Innovative Projects Realized

Jumeaux Numériques des Parcs O Bus avec Simulation à Base d’Agents

Les parcs relais, ou « park-and-ride », jouent un rôle crucial dans la gestion de la mobilité urbaine, en offrant une alternative à l’utilisation de la voiture individuelle en centre-ville. Cependant, leur impact environnemental et leur efficacité opérationnelle peuvent varier considérablement en fonction de leur conception et de leur gestion. Ce projet propose une approche innovante en développant des jumeaux numériques de ces infrastructures, permettant ainsi une modélisation et une simulation précises de leur fonctionnement. L’objectif est d’analyser l’impact des parcs relais sur les émissions de gaz à effet de serre (GES) et d’identifier des stratégies pour améliorer leur efficacité, contribuant ainsi à une mobilité urbaine plus durable

Immersion dans les approches méthodologiques australiennes pour l’étude de l’environnement des unités de soins intensifs : un stage de recherche

Le projet présenté est un stage de recherche Mitacs Globalink pour Edouard Paquet, un étudiant à la maîtrise en sciences infirmières de l’Université Laval. Le stage se déroulera au Critical Care Research Group (CCRG) de l’hôpital The Prince Charles à Brisbane, en Australie, du 11 mai au 18 août 2025.
Le projet proposé vise à contribuer à l’amélioration de l’environnement des unités de soins intensifs (USI) en s’appuyant sur les principes de matérialité de l’environnement et les notions de design. Le stagiaire participera à l’initiative “ICU of the Future” du CCRG, qui étudie l’impact d’un environnement optimisé sur les résultats cliniques des patients en USI. Les avantages escomptés comprennent l’amélioration potentielle des soins aux patients en USI, une meilleure , l’innovation dans la conception des unités de soins intensifs, mieux outillés les professionnels de la santé, le renforcement de la collaboration internationale et du transfert de connaissances entre le Canada et l’Australie.

An analysis of crowdfunding strategies and underlying psychological mechanism of crowdfunders’ behaviors

Indie Ink, in collaboration with the National Crowdfunding Association of Canada (NCFA), is laying the groundwork for publishing a book about crowdfunding via a crowdfunding campaign that would illustrate to the masses how this new venture is transforming Canada. This research project on planning and executing a crowdsourcing and crowdfunding campaign to gather content and a portion of the funds for the book’s production will be highly valuable for both Indie Ink and the academic community. For Indie Ink, this research will help them to set up an appropriate crowdfunding campaign and design an effective promotion strategy. Within the academic community, as there is insufficient research on this particular field of fundraising, this research will provide insight into underlying processes that drives the crowd’s intention to participate in crowdfunding campaigns

Contrôle du positionnement de point quantique par une approche thermo-optique sur des surfaces nanostructurées

L’amélioration des dispositifs actuels en biocapteurs ou émetteurs de lumière reposent principalement sur un controle du position des molécules ou émetteurs dans des endroits clefs du dispositifs. Nous avons récemment développer une méthode qui permet de positionner avec une précision très fine (nanomètre), des molécules ou émetteurs et nous souhaitons montrer son contrôle et sa viabilité pour des applications en biocapteurs (pour la santé ou l’environnement) ou pour des dispositifs de contrôles d’émission de lumières).

Optimisation de la géométrie de convertisseurs de puissance laser interconnectés en série

L’équipe de Gwenaëlle Hamon développe des procédés de micro-fabrication pour les dispositifs III-V, incluant des convertisseurs de puissance laser qui sont des dispositifs composés d’hétérostructures à base de GaAs (structure VEHSA (1) (2)). Ces hétérostructures convertissent la lumière d’un laser incident en électricité. La structure VEHSA (Vertical Epitaxial Heterostructure Architecture) consiste en un empilement de jonctions PN de GaAs connectés en série, permettant d’augmenter la tension des dispositifs. Le projet dans lequel s’inscrit ce stage consiste à interconnecter horizontalement ces structures en série, afin d’augmenter davantage la tension de sortie de ces dispositifs. Un des défis de cette interconnexion concerne l’harmonisation des courants. Chaque cellule doit fournir un courant identique. Ainsi, la disposition des cellules et leurs dimensions doivent être adaptées au profil de la lumière incidente du laser. Ce projet vise donc à poursuivre le développement de cette technologie en optimisant la géométrie des convertisseurs de puissance laser interconnectés en série afin de permettre une génération uniforme du courant électrique.

Data-driven simulation of DEVS-driven Digital Twins for smart manufacturing and Industry 4.0

Traditional modelling and simulation involves a human expert to manually design and create simulation models. However, these models quickly become obsolete for systems that continually change, such as smart manufacturing systems. This creates a need to create new simulation models which is difficult and expensive. Data-driven simulation extracts simulation models from data without explicit modelling from an expert. Digital Twins, virtual representations of physical objects, are considered one of the pillars of Industry 4.0. The DEVS formalism is an ideal implementation for the underlying Digital Twin simulation models due to their capability to model heterogeneous and complex systems. However, further research is needed in the development of algorithms to automatically extract the simulation models implemented in Digital Twins. This project focusses on extracting DEVS models using data-driven simulation with motivation in DEVS-driven Digital Twin applications for smart manufacturing and Industry 4.0.

Integrating THz Spectroscopy with Cryogenic Systems for Quantum Material Characterization

This Mitacs Globalink research project is aimed at advancing cryogenic quantum technologies through the development of a Terahertz (THz) spectroscopy test setup compatible with Adiabatic Demagnetization Refrigerators (ADR). The project will leverage the novel capabilities of THz spectroscopy to probe molecular dopants trapped in cryocrystals, enhancing the understanding of quantum materials and their low-energy excitations.

The intern, a postdoctoral researcher specializing in hybrid quantum systems, will join this cutting-edge research effort. Over a 12-week internship, the focus will be on integrating THz spectroscopy with existing ADR systems, optimizing this setup to function at the extremely low temperatures crucial for quantum research.

The research will occur in sophisticated lab environments, providing the intern with access to state-of-the-art THz and cryogenic equipment. This collaboration will not only bolster the intern’s expertise in quantum technologies but also foster international partnerships and knowledge exchange, strengthening Canada’s position at the forefront of quantum research and technology.

Globalink Research Award Application – Internship in Switzerland (May 1 2025 start) – McKinley Van Klei

Standard medical imaging techniques used to diagnose and inform treatment of spinal conditions include X-Ray, computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). These images neglect to capture the in vivo dynamic behavior of the spine during activities of daily living, since patients remain as still as possible to capture clear image. In 2023, 20% of the adult population was reported to be diagnosed with spondylolisthesis, a condition that can cause debilitating low back and leg pain. The diagnostic process and treatment of lumbar degenerative spondylolisthesis (LDS) is controversial and lacking in evidence, however common treatment is spinal decompression or fusion surgery. The purpose of this study is to provide clinically relevant insights into the biomechanical markers of LDS using DBRI, with the goal of improving diagnostics and informing patient-specific treatment plans. Patients diagnosed with LDS will be examined pre- and 6-months-post- op using DBRI, EMG, force measurements, CT, and MRI (target n = 100). DBRI will be conducted while patients perform a dynamic flexion extension motion using the established facilities in the Digital Imaging Centre at sitem-insel. This study will contribute to the “translational musculoskeletal biodynamics” initiative by discovering biomechanical markers and biomechanical profiles unique to LDS using DBRI.

An efficient implementation of a computational camera for smartphones

A camera is a device that captures light from scenes. Over the last century, the evolution of cameras has been truly remarkable. Through this evolution, the underlying camera has been improved by using a better optical lens. However, the new improved optical lenses, have been remained fixed in terms of size and weight which makes it hard to use in portable devices. In contrast to optical trend, according to Moore’s law, the number of transistor in the chip doubles approximately every two years. This leads to a huge improvement in computational devices. The slim smartphones with powerful processors are an example of this improvement. This motivates using more computation rather than better optical equipment in the structure of cameras. This results in a new generation of cameras called computational cameras. This project aims to implement a new computational camera for a smartphone. The new implementation has mainly designed to reduce the blurring effect caused by hand shake or the lens problems. Moreover, the implementation of this project is optimized for a smartphone such that it performs in real time with a low power

Enhancing snoRNA family annotations in the Rfam Database

This project aims to enhance the annotation of small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) in the Rfam database, a key resource for classifying non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs). Rfam groups ncRNAs into families based on evolutionary relationships, using initial manual curation followed by a computational pipeline developed by the Rfam team. SnoRNAs are ncRNAs that guide RNA modification and are linked to diseases like cancer when their functions are disrupted. In vertebrates, many snoRNAs exist in multiple copies, potentially acquiring novel targets or functions, highlighting the need for accurate family classification to understand their regulatory mechanisms. Advancements in experimental and computational methods continue to reveal novel snoRNAs, further emphasizing the importance of updating snoRNA family annotations. This project seeks to expand and refine the Rfam database by identifying and organizing previously unannotated snoRNAs. These updates will improve Rfam’s accuracy, better reflecting snoRNA-specific characteristics and providing the ncRNA community with more reliable datasets for studying snoRNA functions and their disease associations. The improved Rfam snoRNA families will specifically benefit the Scott lab (home institution) by providing new Rfam IDs for unannotated snoRNAs, enriching snoDB – a specialized database of human snoRNAs – and supporting further research into snoRNA diversity and function.

Quantum algorithms for non-adiabatic dynamics

Xanadu’s mission is to make quantum computing useful, through development of quantum hardware, software, and algorithms. One important direction in achieving this goal is identifying problems that can be solved on quantum hardware that are not tractable on classical computers, and then building quantum algorithms for those problems. We expect that eventually we will have access to a device that has a small number of error-corrected logical qubits, with the ability to implement complicated circuits on those qubits. Thus, to get practical use out of all the hardware improvements, it is important to turn our attention to quantum algorithms specifically designed for these early fault-tolerant quantum computers.
One promising direction Xanadu has identified is the simulation of non-adiabatic dynamics. Advancing and extending our recently developed framework for these simulations to cover a broader range of applications is essential to our mission of making quantum computing practically useful. By refining these methods, we aim to unlock new capabilities that leverage early fault-tolerant quantum hardware for problems beyond the reach of classical computation.

Caregiving skills for the engineering profession

This study explores the relationship between caregiving skills and characteristics and the engineering profession. The goal is to understand how caregiving experience contributes to the development of skills that are beneficial in engineering organizations. Interviews and surveys will be conducted to: (1) identify caregiving skills relevant to engineering, (2) explore how these skills are applied in the workplace, and (3) examine whether caregiving experience enhances professional development. The study aims to explore whether caregiving can offer transferable skills that benefit engineering organizations. Additionally, results are intended to support women in engineering, a field where they are underrepresented and often face more intense caregiving responsibilities. This research seeks to contribute to discussions on caregiver support and demonstrate the value of caregiving while working as an engineer. This study also intends to support Engineers Yukon’s continuing professional development program, where caregiving is identified as a professional development activity.