The Labex is organized in such a way that the scientific challenges briefly described above and other issues that are not foreseen today will be actively addressed. Some unique features of the Labex are: the existence of a large network of industrial companies that shows a strong interest for the project a multidisciplinary approach combined to a multi-scale approach (from nano to macro). One of the strengths of the SEAM project is indeed due to the close and unique industrial-academic relationship that is being established with a new industrial centre that is being constructed today in the north of Paris, at Le Bourget. Engineers from EADS and Eurocopter will be implanted at Le Bourget in the near future and will work with academic researchers.

Structural materials will be first concerned, and rapidly the collaboration will be extended to functional materials. Besides this Centre, Centres of competitivity such as ASTech, Mov’eo or Systematics also located in the Paris region, and drain industrial partners. Some of them are already or will be collaborating with the SEAM researchers (Saint Gobain, Thalès, DGA, Alstom, ...). Another unique feature and strength of the SEAM labex is its multidisciplinarity. Each laboratory develops high quality international research and leadership, but new innovative developments will stem from interdisciplinary. In the collaboration of nanoscience/functional materials researchers with structural materials and process researchers, in a multi-scale approach, projects will be developed for complex applications where materials have to insure both structural integrity under stringent conditions and one or several advanced functionalities. Indeed, in these fields, the research strategies, the investigation tools and equipment, the surface treatments are often similar. Moreover, whatever the material under study, its physical properties, its fabrication or transformation processes, a multi-scale approach is always needed with precise characterization and modeling. SEAM researchers will thus, for any device, system or application they will imagine, be able to "choose" a (nano)material, to choose a process to elaborate the adapted material, to "define" the characterization or modeling tools for the process involved and the (nano)material, and finally to "test" the device or system performance in which the nano material is integrated. How we will manage to undertake these projects is detailed in the scientific part. The scientific project includes 3 axes and several sub-axes. The first axis, "electronic structure-based functional materials" is related to many applications in electronics and photonics. The second one is related to "structural materials" and their mechanical properties. The third one "modelling and characterization" is transversal. The number of researchers from the SEAM laboratories implied in a given field is reported in the table below. Several technological platforms gathering experimental techniques will be used by the whole SEAM labex consortium.

The chosen steering way is project and performance driving. The coordinator, responsible towards universities, CNRS, PRES and partners, define the objectives, set up the budget, follow the Labex activities based on result indicators.

 Brigitte Bacroix, (PACTM, LSPM, UP13), is a CNRS Senior Research Scientist (DRCE) in Mechanics of Materials. She graduated from Ecole des Mines, Nancy (1979), obtained a Master Eng. and PhD from McGill University in Canada (1986) and an HDR from P13 University (1995). She was awarded the Grand Prix Pechiney by the Académie des Sciences in 2000 and the Sainte-Claire Deville Medal by SF2M in 2009. Her research topics concern the experimental study and modeling of the links between the macroscopic anisotropy of the plastic behavior of polycrystalline materials and their microstructure state, mainly in relation to plasticity and recrystallization. Her scientific production includes 170 publications in peerreviewed journals (H factor = 26). She has assumed (co-)responsibility for 23 industrial collaboration contracts and 5 ANR or FUI research projects since 2000, she has been advisor and co-advisor of 31 PhD students and 9 postdocs and currently supervises 4 PhD students.

 
Christian Ricolleau (MeANS, MPQ, UP7) is professor at MPQ lab. He has a solid know-how in material science and he has well-recognized skills in electron microscopy. He developed a real expertise in the study of the growth, structural and thermodynamical properties in metal alloy nanoparticles and in specific and reliable electron microscopy technique for nanomaterial analysis. His research topics concern the order/disorder phase transformation in nanoalloys, the growth and structural properties of bi-metallic 18 nanostructures, HRTEM, quantitative and environmental electron microscopy. Since 2008, he directs the Nanoalloy GDR (CNRS 3182). He has been a member of the national CNRS committee of the 5th section in between 2008 and 2012. Between 2011 and 2013, he has been the president of the scientific council of CRMD. In 2014 he has been appointed member of the scientific council in Labex iMUST. His scientific production includes 83 publications in peer-reviewed journals (H factor = 29, 2700 citations), 11 publications in proceedings, 3 books (1 as associate editor), 3 book chapters, 4 patents, 90 national and international conference papers (26 invitations between 2006 and 2016).
 
Francesco Amendola (UP13), is engineer for valorization since 2017 for the Labex SEAM.

They are assisted by a steering committee, and a scientific committee composed of internationally recognized experts, industrials and research group managers providing prospective analysis and scientific advices.