Project Partners:
- Bar Ilan University – Israel
- Weizmann Institute of Science – Israel
- Sami Shamoon College of Engineering – Israel
- Holon Institute of Technology – Israel
- Ben-Gurion University of the Negev – Israel
- Technion – Israel Institute of Technology – Israel
- Politecnico Di Milano – Italy
- Universiteit Twente – Netherlands
- Friedrich-Alexander-Universitaet Erlangen Nuernberg – Germany
About the Project:
iPEN (Innovative Photonics Education in Nanotechnology) is a Capacity Building project, funded by the ERASMUS+ programme of the European Union. A consortium, consisting of a number of academic institutions from Europe (TEI Crete, Politecnico di Milano, University of Twente, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg) and Israel (amongst them HIT, The Technion, Weizmann Institute of Science, Bar Ilan University and Shamoon College of Engineering), submitted the application in 2017 and was granted a budget of almost €1M for three years.
Dr. Konstantinos Petridis of TEI Crete is iPEN’s coordinator. HIT’s Faculty of Engineering, headed by its Dean Prof. Yosef Ben Ezra and Dr. Amos Bardea, are taking part in this project and Dr. Amir Handelman has been appointed as its local coordinator. RIIVA (the Research, Innovation and International Ventures Authority) is providing organizational and administrative support to the project with the assistance of Bracha Einhoren.
This project aims to promote knowledge among students and young researchers in the fields of Optics, Photonics and Nanotechnology. New academic courses will be developed (including novel study materials and teaching methods) to be shared by the various members of the consortium.. These courses will enrich the curriculum, offer a wider base of knowledge to our students and contribute to developing additional tracks. An emphasis will also be placed on soft skills which were rated by the industry as important assets (side-by-side with professional skills). This comprehensive framework will provide our students with better capabilities and tools for their future employability.
HIT has undertaken to develop 3 of those courses:
- Optical Engineering Principles
- Nanotechnologies & Nanodevices
- RF and Intergraded Photonic Circuits
The Faculty of Engineering at HIT regards such projects as an opportunity to collaborate with colleagues from prestigious academic institutions in Europe. Furthermore, it will contribute to HIT’s reputation in the field of innovation and, of course, is an additional platform for implementing HIT’s Internationalization Strategy and extending our contacts for both research collaborations and exchange opportunities for staff and students.
