General information
Organisation
The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) is a key player in research, development and innovation in four main areas :
• defence and security,
• nuclear energy (fission and fusion),
• technological research for industry,
• fundamental research in the physical sciences and life sciences.
Drawing on its widely acknowledged expertise, and thanks to its 16000 technicians, engineers, researchers and staff, the CEA actively participates in collaborative projects with a large number of academic and industrial partners.
The CEA is established in ten centers spread throughout France
Reference
SL-DRF-25-0197
Direction
DRF
Thesis topic details
Category
Technological challenges
Thesis topics
Antimicrobial coatings
Contract
Thèse
Job description
The development of surfaces that limit microbial proliferation is a crucial public health issue. In the context of manned flights to remote destinations such as low Earth orbit, the Moon and possibly Mars, biological contamination represents a significant threat to crew health and the preservation of space equipment. The microflora carried by the crew in enclosed habitats constitutes an unavoidable risk, accentuated by prolonged periods of isolation and dependence on closed environment life support systems. In addition to the risks to astronauts' health, biocontamination is known to damage critical equipment on board spacecraft. Furthermore, micro-organisms exposed to the space environment can develop resistance and mutate, transforming benign microbes into pathogens. To mitigate these risks, effective measures, such as filtration systems and self-decontaminating surfaces that limit bacterial proliferation, need to be put in place. The MATISS experiment (2016-2025), in which the SyMMES and PRISM laboratories were involved, explored the use of hydrophobic coatings to reduce biocontamination on board the ISS, but further improvements are needed, in particular to find alternative solutions to perfluorinated agents and antibiotics, but also applicable to a wide range of materials. Such advances could have a wide range of applications beyond space, including food safety (packaging), implantable materials, drinking water treatment, public transport hygiene, etc. The aim of this collaborative thesis between SyMMES and CEA-Leti in Grenoble is to develop sustainable antimicrobial coatings free from harmful substances, by exploring different functionalization methods, such as the formation of self-assembled monolayers, electropolymerization on conductive materials, and in a highly original way by implementing a new cold atmospheric plasma deposition method, suitable for large surfaces, and above all applicable to a wide range of different materials.
University / doctoral school
Chimie et Sciences du Vivant (EDCSV)
Université Grenoble Alpes
Thesis topic location
Site
Grenoble
Requester
Position start date
01/11/2025
Person to be contacted by the applicant
NONGLATON Guillaume
guillaume.nonglaton@cea.fr
CEA
DRT/DTIS//PRISM
CEA-Leti
Minatec Campus
38054 Grenoble
0438789129
Tutor / Responsible thesis director
ROUPIOZ Yoann
yoann.roupioz@cea.fr
CNRS
DRF/IRIG/SyMMES/CREAB
SyMMES, CREAB
IRIG, CEA-GRENOBLE
17 rue des martyrs
38054 Grenoble cedex 9
04 38 78 98 79
En savoir plus
https://www.symmes.fr/Pages/Yoann-Roupioz/CV.aspx
https://www.symmes.fr/Pages/CREAB/Presentation.aspx
https://www.leti-cea.fr/cea-tech/leti/Pages/recherche-appliquee/infrastructures-de-recherche/plateforme-micro-nanotechnologies-sante.aspx