About me

About me

I graduated in Materials Engineering in 1999 at the Department of Materials of the University of Trieste, Italy. For my final “laurea” thesis on spectroscopic techniques for characterizing advanced ceramics, I worked at the world leader company in the field, CeramTec AG, Germany (advisor: Prof. Valter Sergo).

After serving in the Italian Army as recruit instructor, I moved in 2001 to the University of California at Santa Barbara, where I joined the Materials Department in David Clarke’s group. Here, I first graduated with a Master of Science degree with a work on phase transformation in zirconia-based thermal barrier coatings (the committee included C.G. Levi and A.G. Evans). Meanwhile, supported by the California NanoSystems Institute, I worked on my doctoral dissertation (“Growth and Characterization of AlN Thin Films for MEMS Applications”), developing a strong expertise in semiconductor thin films, microfabrication, and characterization techniques at the micro- and nanoscale. The Ph.D. committee included A. Gossard, E. Hu, and N. MacDonald. In 2006 I started a postdoc, again in Prof. Clarke’s group, where I continued working on thin films and on solid-state diffusion.

Throughout graduate school, I became passionate about the themes of sustainability and appropriate technology, and resolved to put my expertise in materials at the service of the improvement of renewable energy technology. I got the chance to start this new endeavor, as well as to return to Italy, when I was offered a postdoctoral fellowship for conducting research in the field of renewable energy (“Talents Friuli-Venezia Giulia Fellowship”). Within this framework, in 2007 I elected to join the Materials Department (DMNR) of the University of Trieste, one of the pillars of the local Center of Excellence for Nanostructured Materials, with the idea of starting a research project on novel nanostructured materials for high efficiency photovoltaics. Here, I have worked on setting up a laboratory for the synthesis of nanostructured materials by using colloidal routes and their characterization. Meanwhile, I collaborated with a spin-off of the University of Trieste, and have been one of the co-founders and managers of a startup company aimed at developing and commercializing novel, high-efficiency and low-cost solar cells.

In November 2008, I joined the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Trieste, first as Assistant Professor and then as Associate Professor of Materials. I currently hold the national qualification ("abilitazione") as Full Professor. My research is focused on improving the performance of renewable energy technologies through the development and implementation of novel materials. Current emphasis is on nanomaterials for photovoltaics and other energy applications (see naME Lab - Laboratory of Nanomaterials & Energy).

In order to complement my expertise in thin films and nanotechnology with knowledge about renewable energy technologies and specifically on photovoltaics, I have participated in a number of specialization schools. Most notably, supported by fellowships of the US National Science Foundation, I participated to: “Nanotechnology, Biotechnology, and Green Manufacturing for Creating Sustainable Technologies” (Northwestern University); and “Advanced Solar Cell Research School” (National Tisng Hua University and Academia Sinica, Taiwan).

Among other things, he collaborated in funding and starting the Santa Barbara Chapter of Engineers Without Borders, now one of the most active and successful in the USA.