Home MESA+ Institute | MESA+ Institute for Nanotechnology

realizing grand solutions with the extremely small

The MESA+ Institute is a leading nanotechnology research institute. Focusing on key enabling technologies (KETs) - photonics, fluidics, hard materials, soft materials and devices, combined with responsible research & innovation - and the convergence of these to realize disruptive innovations in the areas of most societal challenges. Our main contributions are on the Health, ICT and Sustainability areas.

Embracing a cross-disciplinary approach and benefiting from the MESA+ NanoLab, over 500 researchers deliver high quality, frequently ground-breaking research. MESA+ actively seeks for collaboration with external partners providing an excellent setting for consortium formation. Next to our excellent scientists and facilities, we offer a strong regional ecosystem that creates the breeding ground to let ideas blossom and grow to relevant, successful solutions and businesses.

A Grand Future with Small Nanostructures

Nanotechnology impacts many aspects of our lives. The Netherlands is a leading player in this exciting field. Key to safeguard this position is to keep engaging talent and develop our infrastructure network, organized in NanoLabNL. NanoLabNL provides an open-access infrastructure for R&D in nanotechnology. It combines facilities in Twente, Delft, Eindhoven, Groningen and Amsterdam. MESA+ chairs the NanoLabNL initiative.

MESA+ top publication: ‘Wall roughness induces asymptotic ultimate turbulence’ - Nature Physics

When gold nano particles in water are illuminated by a laser, they get very hot: well above the boiling point of water. The formation of vapour bubbles caused by this, is well-known. New experiments, however, using a very high speed camera, now show that before this, a bubble is formed that is much larger and, subsequently, explodes violently. For energy conversion of the particles to the liquid they are in, this discovery of early phase dynamics is very important. Researchers of the University of Twente and the University of Utrecht in The Netherlands now publish these new results in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA (PNAS).

Our NanoLab in 360°

MESA+ has a 1250 m2 state-of-the-art NanoLab which consists of a Cleanroom and Analysis facilities. Research on the nanometre scale needs a laboratory with extreme specifications, whereas the NanoLab is constructed to meet such high standards. Any influencing effects from the environment, such as vibration and electromagnetic disturbances, are virtually non-existent. The environmental conditions inside the building, such as temperature, humidity and the influence of light are extremely stable. Discover our NanoLab in 360°!

Photo contest

The winner of the photo contest of the second quarter of 2018 is this picture: 'Balance of Raspberries'. It was made by Baybin Ilhan from the Physics of Complex Fluids group. Click the picture to see more photos.

Facts & Figures 2017

For MESA+ 2017 was a scientifically interesting and successful year, and a year of looking ahead to the future. With a new focus on the institute's long-term strategy, we have given an impulse for growth and development in the upcoming years. Because we believe that nanotechnology offers nearly endless opportunities for answers to the grand challenges we are facing.

Recent

Two UT researchers backed by ERC to bring research findings to market

Mikado in a nano box

When you shake a box filled with Mikado sticks, will you get a uniform spreading of the sticks inside the box? This question touches Bertrand’s paradox, a classic in mathematics. In 2D, this is already an intriguing que…

Getting a smart tattoo without using any needle

A tattoo that is warning you for too many hours of sunlight exposure, or is alerting you for taking your medication? Next to their cosmetic role, tattoos could get new functionality using intelligent ink. That would req…

Grant for spectral unraveling of EUV lithography light sources

Together with ARCNL in Amsterdam, the XUV Optics group at MESA+ has embarked on detailed spectral analysis of Extreme UV light sources, the so-called SUN project. SUN is an acronym of "Spectral Unraveling of EUV Lithogr…

Nanotechnology inspired by the brain

Artificial intelligence is rapidly growing, but despite all brute computation power, our brain convincingly wins in a number of tasks. It recognizes and interprets complex patterns very fast, consuming a minimum of ener…

More news