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In: Energymaterials

My dear reader, I hope you are doing well and have a wonderful sunny day. I am standing on the quay of Lake Michigan in Chicago, acquiring a bit of sun this foggy day.    Today I have some free time for myself… I am thinking about responsibility for the planet, about humanity who made a big step from the uncontrollable usage of the non-renewable resources turning more and more towards the available wind, water and solar energy. The idea of using solar power is so obvious for me! The sun shines every day and it should not die out in the next billions ofRead More →

Jian Ren and Prof. Brian Paul Schmidt in #LINO19

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In: Conference, Energymaterials, International, Students

Science Without Borders: Impressions from the 69th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting (2019) Guestpost by Jian Ren As a doctoral researcher in Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin, I have been offered many opportunities to expand my horizons by working in an optimal international research environment and by participating in international conferences. Recently, I received another gift from HZB – I was nominated and financially supported by HZB to take part in the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings. 580 young scientists meet Nobel Laureates The Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings have become an event of great importance for the exchange between generations of scientists each summer since 1951. In this year, 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, International, Lightsources, Summerstudents

Thermoplastic ionomer materials such as Nafion do have many talents: they can be used as membranes for proton exchange in fuel cells, but they have also attracted attention as shape memory materials: Via external stimuli such as heat or an electric field, it is possible to trigger a change in shapes. Applications in textiles, biomedicine, aerospace, sensors and coatings are possible. Nafion: a membrane with shape memory Nafion is one of those materials: as a membrane in a fuel cell, its high proton conductivity allows a fast pass of hydrogen ions (protons). And its internal shape plays a crucial role. Now a team from Brazil hasRead More →

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In: Energymaterials, Students, Summerstudents

Quantum Mechanics Can Be Useful Too! Nowadays, it seems that quantum mechanics is seen more as “spooky” than practical. Thus, I am here to “de-mystify” some of the science behind a fascinating process that’s yet to be simulated properly. My research group investigates the theory behind what is called Interatomic Coulomb Electron Capture (ICEC). This fascinating universal quantum process is yet to be fully understood, and we are here to change that. Someday, this could be an incredibly useful tool to revolutionize atomic and quantum chemical energy transfers. ICEC In A Nutshell The general process includes 3 main steps that occur simultaneously. We’ve got two atoms, atom A andRead More →

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In: Energymaterials, Summerstudents

Far-sighted hydrogen economy During one of the winter nights, while talking in the interior of Granite House, “well lighted with candles, well warmed with coal, after a good dinner”, the settlers of Jules Verne’s Mysterious Island were discussing about the fact that the coal will be entirely consumed. After a roughly estimation, Cyrus Harding, an engineer of great capabilities, concluded that it would happen “for at least two hundred and fifty or three hundred years.” To everyone’s surprise, when he was asked what they will burn instead of coal, he said: “Water”. “Water” cried Pencroft, “water as a fuel for steamers and engines! water toRead More →

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In: Energymaterials, Students, Summerstudents

In chemistry, working up a synthesis route or a method which leads to the favored product is a challenging, lengthy procedure. Most of the time it is based on the concept “trial and error” and a lot is discovered by coincidence. For instance, the today’s industrial processes hydroformylation and the Czochralski process have their roots in accidental discoveries and very precise observation. Before a synthesis method becomes a large industrial process the synthesis must be optimized in a much smaller scale. That happens in the laboratory and is an odyssey that includes varying different parameters. Chemists refer to their work in the laboratory as “cooking”.Read More →

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In: Energymaterials, Summerstudents

Introduction I hope everyone knows the terms from the title of the post. I thought quite a lot whether it was worth writing them or not. But nevertheless I will explain the meaning of terms. Cryogenic temperatures should be called temperatures below 120 K. Cryogenic devices are those whose actions are based on the use of superconductivity phenomena at very low changes. Further SRF – Superconduction Radio Frequency. Theory In the superconducting photoinjector of bERLinPro the photocathode (electron source) is held at 80 K. During operation the photocathode suffers from heat load due to RF- and laser power. A study was made of heat transportRead More →

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In: Energymaterials, Summerstudents

For already one month I am a part of the Internship Program in the Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin. Upon arriving to The Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin on the first day of my internship I was filled with mixed emotions, most notable of anxiety and excitement. I recall feeling both surprised and honored to have been presented with my own office. Once I had settled into what would be my workspace for the next two months, I was reminded of the feeling I had when studying into my freshman year of my university. It was an intense feeling of both responsibility and accomplishment. Working at The Helmholtz ZentrumRead More →

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In: Energymaterials, Summerstudents

Have you ever been sitting in company, discussing ridiculous stories about your scars and injuries? Probably, yes. Once, I spent a whole evening talking about these funny cases with my friends. However, the story of the scar I got because of a hot radiator, was outshined by a guy who has gotten a serious burn while he was sleeping with a laptop on his knees. That day I didn’t believe his story, but later I noticed that occasionally my electronic devices heated up incredibly. “Nothing is perfect”, I thought and forgot about this episode for a while. A couple years later, I arrived in aRead More →