Many current challenges in Non-Destructive Evaluation (NDE) stem from the increased use of advanced materials and manufacturing processes that push the limits of materials' performance. NDE techniques are required that can cope with extreme environments (high temperature / radioactive environments), restricted access (inside engines or though access ports), and complex geometries. To address these challenges, this project will develop a new capability for real-time, remote ultrasonic imaging that can be used for NDE. This engineering challenge will be achieved by introducing a conceptual change to phased array ultrasonics, beyond the limits of geometrical, ultrasonic frequency and mode array characteristics, by adapting the array to the demands of the inspected structure, on-the-fly, and thus transforming the field. The long-term vision behind this project goes beyond inspection, to develop a method for monitoring and control of in-process parameters, in places of extreme environments such as fusion reactors or turbine engines. The industrial importance of the project is demonstrated by the significant cash and in-kind contributions of the project partners.

Medical imaging has transformed clinical medicine in the last 40 years. Diagnostic imaging provides the means to probe the structure and function of the human body without having to cut open the body to see disease or injury. Imaging is sensitive to changes associated with the early stages of cancer allowing detection of disease at a sufficient early stage to have a major impact on long-term survival. Combining imaging with therapy delivery and surgery enables 3D imaging to be used for guidance, i.e. minimising harm to surrounding tissue and increasing the likelihood of a successful outcome. The UK has consistently been at the forefront of many of these developments. Despite these advances we still do not know the most basic mechanisms and aetiology of many of the most disabling and dangerous diseases. Cancer survival remains stubbornly low for many of the most common cancers such as lung, head and neck, liver, pancreas. Some of the most distressing neurological disorders such as the dementias, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy and some of the more common brain cancers, still have woefully poor long term cure rates. Imaging is the primary means of diagnosis and for studying disease progression and response to treatment. To fully achieve its potential imaging needs to be coupled with computational modelling of biological function and its relationship to tissue structure at multiple scales. The advent of powerful computing has opened up exciting opportunities to better understand disease initiation and progression and to guide and assess the effectiveness of therapies. Meanwhile novel imaging methods, such as photoacoustics, and combinations of technologies such as simultaneous PET and MRI, have created entirely new ways of looking at healthy function and disturbances to normal function associated with early and late disease progression. It is becoming increasingly clear that a multi-parameter, multi-scale and multi-sensor approach combining advanced sensor design with advanced computational methods in image formation and biological systems modelling is the way forward. The EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Medical Imaging will provide comprehensive and integrative doctoral training in imaging sciences and methods. The programme has a strong focus on new image acquisition technologies, novel data analysis methods and integration with computational modelling. This will be a 4-year PhD programme designed to prepare students for successful careers in academia, industry and the healthcare sector. It comprises an MRes year in which the student will gain core competencies in this rapidly developing field, plus the skills to innovate both with imaging devices and with computational methods. During the PhD (years 2 to 4) the student will undertake an in-depth study of an aspect of medical imaging and its application to healthcare and will seek innovative solutions to challenging problems. Most projects will be strongly multi-disciplinary with a principle supervisor being a computer scientist, physicist, mathematician or engineer, a second supervisor from a clinical or life science background, and an industrial supervisor when required. Each project will lie in the EPSRC's remit. The Centre will comprise 72 students at its peak after 4 years and will be obtaining dedicated space and facilities. The participating departments are strongly supportive of this initiative and will encourage new academic appointees to actively participate in its delivery. The Centre will fill a significant skills gap that has been identified and our graduates will have a major impact in academic research in his area, industrial developments including attracting inward investment and driving forward start-ups, and in advocacy of this important and expanding area of medical engineering.

This proposal seeks funding to create a Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) in Integrated Photonic and Electronic Systems. Photonics plays an increasing role in systems, ranging from sensing, biophotonics and manufacturing, through communications from the chip-to-chip to transcontinental scale, to the plethora of new screen and projection display technologies that have been developed, bringing higher resolution, lower power operation and enabling new ways of human-machine interaction. These advances have set the scene for a major change in commercialisation activity where photonics and electronics will converge in a wide range of information, sensing, communications, manufacturing and personal healthcare systems. Currently, systems are realised by combining separately developed photonic components, such as lasers and photodetectors with electronic circuits. This approach is labour intensive and requires many electrical interconnects as well as optical alignment on the micron scale. Devices are optimised separately and then brought together to meet systems specifications. Such an approach, although it has delivered remarkable results, not least the communications systems upon which the internet depends, limits the benefits that could come from the full integration of photonics with electronics and systems. To achieve such integration requires researchers who have not only deep understanding of their specialist area, but also an excellent understanding across the fields of electronic and photonic hardware and software. This proposal therefore seeks to meet this important need, building upon the uniqueness and extent of the UCL and Cambridge research, where research activities are already focussing on the direct monolithic integration of lasers with silicon electronics, new types of displays based on polymer and holographic projection technology, the application of photonic communications to computing, personal information systems and indeed consumer products (via board-to-board, chip to chip and later on-chip interconnects), the increased use of photonics in industrial processing and manufacture, techniques for the low-cost roll-out of optical fibre to replace the copper network, the substitution of many conventional lighting products with photonic light sources and extensive application of photonics in medical diagnostics and personalised medicine. Many of these activities will increasingly rely on more advanced electronic systems integration, and so the proposed CDT includes experts in electronic circuits, computer systems and software. By drawing these complementary activities together, and building upon initial work towards this goal carried out within our previously funded CDT in Photonic Systems Development, it is proposed to develop an advanced training programme to equip the next generation of very high calibre doctoral students with the required technical expertise, commercial and business skills, and thus provide innovation opportunities for the integration of photonic and electronics in new systems in the coming years. It should be stressed that the CDT will provide a wide range of methods for learning for research students, well beyond that conventionally available, so that they can gain the required skills. In addition to conventional lectures and seminars, for example, there will be bespoke experimental coursework activities, reading clubs, roadmapping activities, secondments to companies and other research laboratories and business planning courses. The integration of photonic and electronic systems is likely to widen the range of systems into which these technologies are deployed in other key sectors of the economy, such as printing, consumer electronics, computing, defence, energy, engineering, security and medicine. As a result, a key feature of the CDT will be a developed awareness in its student cohorts of the breadth of opportunity available and a confidence that they can make impact therein.

Continuous carbon fibre composites are capable of competing directly with advanced metals in terms of structural performance. The advantages of composites come from the ability to manufacture complex shapes, generally in relatively low volume production, in weight saving and corrosion resistance. However, continuous fibre composites are difficulties to manufacture, leading to both high costs and to the potential for generation of a range of defects impacting strongly on performance. In addition, continuous fibre composites cannot be directly recycled as there is no way of reusing the fibres that can be extracted in long, but not continuous and topologically ordered form. From an examination of the current status of the composites industry two big challenges can be identified. The first is to increase defect-free production volumes by at least an order of magnitude - leading directly to the need to simplify and automate the manufacturing processes [12]. The second is the requirement to generate more sustainable composites solutions by moving towards a circular economy based model [13] via the development of recycling processes able to retain the material's mechanical properties and economic value. In principle, there is nothing new in this analysis of the challenges, however, a great deal of research activity has been expended in these areas in the last two decades without achieving a step-change in capability. The central thesis of this proposal is that the principal difficulties in both achieving low cost, reliable, high volume production and readily recyclable advanced composites arise from a single source: the fact that the fibres are continuous and that both problem areas can be directly tackled by adopting highly Aligned Discontinuous Fibre Reinforced Composites (ADFRCs). Our vision is to generate a fundamental step-change in the composite industry by further developing and applying the HiPerDiF (High Performance Discontinuous Fibre) technology to produce high performance ADFRCs. This new, high volume manufacturing method was invented at the University of Bristol in the EPSRC funded HiPerDuCT (High Performance Ductile Composite Technology) programme (EP/I02946X/1). The basic concept is that if discontinuous fibres are accurately aligned and their length is significantly longer than the critical fibre length, the tensile modulus, strength and failure strain of the obtained composites are comparable to those of continuous fibre composites. This technique, developed in the HiPerDuCT programme has also shown the potential to tailor mechanical behaviour of composite materials, delivering pseudo-ductility via hybridisation and fibre pull-out mechanisms. The HiPerDiF technology offers the opportunity to realise the potential of aligned discontinuous fibre composites and produce a significant industrial and societal impact. Changing the fibre reinforcement geometry from continuous to discontinuous, without compromising the mechanical properties, will have a wide impact on the composite industry. The fibre discontinuity will allow an increase in the productivity of automated manufacturing processes and the formability of complex geometries, reducing the manufacturing generated defects. The use of ADFRC will increase the tailorability of composite materials by leading to truly multifunctional composite materials, able to respond to multiple design requirements. ADFRC will open the way for the adoption of a circular economy model in the composite sector by allowing the remanufacturing of reclaimed carbon fibres in high performance and high value feedstock and by producing more readily recyclable materials.

The theme of this platform grant is electronic-photonic convergence. It underpins expertise in integrated photonics platforms such as silicon photonics, mid-IR photonics, non-linear photonics and high speed electronics, all of which make use of a common fabrication platform. The convergence of electronics and photonics underpins a host of technologies ranging from future internet to consumer products, and from biological and chemical sensing to communications. The integration of electronics and photonics is recognised as the only way to manage the massive data demands of the future, and is consequently crucial to the continuation of the digital age. Silicon Photonics is an example of an emerging technology that will bring photonics to mass markets via integration with electronics. Integrated silicon systems are projected to serve a market in excess of $700M by 2024 (Yole Development, 2014), but is reliant on photonics converging with electronics. Furthermore, some aspects of silicon photonics will encompass non-linear photonics in second generation devices for all optical processing in a fully integrated platform. Similarly, related technologies such as SiGe-on-Insulator and Ge-on-Insulator are poised to revolutionise the next generation of communications and integrated sensor technologies, all on an integrated platform with electronics and non-linear photonics. Underpinning a team in these crucial areas of expertise supported by a flexible funding platform will enable us to pioneer work in these technology areas, and to add value to ideas that emerge. The convergence of electronics and photonics will result in complex integrated systems, linked via fabrication technologies. Electronic-photonic integration has yet to be addressed in a meaningful way in silicon based technologies, and this team collectively have the essential skills to do so, at an institution that possesses the key fabrication equipment to facilitate success. Due to the complex nature of fabrication for research, existing RAs are fully utilised, and have little or no additional scope for strategic research. The platform grant will give us the opportunity to dedicate fabrication resource and RA skills to strategic projects, and specific innovation. We will do this by utilising the RAs within the project to deliver work of significant strategic importance to the portfolio of grants held by the group, whilst also developing the research and managerial skills of the RAs by giving them specific management responsibilities whilst being mentored by one of the investigators.