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In: Energymaterials

Many at HZB will still remember him. Between 1982 and 2008, Professor Helmut Tributsch played a key role in establishing solar energy research at the former Hahn-Meitner Institute. He authored over 450 publications in renowned journals and several books. Since retiring, he has been living on a farm in Italy, immersing himself in the questions that have preoccupied him since his student days. Antonia Rötger spoke with the physicist. Professor Tributsch, in your new popular science book, you criticise how modern physics deals with the concept of time. Why? Physics has made a fundamental mistake: it has ignored the irreversible, energy-driven time that we experience,Read More →

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In: Careers, International, Science Communication

Moses Oladele Alfred came to HZB on a Georg Forster Research Fellowship. The Nigerian chemist is an expert in low-cost materials for remediating environmental damage. But scientific expertise alone is not enough, he says: You also have to convince policymakers. He found support in a special program, training african scientists in communication and knowledge transfer. Read the full interview here >Read More →

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In: PhDlife, Students

Manuel Vasquez Montoya and Mayara da Silva are two PhD students at HZB. They have been selected this summer to participate in the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting and came back with new ideas and contacts. Among the highlights were the walks with Nobel Laureates in a small group. In this short interview they resume their experiences.Read More →

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In: Science Communication, Summerstudents

Some students overcame big obstacles to join the International Summer Students Programme at HZB: Traveling 12 hours by bus across the Andes to obtain a visa in Bogotá, borrowing money from here and there to pay the fees for formalities, and maintaining hope when the visa was delayed. One student visited the embassy every day for two weeks, leaving a yellow envelope with a polite reminder each time. And even with a visa, problems could arise last minute. Another student was already at the airport when he was denied boarding because he did not have a return ticket yet. He called our HZB colleagues whoRead More →

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In: Careers, Conference, PhDlife, Science Communication

Even at scientific conferences, audiences sometimes appreciate a drawing that summarises complex issues in an original way. But what if you don’t have the time or experience to draw such illustrations yourself? Faidra Amargianou simply asks ChatGPT to create surprisingly well-functioning cartoons that convey the main messages of her work. Here she explains how she does it. Faidra is a PhD student in Tristan Petit’s group at HZB. In her final year, she is currently writing her thesis. When she presents her results, whether at conferences or for a press release, she sometimes makes cartoons to communicate the main messages. Question: Do you have aRead More →

Two doctoral students in front of BESSY cafeteria entrance

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In: PhDlife

They could be busy enough inside the lab, but they are active as well in the HZB DocTeam and in Helmholtz-Juniors (HeJus), which represents the interests of all doctoral researchers across Helmholtz Association (HGF). At the recent HeJu-retreat Namrata Sharma was elected as vice speaker of the Events Team and Thomas Gries as vice speaker of the Working Conditions Team. A short conversation about what, how and why?Read More →

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In: International, Summerstudents

Every year, a small team at HZB organises the International Summer Students Programme. This summer, 13 young people came from Kenya, Colombia, Serbia and other countries. At the final conference, all students presented their projects with flash talks and posters. The best poster and the most intriguing blog post were elected – a difficult process, since the quality was really very good.Read More →

Portrait of Tabitha Amollo

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In: BESSYBeamlineScientists, Conference, Energymaterials, International, International Collaboration, PhDlife, Science Communication

Dr. Tabitha A. Amollo is a researcher and lecturer at Egerton University in Njoro in Kenya. She holds a Ph.D. in physics from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Her research interests focus on developing cutting-edge nanomaterials for energy conversion devices including graphene nanomaterials. She published a number of articles in reputable journals. At Egerton University, she is the head of a young team to explore dye-sensitive solar cells, she is a chairperson of the Physics Department, and she coordinates the undergraduate program and gives lectures to undergraduates and postgraduate physics students. Here in Germany, there are not many women in physics. How is itRead More →

Portrait picture of Nancy Ochiba.

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In: BESSYBeamlineScientists, Energymaterials, International, International Collaboration, Science Communication

In April, Nancy Ochiba was a guest at HZB in Berlin doing research on nanoparticles. “I made good use of the time,” says the young chemist from Nairobi, Kenya. First she took part in the Photon School for young scientists, then she joined the lab at the Institute for Solar Fuels as a guest researcher. “Here I can benefit from technology that is not available to me at the Kenya University of Technology. For example, I have now examined my samples under a scanning electron microscope.” Research for a better future Nancy is in the first year of her PhD. What motivates her? She wantsRead More →

A portrait picture of Ulli Schade

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In: Careers, Diversity

Dr Ulrich Schade has been with BESSY II from the beginning and has built up and further developed the IRIS beamline. A wide variety of materials are studied there with infrared or terahertz radiation, from biological cells to superconductors to archaeological finds. Today, he will talk with us about respect, diversity, and a good life in a collaborative environment. What is particularly important to you when it comes to diversity? In my environment, i.e. in research, this is not really a problem. I am very open about it and have never seen diversity as negative: Everyone has the same rights. But of course, discrimination happensRead More →