This 5th edition, International PhD Days on soft robotics, smart materials and miniaturized tools for healthcare, was organized by ULB on March 19-20, 2026.
AIMS
In recent years, rapid advances in soft robotics, smart materials, and miniature tools have opened up exciting prospects for biomedical and healthcare technologies. From centimetre-scale actuators to microrobotic systems, innovations in materials engineering and manufacturing methods are transforming diagnostics, targeted drug delivery, and minimally invasive procedures.
The combination of flexible, stimuli-sensitive materials with advanced manufacturing techniques now enables the development of adaptive, multifunctional systems. By integrating materials design with multi-scale manufacturing strategies, researchers can precisely control deformation, movement, and sensing across various size ranges.
This meeting aimed to bring together early-career researchers (including doctoral students, postdoctoral fellows, and master’s students) from physics, chemistry, materials science, robotics, and mechanical engineering. It provided a unique opportunity to exchange ideas, share the latest results, and initiate interdisciplinary collaborations. Discussions focused on new manufacturing methods, innovative materials and system integration for flexible and/or miniaturised technologies for healthcare applications.
SPEAKERS
Thursday, March 19:
- Seppe Terryn, Professor (VUB): Self-healing soft robotics technologies
- Margaux Mannaerts, PhD student (ULB): “Stabilization of bronchoscopic tools in the periphery of the lungs”
- Marwa Eldiwiny, Post Doc (VUB): Sunflower Robotics
- Esra Yalcinkaya, PhD student (UMONS): “3D-printed light-driven PNIPAM/Gold Nanoparticle hydrogel nanocomposites for biomedical application”
- Juan Alejandro Guerrero Teran, PhD student (UMONS): “Self-powered Humidity-activated Piezoionic sensors“
What comes after the thesis? Testimonies from PhDs (March 19), animated by Pierre Lambert, Professor (ULB)
- Aline De Greef, Coach Polytech (BAPP, ULB)
- Benjamin Mertens, CEO (Lys Medical)
- Ellen Roels, Professor (VUB)
- Antoniya Toncheva, Program leader & R&D Scientist (MateriaNova)
Friday, March 20:
- Julia Siminska-Stanny, Post Doc (ULB): “3D Bioprinted Hydrogels with Vascular Architectures for Tissue Engineering and Ultrasound-Enhanced Therapies”
- Manon Cassignol, PhD student (ULB): “Mechanical properties of PNIPAM microactuators.”
- Murillo Santana, Professor (Aix-Marseille Université) : “Nonlinear analysis of a tensegrity module”
- Pasquale Ferrentino, Post Doc (VUB): Metamaterials and Smart materials for Aerial Robotics
- Amir Abrishami, PhD student (ULB): The intersection of nanotechnology studies and 3D printing tumor models
- Pierre Lambert, Professor (ULB): Instrumented Glass Sensor for Lung Cancer Detection