Valeria Bragaglia

Dr. Valeria Bragaglia is a physicist specialized in condensed matter, focusing on developing materials and devices for next-generation computing. Since 2020, she has been a permanent Research Scientist in the Neuromorphic Devices and Systems at IBM Research-Zurich, where she joined as a Post-doctoral Researcher in February 2018.

Her current research centers on hardware implementations of brain-inspired computing concepts for efficient learning and problem solving. She is responsible for advancing materials and tuning their physical properties to build high-performance devices and circuit architectures, such as networks of memristors. Her technology portfolio includes Oxide-based Resistive RAM (ReRAM) and Oscillators, Phase Change Memories (PCM), Ferroelectric RAM, and Electrochemical RAM (ECRAM). She is currently leading the efforts on ReRAM development, encompassing thin film growth, characterization, and integration into novel devices and circuits that exploit these materials' unique properties.

In 2024, Dr. Bragaglia was honored with the CNR-IMM Early Career Award in recognition of her significant advancements in material science and analog memories, groundbreaking contributions to analog neuromorphic computing, and exemplary leadership in interdisciplinary innovation.

In addition to her research, Dr. Bragaglia serves as an IBM Research Outreach and Diversity Ambassador. In this role, she is actively involved in fostering collaboration across academia, industry, and society, while also promoting diversity in STEM fields.

Since November 2024, she has held a part-time Associate Professor position at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) in the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, contributing to the Integrated Circuits and Nanocomputing Research Lab to advance innovations in materials and devices critical for the future of information technology.

Dr. Bragaglia earned her Master’s degree in Physics in 2013 from the University of Tor Vergata in Rome (Italy). During her final year, she conducted research at the Paul-Drude Institute for Solid State Electronics in Berlin (Germany) on phase change materials for memory applications, which became the basis of her master’s thesis.

In 2017, she obtained her Ph.D. in Physics from the Humboldt University in Berlin, working jointly at the Paul-Drude Institute and Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie (BESSYII). Her Ph.D. thesis focused on the epitaxial growth and ultrafast dynamic investigations of GeSbTe alloys and GeTe/Sb2Te3 superlattices.

INVITED TALKS/LECTURES

• Invited talk at NanoInnovation2022. Workshop on Physics for sustainable development, Italy. Brain Inspired Computing for the post Von-Neumann Era
• Invited talk at Jülich-Aachen Neuromorphic Computing Day 2022, Germany. Engineered metal-oxide/HfOx ReRAM devices for efficient neuromorphic computing
• Invited lecturer at Ettore Majorana Foundation affiliated school of physics 2022, Italy. Non-conventional computing: material and device engineering for neuromorphic applications
• Invited talk at Physics Colloquium at University of Tor Vergara 2023, Italy. A brain inspired computing approach: The role of material science
• Invited talk, MRS Spring Meeting 2023, US. Mitigating Analog Memory Non-Idealities for In-Memory Inference and Learning of DNN
• Invited talk at E\PCOS 2023, Italy. Exploiting Phase-Change-Material Physics for Unconventional Computing: VO2-based Oscillators and Phase-Change-Memories for Neuronal & Synaptic functions
• Invited talk at CMD30-FISMAT 2023, Italy. The role of material science in neuromorphic computing
• Invited talk at CIMTEC 2024, Italy. CMOS Compatible Materials and Devices for beyond von Neumann
• Invited lecturer at Semiconductor Summer School, Eindhoven University 2024. Materials and Devices for non von Neumann Computing Approaches
• Invited talk at Brazilian MRS Fall Meeting 2024, Brazil. Advancements in Memristor Device Development: From Material Stack Optimization to Physical Modelling

PROFESSIONAL ENGAGEMENTS

• MATSUS Spring 2025 Symposium Organizer
• 2024 & 2026 Organizer of the “Unconventional Computing Workshop". Ettore Majorana Foundation affiliated school of physics, Erice
• MRS Fall 2022 and 2024 Symposium Organizer
• SPS annual meeting 2024 Symposium Organizer
• Guest editor of special issue in Frontiers of Materials 2024. “Advanced nanomaterials and devices for brain-inspired and quantum computing”
• 2023 Board member of the Swiss physical society (SPS). Lead of the “physics & industry section"

EUROPEAN UNION FUNDED PROJECTS

• PHASTRAC, “Phase Transition Materials for Energy Efficient Edge Computing”. WP leader and students' supervisor.
• etn-MANIC, " Materials for Neuromorphic Circuits". WP co-PI and supervisor of an early stage researcher.
• MemScales, "Memory technologies with multi-scale time constants for neuromorphic architectures". WP contributor and supervisor of PhD and master's students.
• PlaCMOS. WP contributor and master student's supervisor.

IN THE NEWS

• The chips of tomorrow may well take inspiration from the architecture of our brains
• Outreach Event Organizer “Women at the Forefront of Information Technologies”. Mentoring event for 25 STEM female students at IBM.
• Women in systems research transforming AI hardware.
• Panelist for MRS event “Women in Materials Science and Engineering Panel: A Diversity, Equality and Inclusion webinar”