD in Informatics)
Neuroimaging techniques (elective course of
PhD in Psychology)
Banking and Finance (elective course of PhD in Economics DEFAP)
(elective course of
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 tutors
3) 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.
Pathways in industrial leadership
Courses
All lectures will be held in Villa di Breme Forno Ed. U46
Via Martinelli, 23 - 20092 Cinisello Balsamo
06/05/14
9.00-11.00
Managing
project
(G. Barozzi)
11.00-13.00 Organizational
Design
(Pirelli)
14.00-16.00
Intellectual
Property
Protection
(R. Nemni)
07/05/14
Managing
project
(G. Barozzi)
Il rapporto di
lavoro
(E.Cazzulani)
Intellectual
Property
Protection
(R. Nemni)
(14.00-17.00)
08/05/14
Managing
project
(G. Barozzi)
Organizational
Design
(Pirelli)
09/05/14
12/05/14
13/05/14
Managing
project
(G. Barozzi)
Il rapporto di
lavoro
(E.Cazzulani)
Intellectual
Organizational
Property
Design
Protection
(Pirelli)
(R. Nemni)
(14.00-17.00)
Giovani e
Impresa
Giovani e
Impresa
Il contesto
d’impresa
Il contesto
d’impresa
Il contesto
del mercato
del lavoro
Il contesto
del mercato
del lavoro
Activities in rubber materials
Advances in devulcanization processes
New organic and inorganic fillers
Advances in Polymerization and polymer
characterization
University Departments
Fondazione Tronchetti
Provera
Consorzio CORIMAV
Ambiente
Biotecnologie Scienza dei materiali
Silica-based rubber nanocomposites
CORIMAV Action by
Prof.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 fillerrubber 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
aspect ratio 2
Shape controlled
SiO2 /rubber
nanocomposites
Shape controlled
SiO2
nanoparticles
aspect ratio 5
•
•
Polymer (2013) submitted
•
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.
Silica as a filler: summary
• 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.
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 Challenges
This 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 bioeconomy;
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 are
rare 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.
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
27
PhD Employment level in 2009-2010 (National)
three years after the diploma employment level is
92,8%
Specifically
in Industrial Engineering and Informatics
in MMFFNN, Medical and Agricultural Sciences
in Human Sciences
in Law and Economics
97%
90-92%
88-90%
95%
Employment level of Milano-Bicocca PhD
Science
Biology and Earth Science
Economics and Statistics
Law and Social Sciences
Medicine
90%
89.2
100 %
86.1 %
100%
Employment type
•
•
•
•
•
•
Post Doc Grant
Research Contract
Work Project
Independent work
Temporary job
Permanent job
6.6%
16.2%
10.3%
13-9%
15%
38%