At the Institute of Human Performance and Rehabilitation (PerfoTech) we believe in increasing knowledge and challenging existing beliefs about human-movement biology. One of the ways we do this is through constant inspiration by the world’s leading thinkers and doers.

In November 2011 we are initiating the Perfo-TED events, created in the spirit of TED’s mission, “ideas worth spreading” (www.ted.com). The Perfo-TED program will offer a weekly session incorporating a screening of a TEDTalk video presentation or a combination of a live presentation and a TEDTalk video presentation. The presentation will be followed by a discussion designed to stimulate deep conversation, connections, and inspiration.

The content and design of each session will be kept up to date with the news and will have a common feature: A short (<20 min) carefully prepared talk, demonstration and performance from TEDTalk videos from TED.com on a wide range of subjects to foster learning, inspiration and wonder and to provoke conversations that matter.

Join us every Wednesday at 19:00 in the PerfoTech Common Room.

The knowledge transfer from labs to industry, SMEs and local community has never been easy, especially within highly-innovative and rapidly evolving technologies. This know-how transfer is even more difficult for peripheral areas, which are usually cut-off the major research actors. LLT represents a society of industrial, economy and citizenship actors that are highly motivated to be engaged in user-driven technology applications in order to facilitate the increase of the local entrepreneurship and provide solutions that benefit all citizens.

LLT emphasises on “Quality of Life”, which is an issue related to the interests of the University, the Research Centre (CERETETH) and the 6 hospitals of the Thessaly region. The aims of LLT are strongly supported by the 71 information technology and high tech companies that are members of the Technological Park of Thessaly, also a member of LLT.

LLT’s will be based in Trikala, a city located at the centre of Greece. The city, a LLT member, already offers increased bandwidth wireless services to its inhabitants (in contrast to the majority of other Greek cities) that are also free of charge. Through this medium LLT has increased acceptance of new technologies and internet related activities to all its citizens and has set the basis for widespread involvement of Trikala citizens in its activities. The public bodies of LLT incorporate the University of Thessaly, CERETETH, and all hospitals of Thessaly, the city of Trikala and other bodies. Private bodies are many companies from the Thessaly region and the rest of Greece.

LLT offers the following services:

• Provides a unique validation environment for ICT based products and innovative services, strengthening industrial growth of region and business dexterity.
• Provides products and services to improve the quality of life of citizens (end-users).
• Facilitates research development within the area and particularly its applicability in the local area and in Greece in general and strengthen the local research community.
• Creates the necessary mechanisms for the transfer of the knowledge created in the main bodies of LLT, and assist in the development of the Thessaly prefecture, as an innovative high-level research centre.
• Provides the necessary mechanisms and guidance that will allow local stakeholder engagement in and execution of proposals for large scale projects funded by the State or private companies, which cannot be realized within the existing framework of the Greek universities and research centres.
• Supports research and services related to problems of the region of Thessaly and Greece that ultimately help realise the Lisbon strategy for jobs and growth in Europe

LLT Coordinator

Dr Andreas D. Flouris

For more information on LLT please visit: http://www.llthessaly.gr

This is an area that the IME has particular expertise in, the design and development of materials from the fundamental material properties towards a specific application.

A particular asset of the IME research team for materials synthesis is the varied scientific expertise of the research staff of the institute. The varied experiences in chemistry, physics and materials engineering available from the research staff allows for a cross-discipline approach to the development of materials.

This gives the IME the ability to model and optimise many material properties. Thermal, electrical and mechanical properties of substances can be tailored to specific requirements of a project using the physical sciences expertise of our staff, and then the correct synthesis routes and methods determined for the production of these desired properties though our expertise in chemistry and engineering.

A particular focus of the institute is the durability and reliability of materials synthesised. Our experience has shown that often the technical requirements of a material for a project can be relatively easily reached. Far more difficult is retaining these attributes while simultaneously producing a material which for which the synthesis is repeatable, and is durable enough for the planned application of the material in industry.      

The IMEs other areas of expertise in materials characterisation then allow for a complete cycle of development for a material. Information gained through analysis of the developed material can be incorporated into any modelling that has taken place, and the properties of the material improved further using the new information in combination with IME’s experience with materials development

The synthesis and development of new materials is a key objective for the IME, and we continue to participate in projects that allow us to support industry and research and development in Greece.

Theoretical modelling is a key attribute in the success of the materials engineering group in material production projects. Techniques based on first principles are important for setting the initial direction of a development project. The group uses various materials simulation and thermodynamic calculations to predict various material properties prior to experimentation and development. Simulation tools are also particularly useful for the optimisation of material properties over a large variable space where experimentation may not be practical.

Our experience in design aligns with our materials synthesis work and allows us to greatly assist in the development of high tech materials for the various important industries listed in this section.

Coatings

Coatings for both protection and coatings with other functional properties are a vital component of many modern technologies. In particular, the increased development of low maintenance technology has increased the importance of coating science and technology still further. The group therefore has a large interest in R&D related to coatings science.

The most common reason for the application of a coating is for protection of a surface from degradation. The two common routes for this to occur are mechanical and chemical. Mechanical wear occurs due to physical contact causing damage to the surface in question, whereas chemical wear involves the reaction of the surface.

The most common examples of coatings for protection from mechanical wear are varnishes and paints. The group, however, is more concerned with coating applications for higher tech industries, in which the chemical degradation of a surface is often a technical problem. The most familiar form of chemical wear is that of oxidation, or the rusting of metal surfaces. Oxidation prevention for electronics is a speciality area of the IME, particularly important due to the current drive for electronics miniaturisation which leads to a higher sensitivity of components to oxidation.

Electronics and Displays

A large variety of materials are used within the electronics and displays industry. Fundamental to all electronics, including displays electronics, is the processing of electronic components onto circuit boards using the soldering process. The chemistry involved in solder materials is extremely complicated, and the group has specific expertise in dealing with the alloys involved.

Factors such as the maximum temperatures required for the soldering process, and the thermal and mechanical stresses placed on a circuit board due to these temperatures leads to a complicated system which requires a depth of knowledge to manipulate. The group is composed of chemists and engineers with this materials expertise for the development of improved solder chemistries for electronics assembly. Through our research we support the drive towards electronics miniaturisation.

The displays industry uses specific materials with unique research challenges. Transparent conductors are an extremely important material for the industry. This group of materials currently made up mainly of a select few metal oxides, and in particular indium-tin oxide. Research and development towards both improving current materials and the development of possible alternatives is currently a critical area in the scientific community, and we contribute to this vital area of research.

Advanced Ceramic

The term Ceramic refers to any non-metal, non-organic (Non plastic) material. The term ‘advanced ceramic’ refers to materials of this nature with specifically high tech applications, when compared to ceramics such as brick and glass.

Ceramics can have various interesting properties which have led to focused research to exploit these properties to develop new technologies. Transparent Conducting Ceramics are of vital importance to displays, touch screen and solar technologies, as well as playing a role in energy efficiency through window coatings for both the automotive and building industries. Piezoelectric crystals are materials which respond to an electric potential by changing in size or volume, and have use as extremely accurate metering valves and as actuators. These materials also exhibit the reverse property in that they also will produce an electric potential in response to a change in size or volume, and thus also can have applications as sensors and electricity generating devices.

The IME has a particular focus in the development of TCCs, as well as general experience in the properties and behaviour of ceramic crystalline structures that lends itself to new projects and developments in the industry.

Photovoltaic

Photovoltaics is the study of materials that produce a current in response to light falling on the surface of the material. This is the science that solar cells are based on. Along with the fundamental intuitive concept of improving the efficiency of the generation of electricity from light, there is a host of other areas involved in producing working solar cells aside from the basic scientific concepts. A solar cell actually consists of a stack of materials performing various functions, from protecting the other layers of the cell from damage to reflecting unabsorbed light back into the active layer of the cell.

There is much work to be performed on the development and optimisation of these other layers of the cell, an area that the group performs work in. We have great competencies in the area of materials optimisation, and hope to contribute to the increased adoption of Photovoltaic technologies in the future.

Our electronics research has given us large competencies in the analysis of metal alloy compositions, using various techniques such as chemical analysis and x-ray florescence analysis for an accurate understanding for the development of new compositions. Our expertise in this area comes from research into solder compositions, reflow profiles and other factors important to the miniaturisation of electronics. Techniques such as radiographic inspection and scanning electron microscopy are also used during this research. The IME has large interests in the area of electronics miniaturisation due to current global interest in this technology area.

We also perform analysis of coatings and coating materials. Thin film technology is a vast area of research, and we have specific experience in the analysis of polymers and ligands as coating substances for a variety of industry applications . Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy as well as optical inspection and profilometry are common techniques we use during projects for the development of these coatings.

Equipment is also available for the determination of physical properties of materials and coatings, allowing for mechanical, electrical and thermal analyses of bulk and thin films of various materials. 

The group has many years of experience in materials analysis and are particularly adept at the targeting and application of analytical results to the materials engineering group projects in our other areas of expertise, such as the synthesis and integration of new materials into various high technology areas that are current areas of interest. 

Our main goal is to use our characterisation expertise to assist industry in the development of new materials and materials technology.

Areas of Research
Materials Analysis & Characterisation
The Materials Analysis and Characterisation Capability Group is equipped with state-of-the-art instruments/techniques which are maintained, operated and developed by an excellent group of scientists and engineers.

Materials Design and Production
Research in this group has been focused on materials design and growth of three clusters of materials, namely, (i) coatings (ii) electronic & displays, (iii) advanced ceramic and (iv) PV for various applications with emphasis on CleanTech electronics & displays manufacture, energy harvesting/storage, solar energy and energy efficient building materials.

Synthesis & Integration
This Group is dedicated to the study of chemistry and physics of materials from  fundamental to applied perspectives to spawn high-impact technology innovations that respond to current market drivers.

2010: 1^st Scientific Award at the 9^th Greek Hellenic Nurse Nephrological conference, 27-30 May, Skiathos, Greece

2010: 1^st Endocrine Society and Pfizer, Inc. International Award for Excellence in Published Clinical Research in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism in 2009. This prestigious award recognizes the four best clinical research papers published in JCEM each year.

2008: 1^st Scientific Award at the 37^th EDTNA/ERCA International Conference, 6-9 September, Prague, Czech

2008: European Dialysis and Transplant Nurses Association/ European Renal Care Association (EDTNA/ERCA) National Scholarship Award in the 36^th EDTNA/ERCA International conference, 6-9 September, Prague, Czech Republic, 2008

2008: Best Study award in the 8^th Greek Congress of Nephrology Nursing, 29 May-1 June, 2008, Porto Heli, Greece

2006: 1^st Scientific Award at the 35^th EDTNA/ERCA International Conference 9-11 September, Madrid, Spain

Other:

World-Class Performance by Dr Sakkas in a Free Diving Competition

From 14/06 to 20/06/2010, the deepest free divers from the all over the world were congregated in Kalamata, Greece, in order to compete for the World Cup of the deeper man and woman on a single breath. The programme lasted 15 days and included one week of training and one week of competition, as well as many scientific activities. In the event took part 37 athletes from 23 countries including a Greek athlete and a member of our scientific community, Dr Giorgos Sakkas. Giorgos, who is a member of the National Greek Team, was classified as 5^th in the overall ranking with attempts starting from 54 meters without fins, up to 70 meters with the monofin, making also personal records in the all 3 categories. Also, during the 15 days of the event, Drs Sakkas and Karatzaferi and their colleagues from our Department conducted a study aiming to examine why top free divers often experience sleep problems. A relevant video about the event appears in the following address: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgU-0PpSiLc

1. Sakkas GK. «Exercise for sweet dreams»

(15-03-2010) – http://health.ana-mpa.gr/news.php?id=5989

(28-11-2010) – http://www.e-erevna.gr/portal/story.aspx?ID=71732

2. Sakkas GK. «Exercise for hemodialysis patients»

(17-09-2009) – http://health.ana-mpa.gr/fthema.php?id=6918

(2008) http://www.sciencetech.gr/arxeia/ARTHRA/PHYSIOLOGY/H%20XRONIA%20AEROBIA%20ASKHSH%20KATA%20TH%20DIARKEIA%20AIMOKATHARSIS.pdf

3. Sakkas GK. «Physiology of Free Diving»  (2009) http://fishingmania.pblogs.gr/tags/pathofysiologia-eleytheris-katadysis-gr.html

4. Sakkas GK. «Free diving and Creatine supplementation»  (2009) http://www.fdi.gr/xdot.asp?process=item&webitemid=ARC-ARTICLES_156

5. Sakkas GK. « why exercise can improve RLS symptoms» Men’s Health Magazine USA, http://www.menshealth.com/

6. Sakkas GK. «Creatine does not improve strength in HIV patients» Positive Nation Magazine, Issue 119 http://www.positivenation.co.uk/issue119/treatments/treatment1/treatment1.htm

1.      The effect of serotonin reuptake inhibitors (Modafinil) in resting energy expenditure and physical activity in healthy volunteers

2.      The effect of muscle damage induced restlessness during sleep in healthy volunteers

3.      RLS prevalence and variations in gene polymorphism in Greek hemodialysis patients

4.      The effect of aerobic exercise training in sleep quality and quantity in patients receiving hemodialysis therapy.

5.      Sleep Disorders and Functional Capacity in Parkinson’s Diseases Patients.

6.      The effect of aerobic exercise training in insulin receptors and insulin sensitivity indices in lean individuals with insulin resistance

7.      Caring for hemodialysis patients suffering from Restless Legs Syndrome

8.      Prevalence of Restless Legs Syndrome in Primary Health Care

9.      Effects of calorie intake during hemodialysis on postprandial hypotension in patients receiving dialysis therapy

Sleep disorders in competitive breath hold divers

Major Research Line

We offer tailored exercise prescription to children and to chronic disease patients, with our expertise in renal failure, renal transplant, hypertension, HIV, diabetics, and the obese. We offer tailored functional assessment that can take place in in-patient or out-patient locations (from exercise testing to sleep assessment). In collaboration with private or public clinics we can organise, implement, and prepare reports on clinical trials. We also offer support in the design, preparation, monitoring and assessment of clinical trials, which we register in international clinical trials archives.

See below related video:

Therapeutic exercise in action

Dr Giorgos K. Sakkas

Perfotech – CERETETH

Karyes – Trikala

GR42100, Greece

Tel: +30-24310-63190

Fax: +30-24310-63191

Cell: +30-697-850-9102

Email: gsakkas at med.uth.gr;  gsakkas at cereteth.gr