Developing new functional nanomaterials concerns with both preparation and characterization of metallic/ semiconducting nanoparticles, silicon based nanocomposite materials, and respectively polymeric multilayer structures, looking also to appropriate surface functionalisation.

The main issue in this area is to achieve the ability to fabricate and control the structure of nanoparticles which influence the resulting properties and, ultimately, design materials to give the desired properties.

Silicon nanostructuration has been the first approach (porous silicon), and correspondingly optimization of process parameters to determine both the required morphology and optoelectronic properties. Moreover, finding appropriate internal surface functionalization allows development of biomedical applications, like high sensitive layer for biosensors or substrate for protein and DNA microarray technology.

Going forward, nanocomposite structures like metallic nanoparticles / carbon nanotubes dispersed into porous silicon matrix consist the base for novel substrates for SERS / SEIRS biodetection, cold electron emitters and electrocatalytic membrane based on silicon.

Multilayer structures where opposite charged organic or inorganic thin films are successively adsorbed (layer-by-layer technique) are fabricated for surface modification, and also for fabrication of nano-bio-reactors, controlled attachment different proteins, as well as for improving the quality of the common Nafion proton exchange membrane in fuel cells.