Portrait picture of Nomi Sorgenfrei

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In: Careers, Diversity, International, PhDlife, Science Communication, Students

Physicist Dr Nomi Sorgenfrei develops methods and instruments for research with X-ray light at BESSY II at HZB and investigates catalytically active thin films herself. A conversation about privileges, diversity at work, and intersectional forms of discrimination. What is particularly important to you when it comes to diversity? The appreciation of all people with their different backgrounds, whether cultural, religious or gender. We all just want to have a good life and contribute to society. And it is very good when people with different perspectives contribute. At what points in your work does diversity play a role? Very practically in the daily encounter with peopleRead More →

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Ideally, when research teams submit a particularly important paper, they share it with the comms team. Then it is usually my turn to take over and write a science highlight. It’s a short, highly simplified text, optimised for quick and easy reading. Publications of 30 or more pages are condensed into one page, leaving out a lot, however the motivation and relevance of the research should come across clearly. Of course, our science news also end up on many other websites and platforms, additionally we distribute them through different channels and ensure dissemination. It is difficult to determine exactly how often they are accessed there.Read More →

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In: Energymaterials

A group of 14 volunteers gathered one week on Zoom. From morning coffee until late in the night, they tackled intricate problems and worked out great solutions based on machine learning for digital twins of batteries or for predicting cracks in materials. “This year, we had the most successful hackathon so far, it was incredible,” says HZB data scientist Gregor Hartmann, who initiated the Hackathon. Many problems in research require a deep understanding of the material as well state of the art knowledge in methods of artificial intelligence. “You need this very close collaboration between the domain scientists and the data scientists, says Gregor Hartmann,Read More →

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In: International, Lightsources

A photostory at the end of this text reports about a special workshop at BESSY II. It was mid of november, in the night from sunday to monday, when a couple of accelerator scientists from MAX IV, BESSY II, CERN, KARA at KIT and DELTA from TU Dortmund gathered in the control room of BESSY II. They wanted to explore the so called two orbit or TRIBS modus in which one synchrotron could deliver two different sorts of light pulses. But let’s start with a short introduction: A Synchrotron Lightsource is a wonderful toolbox for doing research: it produces brilliant light pulses mostly in theRead More →

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In: Careers, Energymaterials

Adopting the reader’s perspective might help to set your proposal into a broader context and suggest relevant potential impact Some weeks ago, EU expert Seán McCarthy gave a workshop at HZB entitled “How to Write a Competitive Proposal for Horizon 2020”. The lecture hall was packed with scientists waiting for instructions and McCarthy delivered plenty. “The secret is understanding the evaluation process”, McCarthy pointed out. In other words: Put yourself into the shoes of the evaluators who will read your proposal and make the decisions. Peer reviewers want facts at a glance, details by further reading Scientific experts who may not be native English speakersRead More →

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In: Energymaterials, Lightsources

Nanoparticles are tiny, really tiny. Only a fraction of a micrometer or some nanometers in size. And only some thousands of molecules strong,  their properties can differ dramatically from those of their larger cousins. Titaniumdioxide, a whitish powder, can form such nanoparticles. In water, these nanoparticles can act as catalysts, when excited with light. and facilitate water splitting or water remediation. However, what happens exactly when TiO2 and water get into contact and which impact this is having on the electronic structure of TiO2 remained in the dark: it is very tricky to probe nanoparticle–water interface experimentally and to observe changes. Soft X-rays at BESSYRead More →