The Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) is one of only two federally funded universities in Switzerland – the other being the ETH in Zürich. The three overall goals of EPFL are education, research and technology transfer at the highest international level. EPFL is ranked in the top 20 institutions in Europe, and the Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering (ISIC) was awarded an excellent grade in the latest CHE-ranking. Over 100 nationalities are represented on campus and more than 50% of our professors come from abroad making the school one of the most cosmopolitan and diverse universities in the world. The EPFL campus comprises more than 10'000 people. The EPFL offers 13 complete study programs at the Bachelor and Master levels in engineering, basic sciences, computer and communication sciences, life sciences, civil engineering, architecture and the environment. These study programs are designed to be flexible and modular. Within the EPFL's Doctoral School, PhD students share ideas, provide mutual support and intellectual stimulation, and round out their education with high-level specialized courses. PhD students benefit from the EPFL's scientific expertise and excellent infrastructure. With more than 250 laboratories and research groups on campus, the EPFL is one of Europe's most innovative and productive technology institutes. 

The infrastructure at the EPFL provides access to the latest state-of-the- art instrumentation, excellent computing facilities, database engines, etc. necessary to support the project. The students and employees have access to all relevant scientific literature with the library system. The library of the EPFL features the latest up-to-date literature, books and reference, including over 4000 journals, many of which are online electronically. In addition, the major facilities available within the institute include a fully equipped analytical service including FT-ICR, Q-ToF and MALDI mass spectrometry, 18 NMRs including 500, 600 and 800 MHz instruments equipped with cryoprobes, 3 X-ray diffractometers. The institute maintains a long-term investment program in collaboration to guarantee access to the most modern analytical equipment. The mechanical workshop service employs 9 engineers a complete electronic workshop service is also available with 3 full time staff. ISIC employs 6 engineers and two technicians for the maintenance of large equipment such as NMR, for the design of new instrumentation and for support in computing.

The LPI is a part of the Institute of Chemical Science and Engineering at EPFL. It is headed by Prof. Michael Grätzel, the inventor of the dye-sensitized solar cell. For more than 20 years, the LPI has worked on nanocrystalline materials, colloids, inorganic dyes and ultrafast spectroscopy. Recently, the LPI was named Switzerland’s centre of excellence for photoelectrochemical hydrogen production by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy, called PEChouse. In addition to photon conversion, the laboratory has carried out fundamental research on materials for electrochemistry, secondary batteries, light-emitting diodes, mechanisms and kinetics of charge transfer, optical properties, and photocatalysts for environmental applications. At present, the laboratory has over 40 professional scientific staff.

More info: https://www.epfl.ch/labs/lpi/.