At the opening of the Nanocenter the audience were shown the samples of devices and technologies developed at the Center. The guests were also presented the research works conducted by a team of scientists and small innovative enterprises of Petrozavodsk State University.

The host of the opening ceremony was the Rector of Petrozavodsk State University Anatoly Victorovich Voronin:

“I would like to make it clear that it is not just a set of separate laboratories. It is a research and technology unit that basically covers all the stages of production, starting from an idea and research up to real technology and finished product that will be applied to practice. I’ll tell you right away that is just the beginning of work. Further on, this building will become a united Nanocenter with laboratories and modern equipment. Today we are absolutely sure that we are creating (and have already started working in that direction) a new industry in the Republic of Karelia. Today you have seen the first “clean laboratories” in our Republic. We have done research in information technologies before, and to a great extent we have created the IT-industry in the Republic. Just so we will engage in setting up an industry of nano- and microelectronics. I would like to wish the Nanocenter to develop at the rate that will allow it to become competitive on a global scale”.

Aleksei Shtykov, the Executive Director of the project “Nanocenter of PetrSU”:

“The Nanocenter has several innovative enterprises working on its premises. Our developers are successfully realizing their ideas from design to industrial production. We already have customers among both Russian and foreign enterprises.”

One of the first visitors to the Nanocanter was the Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Industry of the Republic of Karelia, Dmitry Kislov:

“I am glad to congratulate the team of the university, the team of the Nanocenter. Everyone is aware that the opening of the center is the result of determined systematic effort. It’s no secret that development of our republic depends on the development of the university. We always consider this cooperation as a great work towards modernization. We all realize that joint efforts in research, education, business and governmental bodies allow reaching the most ambitious goals.”

The Center has laboratories for general and versatile research of properties of the most advanced materials that are then used in prototyping innovative devices that are multifunctional and combine different physical phenomena: phase transformation metal-insulator, pyro-, piezo- and ferroelectricity, photoluminescence, nonvolatile resistible changeover, electro- and photochromism. Data acquired at the research stage will be used in prototype design and further commercialization of smart devices.

Today the research team consists of many young scientists, who have received grants of Russian and international foundations. Small innovative enterprises have been established to implement innovative projects based on conducted research.

The Center also hosts interdisciplinary creative teams under the guidance of a leading scientist from Sweden, the Professor Aleksandr Grishin.

Considerable funds are being invested into improvement of the facilities, as the Center receives the newest experimental and research equipment. The researchers have financial support in the form of the grants of the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia, Strategic Development Programs of PetrSU, and that allows preserving the existent team, as well as expanding it by attracting the most talented students and postgraduates.

Currently the team has over 40 researchers. They are actively engaged in interdisciplinary projects in the field of biomedicine jointly with the Departments of Molecular Biology and Human and Animals Physiology of the Institute of Medicine and the Institute of High Biomedical Technologies of PetrSU, in the field of mathematical modeling and automation jointly with the Department of Applied Mathematics and Cybernetics and Mathematical Modeling of Control Systems of PetrSU.

Over the last 30 years PetrSU has been holding the leading positions in the field of developing intellectual materials and devices, including those designed on the basis of oxide heterostructures. The groundwork laid at PetrSU is highly appreciated by the scientific community all around the world.