by EH
Tucked away on the karst plateau just outside the city center, inside the tree-lined campus of the Area Science Park, a laser lab with a long name and a small footprint is quietly changing the future of materials science.
Founded in 2013, the Sum-Frequency Generation Laser Spectroscopy Lab, or SFG–VISpLab, is part of the University of Trieste’s Department of Physics and operates inside the National Research Council’s Institute of Materials Workshop (CNR-IOM). Over time, it has grown into one of the city’s standout scientific facilities—part of a wider ecosystem of excellence that has earned Trieste its reputation as Italy’s city of science.
Led by Dr. Erik Vesselli, a professor of experimental physics, the lab specializes in a technique few others in the world can replicate: nonlinear optical spectroscopy using laser sources. This allows researchers to study matter at the atomic level, particularly at the surfaces where chemical and physical reactions unfold.
“Our mission is to design and characterize new materials that mimic the behavior of complex natural molecules like enzymes,” Dr. Vesselli said in an interview at the lab. “By doing so, we can help develop more sustainable solutions in fields like energy storage, solar technology, and next-generation electronics.”
These biomimetic materials—engineered to imitate nature—are considered crucial for a more energy-efficient future. And this past year, the Trieste team took a major leap forward: they built a custom molecular electrospray instrumentthat allows them to assemble artificial two-dimensional materials, essentially recreating the architecture of biological systems in crystal form.
Using this tool, the researchers succeeded in synthesizing a graphene-based material that mimics the unique behavior of vitamin B12, a complex molecule essential to human health.
“It’s a breakthrough,” Dr. Vesselli said. “We’ve managed to capture in two dimensions the essence of a biological molecule that’s incredibly hard to replicate. The implications go well beyond basic research.”
The lab’s work is far from isolated. It operates in close collaboration with international partners, Italy’s National Research Council, and fellow institutions at Sistema Trieste, a tight-knit scientific network that includes Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste, the nearby particle accelerator.
Originally funded by Italy’s Ministry of University and Research and supported by local and international foundations, the lab has recently received backing from the Friuli Venezia Giulia regional government, which sees the work as key to the region’s innovation strategy.
For those of us who live in Trieste, it’s not unusual to pass physicists on the piazza or overhear conversations about subatomic particles on the tram. But sometimes, what’s happening behind the scenes—on a quiet hillside above the Adriatic—is just as extraordinary as the city’s view.
