MEMBRE D’HONNEUR 2026

Paula Maria VILARINHO

Laboratory CICECO – Aveiro Institute of Materials

Paula Maria Vilarinho is Associate Professor in the Department of Materials and Ceramic Engineering at
the University of Aveiro and Vice-Director of CICECO – Aveiro Institute of Materials. She graduated in Ceramic
and Glass Engineering from the University of Aveiro and completed her PhD in Materials Science and
Engineering at the same institution in 1994, focusing on relaxor ferroelectric materials. She subsequently expanded her international trajectory through visiting professorships at North Carolina State University (USA) (2001), the University of Sheffield (UK) (2007–2008, 2018), and the University of Texas at Austin (USA) (2015).

Her scientific expertise lies in functional materials, with a primary focus on electroceramics and materials for communications. Investigating electric polarization phenomena from the macroscopic scale down to the nanoscale, her research addresses ferroelectric, piezoelectric, dielectric, and multiferroic oxides, alongside functional polymer composites and biodegradable piezoelectric materials for microelectronics, energy  harvesting, and bio-related applications. Her recent research highlights include low-temperature chemical photoactivation of ferroelectric thin films, sustainable processing via Flash, Cold, and Ultra-Fast High-Temperature Sintering, additive manufacturing of functional ceramics, printed and flexible electronics, and data-driven materials discovery incorporating machine learning. This output comprises over 378 scientific papers and 10 patents, generating more than 9,308 citations, Scopus h-index of 49.

Beyond fundamental research, Professor Vilarinho maintains a strong record of technology transfer and
industrial R&D. She has led over 20 research projects and actively collaborated with industry on alternative sintering technologies, additive manufacturing, printed electronics, and materials optimisation alongside companies such as Costa Verde, Revigrés, Simoldes Plásticos, Indasa, and Altice Labs. Her contribution to
researcher development includes the supervision of 37 doctoral students, 68 master’s students, 22 post-
doctoral researchers, and around 100 industrial projects and internships.

Alongside her research and mentoring, Professor Vilarinho assumes key European and international leadership responsibilities within the materials science community. She serves as President of the Federation of European Materials Societies (FEMS) for the 2026–2027 term, having previously served as Vice-President
(2024–2026) and President of the  Portuguese MaterialsSociety (SPM, 2013–2019). She is an appointed
member of the Industrial Adoption and Implementation Subgroup of the European Technology Board for Advanced Materials and serves as national coordinator for international strategic initiatives such as the UT Austin–Portugal CoLab program in Emerging Technologies. Her contributions have been recognized
with the FCT Award for Excellence in Research, honorary membership of the Serbian Society for Ceramic Materials, and inclusion in key international reference works on distinguished women in ceramic
science and the century of  ferroelectricity.