Biography
Programme Manager for advanced materials for energy
Paolo Bondavalli is a scientific leader and globally recognised expert in the field of nanomaterials.
Graduated in Solid State Physics from the University of Parma in 1995 (Italy), Paolo Bondavalli earned his PhD in 2000 from the Institute of National Applied Science of Lyon (France), in collaboration with Ecole Centrale, with a thesis focused on MOEMS for gas sensing applications. In 2011, he received his Habilitation (HdR) from Paris Sud University (now Paris Saclay University) for his work on transistors based on nanomaterials.
Paolo had been working for THALES, a French multinational company involved in aeronautics, space, and electronics technologies, for more than 20 years. From 2007 to 2016, he was also part of the joint Thales/CNRS unit, directed by Nobel Prize laureate Albert Fert.
Paolo has extensive experience as a researcher in low-dimensional materials, including bi-dimensional materials like graphene and topological insulators, as well as one-dimensional materials like carbon nanotubes and nanowires (see here). During his time with THALES, he initiated projects on energy storage by leveraging the properties of carbon-based nanomaterials and developed pioneering large-scale deposition technology for the fabrication of supercapacitors. He is the primary inventor on several patents in this field and led the sub-task on supercapacitors in the framework of the Graphene Flagship.
Paolo has authored over 60 papers and two solo-authored books on next-generation nanomaterials. Paolo has been an invited or keynote speaker at more than 100 international conferences and has played a leading role in organising symposia at prestigious conferences on the next generation of low dimensional materials.
He has served as a Scientific Officer, Evaluator, and President of Evaluation Committees for the French Research Agency (ANR). For the ANR, he led the SPIN programme, which focused on new spin technologies, involving 50 laboratories and 50 million euros in funding. His primary role was to help participants transition from fundamental research to innovation. Since 2007, Paolo has been a European expert, serving on several panels for programmes like FP6, FP7, Horizon2020, and HorizonEurope, as well as for Eurostars and various European agencies.
His goal as an EIC Programme Manager is to foster innovation within the EIC, helping researchers discover their entrepreneurial spirit and driving the creation of pioneering companies in the energy field by leveraging his deep experience as a researcher and project leader.