On the first day of the visit, the Foundation’s representatives familiarized themselves with the university’s research infrastructure located in Rostov‑on‑Don. The delegation visited the Research and Technology Center for Neurotechnologies, the Competence Center “Soil Bioengineering,” the Faculty of Chemistry, the laboratories of the International Institute of Intelligent Materials, as well as the Research Institute of Physical and Organic Chemistry.

Special attention was paid to the Center for Micro- and Low-Volume Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, where the results of the strategic technological project “Technologies for Accelerated Development and Transfer of Strategically Important Materials to Micro- and Low-Volume Production,” implemented within the framework of the “Priority‑2030” program, were presented.

In Taganrog, the delegation visited the Advanced Engineering School, which was launched at Southern Federal University in 2022. The first stop on the route was the anechoic chamber at the Center for Engineering Development “Microwave Technologies of Electrodynamic Structures,” which is unique among Russian universities. The equipment of the “Devices, Complexes and Systems” division of the Advanced Engineering School at SFedU makes it possible not only to design antenna systems but also to carry out the assembly of developed electronic products and microwave devices with a high degree of integration at the module level, followed by sealing.

Next, Alexey Voronov and Alexey Razumovsky were told about the achievements of the Southern Federal University’s Research and Innovation School in the field of nanotechnology, microelectronics, and neuromorphic electronics. After that, the representatives of the FAR were shown the developments of the “Cyber‑Physical Platforms” division: the laboratory for autonomous groups of UAVs for agricultural purposes and the laboratory for designing onboard systems of robotic complexes, which was opened jointly with the Foundation for Advanced Research. The staff of the Scientific Research Institute of the Southern Federal University spoke in detail about the correlation extreme navigation system (CENS) for unmanned aerial vehicles, the control system for a group of autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicles for seismic exploration of the Arctic shelf, and the biohybrid system for humanitarian demining.

"Southern Federal University is a modern scientific and technological center that performs research in popular areas using state—of‑the-art scientific equipment. SFedU research groups and competence centers are recognized leaders in the country and ensure the successful implementation of the Foundation's projects and pre—projects. In turn, the Foundation intends to actively develop cooperation with the university in the future, consistently expanding joint work in promising scientific areas,” noted Alexey Voronov, head of the Center for the Development of Promising Materials Science at the FAR.

It is important that Southern Federal University, with its unique scientific and technical base that enables the university to carry out cutting‑edge fundamental research and receive well‑deserved recognition in many modern scientific fields, does not limit itself to research alone but also actively implements projects aimed at the practical implementation of the results obtained, in cooperation with leading domestic industrial partners (we have seen specific examples of such projects in each of the centres presented). And this is an important component of our partnership, in which the Foundation sees its task as also being to develop and bring the results of joint projects to the commercial market together with the university and in collaboration with industry players,” said Alexey Razumovsky, head of the Product and Partnership Development Department at the FAR.  

“For SFedU, partnership with the FAR is not just about working together, but a strategically significant direction for development. The implemented set of joint projects has allowed the university to accumulate deep expertise in finding answers to large‑scale scientific challenges.” It is important to emphasize that the FAR is one of the few domestic organizations that systematically work on over‑the‑horizon solutions capable of having a decisive impact on ensuring the security and defence capability of the state.

The scope of interaction between SFedU and the FAR covers key technological areas, including neurotechnologies and robotic systems. At the same time, the implementation of SFedU’s strategic technological project in the field of bio‑hybrid systems within the framework of the university’s “Priority” programme is possible thanks to the unique expert support from the Fund,” SFedU Rector Inna Shevchenko stressed.