News
Radiation damage or intrinsic material change?
PTB study reveals dose limits for reliable X-ray analysis of battery materials:
X-ray radiation provides insight into the chemical changes in battery materials during battery operation ("operando"), but is also the cause of radiation-generated effects that can superimpose and falsify measurement…
Magnon momentum microscopy: A new window into nanoscale spin-waves
A new type of momentum microscopy makes it possible to image magnons directly in two-dimensional reciprocal space:
An international team lead by the Max Born Institute has developed a new type of momentum microscopy to image magnons — the quanta of collectively excited spins — directly in two-dimensional reciprocal space using…
Dual-comb spectroscopy in the focus of research
A recent overview highlights the principles, advances and future potential of this groundbreaking technology:
Atoms and molecules are the fundamental building blocks of matter. Spectroscopy identifies and quantifies chemical species through the unique spectral fingerprints they imprint on light. Spectroscopy has many…
FBH to present space and quantum technologies at ILA 2026
The focus is on compact technologies designed for reliable operation under demanding conditions:
Ferdinand-Braun-Institut (FBH), based in Berlin, will present recent developments for space and quantum technologies at ILA Berlin 2026. From June 10-14, 2026, the institute will present a broad technology portfolio…
Imaging Ellipsometry for Process Control of Thin-Film Devices
The method developed at HZB enables non-destructive characterisation and quality control of microstructured MXene thin films during device fabrication:
A German–Israeli research team led by Dr. Andreas Furchner has demonstrated how imaging ellipsometry enables non-destructive characterisation and quality control of microstructured MXene thin films during device…
When order gives way to chaos: the turbulent birth of magnetic nanovortices
Research team makes the effect of short electrical pulses on a skyrmion directly visible:
Magnetic switching processes are considered a prime example of controllable physics at the nanometer scale: in certain thin-film systems, a short electrical current pulse is sufficient to reverse the magnetization in…
Real-time analysis of magnetic bilayer systems at BESSY II
Femtoslicing enables ‘snapshots’ of the magnetic state of materials:
Spintronic devices enable data processing with significantly lower energy consumption. They are based on the interaction between ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic layers. Now, a team from Freie Universität Berlin,…
Environmental Chemistry at BESSY II: Radicals in waterways
HZB research group unravels the light-induced formation of hydroxyl radicals from nitrite:
How do radicals form in aqueous solutions when exposed to UV light? This question is important for health research and environmental protection, for example with regard to the overfertilisation of water bodies by…
Smartphone rapid test detects microbiologically contaminated water in less than a minute
BAM research team developed a highly sensitive detection method for urobilin:
Microbiologically contaminated water poses a significant health risk worldwide – especially in areas where laboratories are scarce and rapid testing is crucial. Researchers at the Federal Institute for Materials…
TOPTICA EAGLEYARD expands its global position in the space market
Adlershof-based laser specialist strengthens international presence and scales structures for future space missions:
TOPTICA EAGLEYARD is advancing the expansion of its activities in the global space market. The Berlin-based company, which has contributed high‑performance laser diodes to numerous international missions, is…
Chance encounter in space: JANUS camera captures interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS
ESA's Jupiter probe, JUICE, was unexpectedly perfectly lined up for observations of a comet from deep interstellar space:
The Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) mission, en route to Jupiter on a journey lasting over seven years, was not originally scheduled to conduct scientific operations so early in its voyage. Then, in the summer of…
HU researchers develop molecular clamps controlled by light
The molecular photoswitches use light to adjust mechanical strain, enabling on-demand control of chemical reactions:
Controlling exactly when and where chemical reactions take place remains one of the central challenges in modern chemistry. Heat, mixing, or catalysts typically affect entire systems at once, offering little spatial…
Ultrafast laser pulses bring diamond-based quantum internet closer to reality
Researchers from Berlin have demonstrated a new method for generating single photons in a diamond-based quantum system:
The controlled generation of single photons is an essential element of numerous quantum technology applications, such as quantum networks and quantum computing. A research team from the Integrated Quantum Photonics…
Research team has developed an alternative spectral imaging method
Quantum interference makes MIR spectroscopy possible using simple camera technology:
Mid-infrared (MIR) spectroscopy uses the molecular fingerprints of samples to perform biomedical or environmental analyses without chemical staining or labeling. Highly specific vibrational states of the different…
The research coordinator
Patrick Scheele oversees the scientific direction of Ferdinand-Braun-Institut:
“I wasn’t disappointed,” says Patrick Scheele, looking back on the expectations with which he took up the post of scientific managing director of the Ferdinand-Braun-Institut, Leibniz-Institut für…
Adlershof Innovation Booster
Thanks to AI, new technologies are emerging on campus that are driving scientific excellence and strengthening technological autonomy:
Artificial intelligence is accelerating research and driving innovation cycles. In Adlershof, this is giving rise to new technologies that not only advance scientific excellence but also strengthen the technological…
New ERDF Project for Oxide and Fluoride Crystals for Photonics and Electronics granted to IKZ
Leibniz Institute for Crystal Growth receives millions in EU funding:
Research & Development (R & D) of crystals for photonics & electronics is a crucial precondition to enable economic success for key technologies defined by the “High Tech Agenda Deutschland” (see for details:…
5000th protein structure at BESSY II – Starting point for a COVID drug
HZB team has identified 21 molecules as candidates for the development of antiviral drugs:
Many proteins have a complex architecture that enables biological functions. Molecules can bind to specific sites on a protein and alter its function. A team at HZB has now investigated the Nsp1 protein, which plays a…
Research platform for measurement data from the depths of the universe
Platform developed by HU and DESY makes data stream from the new wide-field telescope at the Vera Rubin Observatory accessible to astrophysicists worldwide:
The universe is full of explosive events – for example, when stars detonate or are torn apart near black holes. Very rarely, about once every hundred years, such events can be observed with the naked eye in the night…
What Zinc concentration in teeth reveals
X-ray methods reveal strong gradients on the Zinc distribution in teeth – these insights could inspire dental medicine:
Teeth are composites of mineral and protein, with a bulk of bony dentin that is highly porous. This structure is allows teeth to be both strong and sensitive. Besides calcium and phosphate, teeth contain trace…