Laboratory of programmable functional materials headed by Kostya Novoselov is to open at MIPT

The laboratory of MIPT alumnus, 2010 Nobel Prize laureate Kostya Novoselov will become the first project of the new center for research in the field of brain, neuroscience and consciousness under the leadership of Professor Tagir Aushev, head of the MIPT Laboratory of High Energy Physics, corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS). The goal of the center is to carry out fundamental research about the functioning of the human brain, the nature of consciousness, and development of appropriate technologies. The activities of the laboratory of Novoselov, which will be operating at MIPT, will be focused on inventing new methods to study the human brain. Among them there are high-sensitivity sensors, brain-computer interfaces, as well as development of a technological basis for future neuromorphic processors. 

The donation of 500 million rubles (6.7 million US dollars) of Vladimir Potanin, billionaire investor and philanthropist, allows to open the laboratory and cover all the costs of the first five years. During this period researchers plan to make the first simple devices based on two-dimensional materials and then continue with the physical imitation of neural communication, neuromorphic computing networks and “smart membranes”. The development of these technologies will enrich our knowledge about the brain and the nature of consciousness, which can help a large number of people in the future.

“The goal of the new center for research in the field of brain, neuroscience and consioucness is the development of one of the most prospective areas of research — brain studies. It involves physics, mathematics, biology, psychology and other disciplines. The project is designed for the next 10-15 years, and the Center’s laboratories will be formed in the next 2-3 years in various areas of neuroscience. The first one is the laboratory of programmable functional materials which will be located in the “Phystech.Digit” building of the MIPT Dolgoprudny campus . We are planning to cooperate closely with the MIPT Center for Photonics and Two-Dimensional Materials.. The laboratory will be set up by the end of this year,” — said Aushev.