The environmental and health effects of nanomaterials are of global concern, both in view of assessing the impact of nanomaterials discharged into nature and for a safe and transparent development of nanotechnology, especially in relation to novel applications in biomedicine. At present, nanomaterials are already produced at an industrial scale and the number of consumer products featuring nanomaterials is increasing at a rapid pace. At the same time, detailed understanding of the potential biological and ecological effects of nanomaterials and the related legislation are clearly lagging behind. Some of the key questions related to these issues are the transport, uptake and transformation of nanomaterials in air, soil and natural waters, as well as within biological organisms.
The aim of this scientific program is to establish an international think-tank of researchers excelling in state-of-the-art theoretical methods - both computational and analytical - to assess these aforementioned issues. The research will be closely linked to experimental studies through established collaborations with internationally renowned investigators in the field.
The objective of this program is to promote synergy in this field through a forum for fruitful discussions and collaborations, matching theoretical and experimental groups. In this manner, we extend on-going and initiate new collaborations by establishing an international network of researchers in theoretical physics (both analytical and computational), coupling the theoretical work as closely as possible with experiments. The backgrounds of experimental partners range from physics to chemistry, biomedicine, cell biology, and computational and environmental sciences.