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January
Annual EBM Update Meeting held at MPZPM
Today, the MPZPM hosted its first research highlight with the EBM Update Meeting 2025. Scientists from various disciplines discussed the latest research in the field of brain mechanics and engaged in a lively scientific exchange to foster a deeper understanding.
MPG General Works Council Committee holds meeting at MPL
The members of the Max Planck Society´s General Works Council Committee (GBR) from nine Max Planck Institutes came to the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) for a two-day meeting. Scientists at MPL did not want to miss this opportunity to introduce their basic research to the…
Behind the Light
Lights off – movie on! Not so with the documentary film “TRACING LIGHT – The Magic of Light,” which the filmmaker Thomas Riedelsheimer shot at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, among other places. Light takes the leading role and guides the viewer through its complex world, in which…
The Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light is now coming to the cinema: TRACING LIGHT – die Magie des Lichts
The award-winning filmmaker Thomas Riedelsheimer spent two years following scientists and artists who have dedicated themselves to working with light. Prof. Daniele Faccio and his Extreme Light Group at the University of Glasgow, the artist duos Semiconductor and Brunner/Ritz, Dr. Pascal Del'Haye's…
December
University – and then? Students gain insights into AI research at MPL
Artificial intelligence (AI) can be found in many areas today, from tools such as voice assistants and smart home systems to decision-making in relation to different therapeutic approaches in medicine. A group of students from the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) visited the…
10,000 times faster than traditional methods: new computational framework automatically discovers experimental designs in microscopy
For human researchers, it takes many years of work to discover new super-resolution microscopy techniques. The number of possible optical configurations of a microscope — for example, where to place mirrors or lenses — is enormous. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light…
Jochen Guck awarded Leopoldina's Greve Prize
Three of the world's leading scientists in the field of cancer physics are to receive the 2024 Greve Prize from the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina for their outstanding research in the fields of natural sciences, medicine and engineering. Among them is Prof. Dr. Jochen Guck, Director…
Birgit Stiller awarded grant by the European Research Council for her research project “Sound-Computing”
Using optoacoustic neural networks to take artificial intelligence (AI) to the next level. This is the ambitious goal of the “SOUND-PC” research project for which Prof. Birgit Stiller, Leader of the Research Group “Quantum Optoacoustics” at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) and…
November
Markéta Kubánková honored with “For Women in Science” award
Markéta Kubánková from the Guck Division at Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light / Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin is one of four outstanding young female scientists to be honored with this year's “For Women in Science” award.
Ytterbium thin-disk lasers pave the way for sensitive detection of atmospheric pollutants
Alongside carbon dioxide, methane is a key driver of global warming. To detect and monitor the climate pollutants in the atmosphere precisely, scientists at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) have developed an advanced laser technology. A high-power ytterbium thin-disk laser…
Second 'Machine Learning for Quantum Technologies' workshop attracts international scientists
In November, the second workshop of ‘Machine Learning for Quantum Technologies’ took place at the MPL in Erlangen, as a follow-up to the first event in 2019. Among the guests and speakers were numerous leading international experts who have dedicated themselves to the topic of machine learning and…
MPL scientists find a new way of entangling light and sound
For a wide variety of emerging quantum technologies, such as secure quantum communications and quantum computing, quantum entanglement is a prerequisite. Scientists at the Max-Planck-Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) have now demonstrated a particularly efficient way in which photons can be…
October
Photonics100 – Birgit Stiller honored as one of the leading innovators of photonics
The Photonics100 list for 2025 was published recently. Among the top innovators in photonics featured in the list is Prof. Dr. Birgit Stiller. She is head of the research group ›Quantum Optoacoustics‹ at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL).
Better collaboration between PhD students at the MPG: PhDnet participants from Stuttgart visit MPL
Over 30 PhD candidates from the Max Planck Institutes for Intelligent Systems (MPI-IS) and for Solid State Research (MPI-FKF) in Stuttgart visited the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL). The meeting was an opportunity for the students to exchange ideas with each other and to get to…
Nomination sought for the position of Director at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light
The Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) expects to have an opening for a director and scientific member of the Max Planck Society (MPG) in the general area of the science of light.
"Machine Learning for Quantum Technologies": Workshop at MPL
This fall there will be a 3.5 day in-person workshop at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL). It is called "Machine Learning for Quantum Technologies" and will take place from November 5 to November 8, 2024.
Understanding the physics of cancer, preventing metastases: Jochen Guck receives the Leopoldina Greve Prize
In honour of his groundbreaking insights into the movement of tumour cells, Professor Dr Jochen Guck from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) in Erlangen has received the 2024 Greve Prize from the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina together with Professor Dr Josef Käs…
Femtosecond-fieldoscopy accesses molecules fingerprints at near-infrared spectral range
In a breakthrough that could revolutionise biomarker detection, researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light have developed a novel technique called ‘femtosecond-fieldoscopy’. This method enables the precise measurement of minute liquid quantities, down to the micromolar level,…
DLS talk by Gregory D. Scholes: “Coherence Phenomena and Quantum-Like States”
The Distinguished Lecturer Series (DLS) continued in September with the lecture “Coherence Phenomena and Quantum-Like States” by Gregory D. Scholes. This series brings leading minds in all fields relevant to the science of light to Erlangen. The speakers present their research to a broad audience,…
ISRB Rising Star Award 2024 goes to Daniel Wehner
Daniel Wehner has been decorated with the RISING STAR AWARD by the International Society for Regenerative Biology (ISRB). The prize honors early-career scientists charting new directions in regenerative biology and whose scientific contributions will have a lasting impact on research in the field.…
Nanoprinting Quantum Emitters for Integrated Nanophotonics
Organic dye molecules play an important role in various areas of science and technology, ranging from pigments and lasers to advanced super-resolution microscopy techniques for examining biological samples. In the lab of Professor Vahid Sandoghdar at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light…
Unprecedentedly bright quantum light generates high harmonics
Quantum optics and high harmonic generation (HHG) have historically been extremely prolific research areas with little or no overlap. This is because, until very recently, quantum light was too weak to drive nonlinear effects beyond the perturbative regime. It could not enable HHG – a strong-field…
September
Physics directed towards the medicine of tomorrow: the new Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin was officially opened
The three-day celebrations to mark the opening of the new Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin in Erlangen culminated in a ceremony on September 20th, 2024, attended by around 120 invited guests. Addresses from the Bavarian Minister President Dr. Markus Söder and the State Ministers Hubert…
The opening ceremony of the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin in pictures
On 20 September 2024, the new Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin, Erlangen was opened in the presence of The Bavarian Minister-President Dr. Markus Söder and the State Ministers Hubert Aiwanger and Markus Blume, as well as numerous prominent guests from the fields of science, society and…
New impetus for medicine: interdisciplinary research center opening ceremony takes place on 20 September
Numerous guests of honor including Dr. Markus Söder (Minister President of Bavaria), Hubert Aiwanger (Minister of State for Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy) and Markus Blume (Minister of State for Science and the Arts), Nobel Prize winners from the USA and Germany and renowned…
Fighting cancer with light – Leonhard Möckl fills professorship in Nano-Optical Imaging and researches new cancer therapies
At the medical faculty of the Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) a new professorship in Nano-Optical Imaging has been established. Since 1st September 2024 it has been occupied by Prof. Dr. Leonhard Möckl. It will be the first professorship to move into the new research building…
Hanieh Fattahi receives ERC Consolidator Grant to advance ‘Label-free microscopy’ research
Dr. Hanieh Fattahi from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) is delighted to have been awarded the prestigious ERC Consolidator Grant and will receive around two million euros in funding over a period of five years. The head of the ‘Femtosecond Fieldoscopy’ research group will…
1.5 million euros in funding for Mario Krenn's research into artificial intelligence in physics
Researcher Dr. Mario Krenn is developing artificial intelligence (AI) to complement the ingenuity and creativity of human researchers. The researcher at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen has now been awarded an ERC Grant worth 1.5 million euros with the aim of…
August
For a new understanding of life: young international scientists present their pioneering visions
At a distinguished science symposium, 14 young international scientists presented their current research at the interface of physics and medicine.
Always worth a visit: Science-enthusiastic school classes enjoy unique insights into the work at MPL
Not a trace of dusty theory and old-fashioned experiments: during their visit to the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL), the tenth grade students from Emil-von-Behring-Gymnasium in Spardorf could see first-hand that modern basic research follows a shared characteristic of both…
Research on solar lasers at MPL receives funding from Europe-wide APACE project
Dr. Hanieh Fattahi, independent leader of the research group “Femtosecond Fieldoscopy”, and her team at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen are aiming to develop a new type of solar laser. The bio-inspired sunlight-pumped laser, based on photosynthetic-complexes is capable…
MPL Board of Trustees welcomes new members
The Board of Trustees of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light welcomed new members at this year's summer conference: Barbara Hahlweg, journalist and moderator ZDF from Erlangen and Dr. Wilhelm Kaenders, founder and CTO of TOPTICA Photonics AG and Dr. Markus Wittmann, Ministerial…
Two exciting DLS talks in July: MPL welcomes Isabelle Staude, Jena and Tracy Northup, Innsbruck
The Distinguished Lecturer Series (DLS) at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light was recently continued with two renowned guests. Prof. Dr. Isabelle Staude from the Friedrich Schiller University Jena and Prof. Dr. Tracy Northup from the University of Innsbruck inspired the audience with…
July
Strong light-matter coupling with sugar-coated metamaterials
An international team of scientists has developed a method for confining light inside an organic material. The researchers from the joint Max Planck-University of Ottawa Centre for Extreme and Quantum Photonics and the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light have designed a device which can…
Nobel Laureate Meeting 2024
More than 650 young scientists enjoyed an invitation to the 73rd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting this year – including five researchers from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light. They were given the unique opportunity to exchange ideas with 37 Nobel Laureates and many other colleagues.
From an idea to an application: Nano Innovation Award for MPL doctoral student Cornelia Holler
The Center for NanoScience (CeNS) at the Ludwigs-Maximilian-Universität in Munich (LMU) has honored Cornelia Holler, PhD student at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, with the first prize of the Nano Innovation Award. The award was presented to the scientist from the Nano-Optics…
Neural networks made of light
Scientists propose a new way of implementing a neural network with an optical system which could make machine learning more sustainable in the future. The researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light have published their new method in Nature Physics, demonstrating a method much…
Physicist Markéta Icha Kubánková awarded Hermann Neuhaus Prize
The Max Planck Society (MPS) has awarded the Hermann Neuhaus Prize to Markéta Icha Kubánková, a postdoctoral researcher at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) and the Max-Planck-Institut für Physik und Medizin (MPZPM). The prize, worth 25,000 euros, recognizes excellent postdocs…
June
"What is a physicist doing in biology and medicine?" – Jochen Guck gives the opening speech at the annual meeting of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
On June 27th and 28th, the annual meeting of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation will take place. Professor Jochen Guck, Director at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL), has been invited to give the keynote lecture at the opening ceremony, which will also be broadcast live.
A LIQUID CRYSTAL SOURCE OF PHOTON PAIRS
Spontaneous parametric down-conversion (SPDC), as a source of entangled photons, is of great interest for quantum physics and quantum technology, but so far it could be only implemented in solids. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) and Jozef Stefan Institute in…
May
LIGHT – A Multifaceted Phenomenon
Under the title “LIGHT a Multifaceted Phenomenon”, the MPL celebrated this year's International Day of Light with a two-part lecture series.
Guiding Trojan Beams Using Lagrange Points: Professor Mercedeh Khajavikhan gives lecture at MPL
In May, we welcomed Professor Mercedeh Khajavikhan from the University of Southern California. She visited the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light as a speaker in our Distinguished Lecturer Series (DLS). In this series, we present international thought leaders in the science of light, who…
New insights into the interaction of femtosecond lasers with living tissue
Nonlinear light microscopy has revolutionized our ability to observe and understand complex biological processes. However, light can also damage living matter. Yet, the mechanism behind the irreversible perturbation of cellular processes by intense light remains poorly understood. To address this…
With Benoit Ladoux, the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin wins an additional Humbold-Professor and expands the scope of its research
How cells perceive physical changes in their environment, process this information and react accordingly remains largely unexplored. Since May, physicist Professor Benoit Ladoux and his research group 'Tissue mechanobiology' have been investigating the role of mechanical constraints and force…
'Weird' statistics of electrons ejected by intense quantum light
Photon-number distributions of various light sources have been studied extensively. However, little is known about the statistical distribution of electrons emitted under the effect of intense light. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) and…
April
Awaken enthusiasm for the science of light: visitors take a discovery tour through MPL on Girls'Day 2024
On Girls'Day 2024 at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, 15 science-loving girls experienced first-hand how scientists research light. The visitors aged 12 to 15 met female researchers in leadership positions, took on the role of a scientist in the fiber optic studio, observed…
Tracking the dynamics of biomolecules with optofluidic antennas
In order to better understand fundamental processes in life science at the molecular level, the precise observation of single molecule dynamics is of utmost interest. However, current methodologies based on fluorescence measurements in aqueous solutions are unable to track changes in molecular…
A novel universal light-based technique to control valley polarization in bulk materials
An international team of researchers reports in Nature a new method that achieves valley polarization in centrosymmetric bulk materials in a non-material-specific way for the first time. This “universal technique” may have major applications linked to the control and analysis of different properties…
Speeding up spectroscopic analysis
Ultrafast laser spectroscopy allows the ascertainment of dynamics over extremely short time scales, making it a very useful tool in many scientific and industrial applications. A major disadvantage is the considerable measuring time this technique usually requires, which often leads to lengthy…
Students experience professional diversity on Girls’Day 2024
To share exciting insights into the working world of a researcher and its passion for scientific and technical career fields in which women are underrepresented, the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen once again invites 15 girls interested in science to visit on Girls’Day 2024…
Exploring the Physics of Basic Medical Research: Insightful Essay by Professor Vahid Sandoghdar in Physical Review Letters
The 20th century witnessed the emergence of many paradigm-shifting technologies from the physics community, which have revolutionized medical diagnostics and patient care. However, fundamental medical research has been mostly guided by methods from areas such as cell biology, biochemistry, and…
Photonic computation with sound waves
Optical neural networks may provide the high-speed and large-capacity solution necessary to tackle challenging computing tasks. However, tapping their full potential will require further advances. One challenge is the reconfigurability of
optical neural networks. A research team in the Stiller…
Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light well represented at the 73rd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting
Five young scientists from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light - Steven Becker, Xuemei Gu, Shada Hofemeier Abu Hattum, Michael Poloczek and Anchit Srivastava - have received an invitation to the 73rd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting this year. More than 30 Nobel Prize winners and over 650…
March
New topological metamaterial amplifies sound waves exponentially
An international team of researchers, with the participation of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light and in collaboration with partners from Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, have realized a new type of metamaterial through which sound waves flow in an unprecedented fashion. It…
The artwork ›Black Hole Sun‹ at MPL
Focus on light: Vernissage "Black Hole Sun" at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light creates a scientific symbiosis between physics and art.
Postdoctoral Fellow Clara Wanjura honored with dissertation prize of the German Physical Society
The German Physical Society awarded Dr. Clara Wanjura with the SAMOP Dissertation Prize 2024. The scientist received the prize for her doctoral thesis, which she wrote at the University of Cambridge under Prof. Andreas Nunnenkamp. Wanjura is currently conducting research as a Postdoctoral Fellow in…
German Society for Developmental Biology (GfE) awards Daniel Wehner with the Hilde Mangold Science Prize
Daniel Wehner, research group leader at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, has been awarded the Young Research Award from the German Society of Developmental Biology. The prize recognizes outstanding research and activity in the field of developmental biology and is awarded every two…
Apply now for a Max Planck Research Group Leader at the interface between physics and medical research
The newly established Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin (MPZPM) in Erlangen, Germany welcomes applications for the position of a Research Group Leader (m/f/d).
DLS Talk by Yiwen Chu – "The quantum world of massive mechanical objects"
The Distinguished Lecturer Series (DLS) at our institute reconvened at the start of the year with high-calibre guests and scientific lectures, including Professor Yiwen Chu from the Department of Physics at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Switzerland, who spoke on "The quantum…
Quantum technology simply explained: Gerd Leuchs gives the Leopoldina lecture
In front of over 200 science enthusiasts – including the Prime Minister of the State of Saxony-Anhalt and physicist Dr. Reiner Erich Haseloff – Prof. Gerd Leuchs spoke recently at the Leopoldina Academy. Held on the occasion of the presentation of certificates to the newly elected Class-I members of…
February
Alexander von Humboldt Foundation appointed Birgit Stiller as Henriette Herz Scout
Birgit Stiller, independent group leader in quantum optoacoustics at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, studies the interaction between light and sound. The physicist has long made a name for herself as an internationally renowned expert. In addition to her numerous publications in…
µkiss-and-tell: A new method for precision delivery of nanoparticles and small molecules to individual cells
The delivery of experimental materials to individual cells with exactness and exclusivity has long been an elusive and much sought-after ability in biology. With it comes the promise of deciphering many longstanding secrets of the cell. A research team at the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und…
Theoretical physicist Lewis Hill elected as chair of Optica’s technical group for Nonlinear Optics
Dr. Lewis Hill, senior scientist in the Del'Haye Research Group for microphotonics at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light has been elected as the chair of the global nonlinear optics technical group at renowned scientific society Optica.
Flore Kunst named Equal Opportunities Officer at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light
Flore Kunst, Lise Meitner Research Group Leader, is the new Equal Opportunities Officer at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen and, as an award-winning researcher in a leading position, represents a role model for young female scientists in top international research.
January
Reflections without mirroring: novel concept for detecting chiral molecules
In contrast to conventional mirrors, light can be reflected on surfaces known as meta surfaces without changing its polarization. This has now been proven by physicists at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) and the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL). This…
Experimental physicist Gerd Leuchs elected president of renowned scientific society Optica
Gerd Leuchs, Director Emeritus at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen and Senior Professor at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, has been elected President for 2024 by the members of Optica, the world's leading society for optics and photonics. Leuchs…
Towards the quantum of sound
A team of scientists at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light led by Dr. Birgit Stiller has succeeded in cooling traveling sound waves in waveguides considerably further than has previously been possible using laser light. This achievement represents a significant move towards the…
December
A freezing Advancement
MPL has put its new helium liquefaction system into operation. It enables researchers to recover and reuse liquid helium sustainably and independently of the global market. Liquid helium is required to perform many experiments at temperatures close to absolute zero.
Allen Ehrlicher praises MPZPM: It could be the new beacon in the field of biophysics research
With Allen Ehrlicher, the Rosalind Franklin Scientist-in-Residence Program (RFSR) of the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin (MPZPM) has brought a new high-profile guest scientist to Erlangen. The program offers outstanding scientists the opportunity to conduct independent or collaborative…
Arnold Sommerfeld Prize goes to Leonhard Möckl
The Bavarian Academy of Science (BAdW) awarded the Arnold Sommerfeld Prize 2023 to Dr. Leonhard Möckl, research group leader at MPL. He is being honored for his research on one of the most pressing questions in biology: What role does the glycocalyx play in the healthy body as well as in disease,…
FAU Gender Equality Award for the DIPHER22 organizing committee including three female employees of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light
Three female employees of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL), Shada Abu Hattum, Gesine Murphy and Laura Blázquez Martínez, have been awarded the annual Gender Equality Prize of the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), also known as the Renate-Wittern-Sterzel…
A Rising Star of Light at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light
Dr. Danqing Wang has been named a rising star in optics-related research. The award is presented every year by the Nature Group journal Light: Science and Applications, which focuses on optics and photonics.
November
German Society for Cell Biology and ZEISS award Carl Zeiss Lecture 2023 to Professor Dr. Jochen Guck
Lecture and award ceremony in a public webinar on 29 November 2023
The German Society of Cell Biology (DGZ) and ZEISS have honoured Professor Dr. Jochen Guck with the Carl Zeiss Lecture 2023. This award recognises internationally outstanding achievements in cell biology and pioneering microscopy…
Another ERC grant for brain research goes to Professor Tomohisa Toda in Erlangen
Tomohisa Toda, Professor of Neural Epigenomics at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) has been awarded another European Research Council (ERC) grant to investigate the roles of long-lived nuclear RNA in the maintenance of brain function and brain ageing. Most of his research will…
On-chip interference of scattering from two individual molecules embedded in plastic
Physicists at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) have succeeded in coupling two organic molecules embedded in a plastic film via an integrated photonics circuit.
Deciphering the secrets of spinal cord regeneration protein by protein
Scientists have long sought to understand how certain animals, such as zebrafish, are able to regrow nerve fibers and regain lost motor function after spinal cord injury. In humans, these injuries are irreparable and result in permanent loss of function, such as paralysis. An international team led…
October
Unravelling the secrets of brain folding: UNFOLD research project at Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin receives prestigious ERC Synergy Grant
Physicist and veterinarian Prof. Dr. Kristian Franze, Research Group Leader at the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin (MPZPM) and Director of the Institute for Medical Physics and Microtissue Engineering at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), has been awarded an ERC…
A Look Back: The Long Night of Science at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light
Nearly 1,500 visitors wanted to learn everything about the interaction between light and matter during this year's Long Night of Science and were guests at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen until just after midnight.
Artificial intelligence predicts the future of artificial intelligence research
It has become nearly impossible for human researchers to keep track of the overwhelming abundance of scientific publications in the field of artificial intelligence and to stay up-to-date with advances. Scientists in an international team led by Mario Krenn from the Max-Planck Institute for the…
Research and Science Under the Dome of Light - The Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light Opens its Doors for the Long Night of Science
The Long Night of Sciences is the largest science festival in the metropolitan region of Erlangen-Nuremberg and the largest of its kind in Germany. The Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) invites all science enthusiasts on October 21st from 6 p.m. to illuminate all big and small…
Federal Patent Court visits the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light
As part of a training initiative of the 19th and 4th Senates of the Federal Patent Court in Munich, a five-member delegation visited the Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Light in Erlangen. The aim of the senate training was to inform the judges about the state of research and technology…
NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSICS 2023 - Science of light honoured
The highest scientific award in physics - the Nobel Prize in Physics - was this year awarded to Ferenc Krausz, Director of the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics, Garching, Germany, together with Pierre Agostini, and Anne L'Huillier. According to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Nobel…
AutoRAPID project enters the home stretch: Successful trial installation of the integrated structure at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen.
The fully automated measurement of the biophysical properties of hundreds of cell samples in just a few days is the goal of the cooperation project "AutoRAPID," involving scientists from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) and the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology…
September
“Frontiers of Neuromorphic Computing” workshop at MPL 2023
The “Frontiers of Neuromorphic Computing” workshop attracted experts from all over the world to Erlangen in September.
Light and sound waves reveal negative pressure
Negative pressure is a rare and challenging-to-detect phenomenon in physics. Using liquid-filled optical fibers and sound waves, researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) in Erlangen have now discovered a new method to measure it. In collaboration with the Leibniz…
Complex sugar structures on the cell surface to shine light on cancer development and immune system regulation
The glycocalyx, a highly complex structure consisting of sugars, surrounds every cell in the body. The molecular organization of the glycocalyx, its response to genetic changes, and how these changes in turn regulate cellular processes are objects of research for Leonhard Möckl, research group…
Efficient training for artificial intelligence: New physics-based self-learning machines could replace the current artificial neural networks and save energy
Artifical intelligence not only affords impressive performance, but also creates significant demand for energy. The more demanding the tasks for which it is trained, the more energy it consumes. Víctor López-Pastor and Florian Marquardt, two scientists at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of…
No one and nothing can stop physicist Flore Kunst: A Max Planck researcher in the fast lane
High praise for Flore Kunst. The physicist and researcher at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light has been awarded a coveted spot in the Max Planck Society's Lise Meitner Excellence Program 2.0, alongside two other female scientists, and is now setting up her own independent research…
August
New Research Funding for Spinal Cord Regeneration
Zebrafish are capable of regenerating their spinal cord. The German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft) is now providing 250,000€ to the MPL Research Group led by Daniel Wehner to further study this remarkable ability. Wehner and his team will use the funds to continue their…
QuNET initiative: One step closer to highly secure quantum communication
Quantum key successfully distributed between two points with combination of free-space and fiber links
A dual carriageway for signals
Unidirectional transport of signals in pairs of "one-way streets": An international research team including Clara Wanjura from MPL have published a new study in Nature Physics.
July
Distinguished Lecturer Series: Talk by Prof. Marin Soljačić
We have one more exciting guest for our Distinguished Lecturer Series before the Summer Break. Prof. Marin Soljačić from MIT will talk about certain aspects of radiation phenomena as well as intersections between the field of AI and the field of photonics.
The Board of Trustees of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) met in Erlangen in July
On 7th July 2023 the Board of Trustees of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) met in Erlangen under the chairmanship of Prof. Dr. Wolfgang M. Heckel, Director General of the Deutsches Museum.
‘Frontiers of Neuromorphic Computing’ workshop at MPL 5-7 September
A three day in-person workshop about the rapidly developing area of neuromorphic hardware concepts for deep learning applications
Sam Edwards thesis prize for Clara Wanjura
Prestigious award for best PhD thesis in theoretical condensed matter physics goes to researcher from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL).
When stretching rainbows reveal terahertz fingerprints
Recording THz frames at 50 000 frames per second with a table-top experimental setup.
June
June 27, 2023: Professor Vahid Sandoghdar awarded EPS-QEOD PRIZE 2023
The 2023 EPS-QEOD Quantum Electronics and Optics Prize for fundamental aspects is awarded to Vahid Sandoghdar, Director of the Nano-Optics Division and Managing Director at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, Erlangen, Germany.
„We can also be festive” – Max Planck Directors in a celebratory mood at the Schlossgarten Fest
This weekend, the scientific world of quantum communication, nano-optics, biological optomechanics and medical physics had to do without the expertise of the directors of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light and the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin.
MPL at CLEO/Europe - EQEC
MPL was nearly empty from June 26 to June 30, as a large delegation of our researchers was taking part in Europe’s largest conferences on photonics and related research fields: the 2023 CLEO/Europe-EQEC.
New scholarship for Maximilian Eiche
Stipend from the Marianne-Plehn-Program for researcher from the Kayser research group at MPL.
Martin Kräter Receives Poster Award for ME/CFS and Post-Covid Research
Post-infectious diseases such as post-covid or ME/CFS affect millions of people worldwide. Nevertheless, they are still extremely difficult to diagnose. Currently, a so-called diagnosis by exclusion requires up to ten specialist examinations, all of which must be without findings. More and more…
May
Get to know our IMPRS Physics of Light!
Learn more about our great International Max Planck Research School Physics of Light (IMPRS), what it's like working at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) doing your Master's degree or PhD and how the team at MPL support you in the new IMPRS movie.
Where Quantum Particles Are Born: AI Reveals New Insights Beyond Entanglement
Quantum physics, the science of the very small, operates via laws that can often seem strange to our everyday intuition. Research group leader Mario Krenn and Xuemei Gu from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light have unveiled an exciting discovery that deepens our understanding of these…
Girls'Day: Light on for the Girls at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light!
On 27 April, the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light opened its doors to a group of young students curious to get an impression of the daily work of a physicist. How does science work? How does one become a physicist? And what does basic research actually mean? The students were able to…
April
Exploding batteries in sleet
Safety briefings are part of the routine at a research institute like the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL). However, this changes when there is an experimental demonstration of what you should definitely not do - and what happens if you do. Dangerous goods officer Ralf Keding…
Karim Almahayni invited to Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting
Karim Almahayni has been chosen as one of 635 young scientists to attend the prestigious Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting. The MPL researcher from the group of Leonhard Möckl will have the chance to meet around 40 Nobel Laureates from the field of Physiology/Medicine.
March
Successful retreat for MPL infrastructure
The MPL Infrastructure team has returned from a two-day retreat in Kloster Banz, full of motivation and new ideas. During their stay at the time-honored monastery, they participated in several workshops and team-building exercises to further develop their mutual understanding of each other's process…
Incoming President of the Max Planck Society visits MPL
Patrick Cramer has been chosen as the new president of the Max Planck Society starting in June 2023. Before that time, he intends to visit every one of the 85 Max Planck Institutes. This week at MPL he was joined by the Head of the Institute Department, Katja Ketterle and Institute Coordinator…
Little noticed, but of enormous influence: Tissue mechanics affect the growth and metastasis of cancer
The first awardee of the Rosalind Franklin Scientist-in-Residence (RFSR) Program of the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin (MPZPM), Claudia Fischbach-Teschl, has started her seven month-sabbatical in Erlangen. The program offers outstanding scientists the opportunity to conduct independent…
February
Humboldt Research Fellowship for Xuemei Gu
Xuemei Gu, a postdoc at MPL has received a prestigious Fellowship from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation for 2 years.
Life as a matter of function – DLS talk by Petra Schwille
The Distinguished Lecturer Series had another high-profile guest in February: MPI of Biochemistry Director Prof. Petra Schwille visited MPL to talk about her work trying to create functioning cells from nonliving materials.
MPL Alumni Prof. Daqing Wang receives prestigious ERC grant
Interview with Prof. Daqing Wang, an MPL alumni who is now a Tenure Track Professor at Kassel and just managed to secure a prestigious Starting Grant from the European Research Council (ERC)
Marta Urbańska, former PhD student of Professor Guck, awarded with Dresden Physics 2022 Doctoral Award
On Jan. 31, 2023, the Physics Faculty of the Technical University (TU) of Dresden awarded two female scientists with the Dresden Physics 2022 Doctoral Award sponsored by Wilhelm and Else Heraeus Foundation.
What is physics doing in medicine? - Presentation of the new Max-Planck-Zentrum
Why is it a good idea for physicists to work on medical issues? Prof. Dr. Jochen Guck, Director of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL), will give a public lecture on the topic "What is Physics doing in Medicine? - Introducing the new Max-Planck-Zentrum" on Monday, February 6,…
January
Exploring brain mechanics: FAU Collaborative Research Center (CRC) approved
Within the next four years, the FAU Collaborative Research Center CRC 1540 „Exploring Brain Mechanics“ (EBM) will investigate the origin, as well as the biological and medical implications of the mechanical properties of the central nervous system.
Interdisciplinary research project "Mechanical properties of innate immune cells: functional relevance and therapeutic implications in colitis" attracts IZKF grant funding
Prof. Jochen Guck, Director of the Department of Biological Optomechanics, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, in interdisciplinary collaboration with Prof. Maximilian Waldner, Medical Clinic 1 of the Universitätsklinikum Erlangen (UKER), will investigate "Mechanical properties of innate…
A paradigm shift for revolutionizing lab-on-a-chip bioimaging technology
The research project "On-chip tomographic microscopy: a paradigm shift for revolutionizing lab-on-a-chip bioimaging technology" (DISRUPT) is starting with the participation of the research department for Biological Optomechanics under Prof. Jochen Guck, within the EIC Pathfinder Open (HORIZON), the…
“The Quantum Way of Doing Computations, Simulations and Measurements”
Professor Rainer Blatt was the first speaker in the year 2023 at the Distinguished Lecturer Series of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light. He gave a talk about “The Quantum Way of Doing Computations, Simulations and Measurements” on Friday, January 20.
Coburg physics students visit MPL
The group came to MPL in January to learn more about the various research fields at the institute.
December
Michael Frosz chosen as primary guest editor of special IEEE issue
Michael Frosz, the head of the Fibre Fabrication & Glass Studio at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, has been asked to serve as primary guest editor of a special issue on “Advances and applications of hollow-core fibers” in the IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics…
Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light on Mastodon
MPL has joined a new platform that can help communicate our research.
December school visit to MPL
A group from the Christian-Ernst-Gymnasium in Erlangen visited the Max-Planck-Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) in December. The group of 12th grade physics students were shown a presentation and several different workspaces from a lab to the fibre drawing and mechanics workshop.
November
Ultrafast & Twisted Photonics – Francesco Tani new research group leader
Francesco Tani is the head of a new independent research group at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) in Erlangen. He uses photonic crystal fibres to develop the next generation of ultrafast light sources and to measure the chirality – the lack of symmetry upon reflection – of…
Mario Krenn invited to workshop at the conference on Neural Information Processing Systems (NeurIPS)
Research group leader Mario Krenn from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) has been invited to be in a panel at the Machine Learning and the Physical Sciences Workshop at the 36th conference on NeurIPS, one of the largest AI conference in the world. The Workshop takes place on…
Quantum Optics meets Acoustics organized by Birgit Stiller, Wolfgang Löffler and Simon Gröblacher
The Workshop „Quantum Optics meets Acoustics” was held from 14th to 18th of November 2022 at the Lorentz-Center in Leiden, Netherlands, organized by Wolfgang Löffler (Leiden University), Simon Gröblacher (TU Delft) and Birgit Stiller (MPL).
MPL Alumni chosen as runner up at Quantum Futur Award
Former PhD student Kirill Spasibko from the research group of Maria Chekhova has been chosen as the runner up at the Quantum Futur Award competition.
October
Nobel Prize in Physics underscores the enormous importance of quantum research
The Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded this year to three quantum researchers, Alain Aspect, John Clauser and Anton Zeilinger. According to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, their experiments have laid the foundation for a new era in quantum technology.
Cavity Optomechanics meet Topological Phononics
In a theory-experiment collaboration between MPL and Caltech, the first demonstration of topological transport of mechanical vibrations in an optomechanical array was achieved. This unlocks the full toolbox of cavity optomechanics, such as cooling, mechanical lasing, sensitive readout, and optical…
Creating the laser hammer and winning the Nobel Prize: Donna Strickland visits MPL
Professor Donna Strickland visited the Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Light (MPL) on October tenth, 2022, as part of the Distinguished Lecturer Series (DLS) and gave a talk on the work that won her the 2018 Nobel Prize in Physics.
Scholarship for Maximilian Eiche
Scholarship from Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes for a team member of the Kayser research group.
Breakthrough in optical information transmission: One-Way Street for optical vortices
Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light have managed for the first time to create a unidirectional device that significantly increases the quality of a special class of transmitted signals in optical communications: optical vortices. By transmitting selective optical vortex…
September
Claudiu Genes was an organizer at Molecular Polaritonics 2022
After two years of delay due to the pandemic, the second edition of Molecular Polaritonics was held as a “conventional” in-person workshop in Straubing, Germany, from September 12 to September 14, 2022. Organizers were Claudiu Genes from MPL and Johannes Feist from Universidad Autónoma de Madrid,…
Learning how machines learn
Scientists from the University of Toronto and Mario Krenn from the MPL have developed a new method for observing how artificial neural networks process information and learn.
Max Planck School of Photonics Autumn School in Erlangen
The Max Planck School of Photonics (MPSP) kicks off its annual Autumn School Retreat with a visit to the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light.
August
Metasurfaces offer new possibilities for quantum research
Tomás Santiago-Cruz and Maria Chekhova from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light and the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg in cooperation with Sandia National Laboratories have successfully created photon pairs at several different frequencies using resonant…
Diagnosis and therapy of ME/CFS: What can we learn from Long Covid?
Objectively measurable parallels between Long Covid and ME/CFS: Bavarian health minister Klaus Holetschek and chair of the Bavarian health committee Bernhard Seidenath visited Erlangen to find out first hand about the current state of research.
July
Geometrical freedom in glass: laser-manufactured 3D microstructures for complex photonic components
A research team from the Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Light (MPL) has launched the joint project "LAR3S" with the Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology ILT and the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research ISC. They want to take a completely new approach to the production of…
Max Planck Sabbatical Award for Amir Safavi-Naeini
Amir Safavi-Naeini from Stanford University has won the Max Planck Sabbatical Award, awarding him a research stay at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light.
SAOT Innovation Award for Alexandra Popp
Alexandra Popp from MPL received the SAOT Innovation Award for her research proposal “Arbitrary pulse shaper based on localized light-sound interactions”.
June
Paul Roth received dissertation prize from the Max Planck Society
Paul Roth received the Otto Hahn Medal of the Max Planck Society for outstanding scientific achievements in his doctoral thesis. He researched applications of twisted photonic crystal fibres. The ceremonial awarding of the medals, which are endowed with 7,500 euros, took place on the first day of…
Deciphering protein complexes with Angstrom optical resolution
Cryogenic optical localization in three dimensions (COLD) has been shown to be a viable option for deciphering protein complexes at Angstrom-level. However, previous work was severely limited in the number of resolved fluorophores. A new approach, titled ‘polarCOLD’ has now pushed the boundaries for…
4th WOMBAT 2022 at MPL
The 4th international Workshop on Optomechanics and Brillouin scattering: Fundamentals, Applications and Technology (WOMBAT) was held from 14th - 17th of June 2022 as in-person event at the MPL.
International Year of Glass in Erlangen
On Friday, July 1, 2022, within the framework of the Year of Glass, public events such as lectures and demonstrations will be held in the rooms of the Erlangen Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) and the Friedrich-Alexander-University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU). Everything starts at…
Improving quantum communication and computing with PALANTIRI
Birgit Stiller and Silvia Viola-Kusminskiy of MPL are working towards making long-distance quantum communication and wireless communication more efficient as part of an EU Pathfinder research project named PALANTIRI.
May
A nearly ideal research building
A working group on sustainable building from the Max Planck Society and the Technical University of Munich visited the building of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) as a positive example.
Director Vahid Sandoghdar portrayed in Nature Methods
Director Vahid Sandoghdar is a physicist who explores biology’s unknowns, with greater precision by linking two methods. He has been covered in this month’s issue of the scientific journal Nature Methods under the rubric „The Author File“. He talks about the research he and his team just published…
A look back at the Long Night of Science
As part of the largest science festival in the region, MPL also opened its doors to the general public. More than 1,000 interested people visited the institute during the Long Night of Science to learn more about the research at MPL in a diverse program with lab tours, demonstrations and talks.
Long Night of Science on Saturday
The 10th Long Night of Science will take place on Saturday, 21 May. 130 places will open their doors from 6 pm to midnight. MPL is among them.
Christoph Marquardt has been appointed professor at FAU
Christoph Marquardt, who heads the independent research group for quantum information processing at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL), has been appointed as a tenured professor at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen Nuremberg (FAU).
A new method for exploring the nano-world
Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) and Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin (MPZPM) in Erlangen present a significant step forward in the characterization of nanoparticles. They used a special microscopy method based on interferometry to outperform existing…
A step forward in modern quantum technology: frequency conversion of single photons at arbitrary wavelengths
Quanta of light - photons - form the basis of quantum key distribution in modern cryptographic networks. Before the huge potential of quantum technology is fully realized, however, several challenges remain. A solution to one of these has now been found.
April
Girls`Day 2022 at the Max Planck Institute
What is the daily work of a scientist like? How does one become a physicist? And what does our mechanic actually do? The Max Planck Institute opened its doors on 28 April 2022.
Laboratory Animal Day - Zebrafish at MPL
The 24th of April is World Day for Laboratory Animals and we would like to take this opportunity to introduce the zebrafish Danio rerio, which makes an important contribution to our biophysical and biomedical research at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light.
Director Jochen Guck honored by the Saxon Academy of Sciences and Humanities
Jochen Guck received the Wilhelm Ostwald Medal of the Saxon Academy of Sciences and Humanities in Leipzig, which is usually awarded annually to a scientist in recognition of outstanding scientific achievements.
Twisted photonic technology for measuring the safety and efficacy of drugs
Measuring the chirality – the lack of symmetry upon reflection – of substances is of fundamental importance to pharmacology. Until now, this has been a very time-consuming and inefficient process. Fast and high sensitivity chiral sensors could become game-changers in drug discovery and nanomedicine.
March
"My fingers are itching, I would love to start next week." Time capsule embedded at the Max Planck Center for Physics and Medicine
The next step in the construction of a special large-scale project has been taken: after the foundation stone was laid in 2021, employees of the partners involved embedded a time capsule in the concrete floor of the new Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin (MPZPM). The capsule was embedded in a…
Son et lumière in twisted space
Xinglin Zeng, a postdoc in Birgit Stiller's group at our institute, has recently reported the first observation of stimulated Brillouin scattering in the "twisted space" of chiral photonic crystal fibre (PCF). Drawn from a spinning preform, chiral PCF consists of a multi-helix of hollow channels…
Light-driven rocket propulsion of microscopic particles in hollow core fibre
Scientists have for the first time accelerated microscopic particles backwards at the speed of sound inside hollow core photonic crystal fibre. A single laser pulse lasting only a quadrillionth of a second and containing a 90 billionth of the energy needed to boil a kettle, blasts material off the…
New microscopy method provides unexpected insights into the inner workings of cells
By combining three imaging methods, scientists at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen and the Center for Molecular and Cellular Bioengineering at Dresden University of Technology have now succeeded in measuring mechanical properties of the cell interior with unprecedented…
February
Bavarian Health Minister promotes innovative project on Long Covid with more than one million euros
During a visit to the Universitätsklinikum Erlangen, Minister Klaus Holetschek handed over the funding notification for the project "disCOVer (diagnosis Long-COVID Erlangen). The aim of the project is to reliably diagnose three forms of long-term consequences of an infection with SARS-CoV-2 with the…
International Year of Glass: MPI for the Science of Light is on board
The United Nations has declared 2022 to be the Year of Glass to raise awareness among the general public of the enormous scientific, economic and cultural importance of this material. The Erlangen Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL), the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität…
First visit by University of Technology Nuremberg President Prömel at the MPI in Erlangen
The founding President of the University of Technology Nuremberg, Professor Hans Jürgen Prömel, met with the directors of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen and other researchers for an initial exchange of ideas. Both sides see great potential for cooperation in fields…
January
Everything you need to know about Cooperative Quantum Phenomena
The whole is greater than the sum of its parts: This ancient insight is all the more valid today at the level of quantum systems. Therefore, scientists from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light have written a hands-on tutorial aimed at – not only - young researchers to better…
Promising pair: When darkness and brightness marry
For the first time, scientists were able to create in tiny glass rings – called microresonators – ultrashort dark and bright light pulses that are linked together. Each of the flashes consist of many different, precisely defined colors: a frequency comb. The combination of the pulses increases the…
The perfect trap: a new way to control the polarization of light
For quantum communication or optical computing, it is important to measure and to influence in which direction a light wave is oscillating. It is now for the first time possible to manipulate this polarization of a continuous laser wave with a special glass fibre, which has mirrors attached at both…
How elegant equations help to understand quantum materials
Flore Kunst likes to manipulate formulas as if to stretch, twist and crumple – but only on paper and with her computer. The leader of a new research group at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) in Erlangen uses advanced mathematical concepts like topology and from quantum…
December
Bavaria boosts building of quantum computers
The Free State invests 300 Million Euro in the newly formed initiative Munich Quantum Valley. One of its goals: The development of a new generation of computers which use quantum technology.
Art project: Erlangen MPL for the Science of Light cooperates with Nuremberg Academy of Fine Arts
In the past, natural sciences have always inspired artists to create extraordinary art. But today, direct exchange with each other is becoming increasingly difficult. In Franconia, a bridge has now been successfully built between cutting-edge research and the artistic avant-garde. A joint project…
Chip manufacturer ASML partners with the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light
From lab to fab: the Dutch corporation ASML and the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) in Erlangen will over the next three years explore novel special optical fibres together. ASML is a world-leading manufacturer of lithography machines for mass producing microchips.
November
Three MPL researchers receive awards
Three scientists from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) in Erlangen - Paul Roth from the Russell emeritus group and Alexander Mikhaylov and Tomás Santiago-Cruz from Maria Chekhova’s group - recently received awards for their outstanding research at international conferences.…
Maria Chekhova and Florian Marquardt become Fellow Members of Optica
MPL group leader and MPL director honoured for their contributions to the science of light.
New Seminar Series: IMPRS Monday Show
The International Max Planck Research School (IMPRS) Physics of Light has successfully launched an event for PhD students at the Erlanger MPI.
Founding Director Gerd Leuchs becomes Vice President of the scientific organisation Optica
The membership of Optica, formerly OSA, the leading organization for the advancement of optics and photonics worldwide, has elected Gerd Leuchs, director emeritus at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, Germany, as the society’s 2022 Vice President.
How cells specifically activate genes
It is essential for cells to control precisely which of the many genes of their genetic material they use. This is done in so-called transcription factories, molecular clusters in the nucleus. Researchers of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nuremberg…
October
Corona: Using magnetic tweezers to track down new antiviral drugs against Covid-19
How can SARS-CoV-2 be stopped? David Dulin and his team at the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin in Erlangen have investigated how the virus multiplies its genome and how to impair this process at the molecular level using different active substances.
September
Federal Ministry of Research funds drug trial against Long COVID in Erlangen
The BMBF is providing 1.2 million Euros for the reCOVer project. This will enable a research team from the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin and the Universitätsklinik Erlangen to test a substance active against autoantibodies on a larger group of patients. The drug, called BC 007, has…
Towards particle accelerators in chip size
Instead of using kilometre-long large-scale research facilities, physicists want to accelerate electrons in micrometre-sized structures in the future - and thus much more cheaply and efficiently than today. A team from Erlangen and Darmstadt has now made an important breakthrough, which they have…
Emmy Noether Travel Grant for Michelle Küppers
Promotion on the way to a leadership position: physicist will attend the University of Oxford.
Using artificial intelligence to invent new technologies
With his new group at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, Mario Krenn wants to use AI algorithms as a source of inspiration in quantum physics.
August
First MPL partner group in Africa
The Max Planck Society is funding the team of Professor Geoffrey Kihara Rurimo, Director of the National Institute of Optics and Lasers at the Multimedia University of Kenya in Nairobi, for the next five years - the first partner group within the Chemistry, Physics and Technology Section on the…
First quantum-secured video conference between two federal agencies
Initiative QuNET demonstrates highly secure and practical quantum communication
Health Minister Klaus Holetschek looks into Long Covid research at the MPL
The Bavarian Minister of State for Health and Care was impressed by the great potential of real-time deformability cytometry for the diagnosis of infections such as Covid-19 and other diseases during a laboratory tour by Director Jochen Guck.
July
Artificial intelligence to accelerate the design of nanostructures
An artificial neural network helps to predict the band structure and topological properties of a metamaterial nanostructure.
June
New scholarship of MPZPM for outstanding scientists
In memory of the pioneering English chemist Rosalind Franklin, the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin has set up a scientist-in-residence program for excellent researchers.
How a corona infection changes blood cells in the long run
Using real-time deformability cytometry, researchers at the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin in Erlangen were able to show for the first time: Covid-19 significantly changes the size and stiffness of red and white blood cells - sometimes over months. These results may help to explain why…
Florian Marquardt in the podcast of "Welt der Physik"
The podcast of the German magazine "Welt der Physik" (World of Physics) interviewed the Director of our Theory Division, Florian Marquardt, for an episode about Artificial Intelligence. He explains how researchers are using the human brain as a model to develop artificial intelligence with the help…
Horizon Award for Leonhard Möckl
The British Royal Society of Chemistry has awarded a research team for their work on the protective sugar coat of cells, which included the scientist from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light. For the first time, it is now possible to study in detail how certain enzymes modify proteins…
May
Artificial Intelligence to discover simplified descriptions of complex phenomena
Automatically finding collective coordinates of a physical system by analyzing and optimizing their information content
„Ecosystem for Ideas and Creativity”: Laying of the foundation stone for the new Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin
Construction phase of the innovative, interdisciplinary research institute in Erlangen begins. Minister-President and Minister of Economic Affairs recognize courage of scientists from physics and medicine to break new ground together. Söder: "We have the greatest chance to discover new things when…
Three decades of photonic crystal fibres: new ways to control light
Fibres made of special glass and filled with a defined pattern of microscopic hollow channels are helping to better understand the sometimes strange properties of light. And they have led to a broad spectrum of real-world applications – from communications to medicine and environmental sensing. In a…
Organic molecules unveil a brighter future for quantum technology
Today, it is easily possible to produce customised carbon-based compounds with a wide range of properties. This opens up exciting areas of application in quantum technologies, for example in optical computing – as a review article by 16 authors from seven nations in the journal Nature Materials…
Efficiently smuggling drugs into cells
A new, patented method called Progressive Mechanoporation makes it possible to mechanically disrupt the membranes of cells for a short time period and let drugs or genes inside cells. In this way, researchers can test new therapies more easily than before.
Modern vaccines such as those against…
April
Emmy Noether Group for Jona Kayser
Millions for cancer research: Jona Kayser, junior group leader in the Biological Optomechanics Division at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, came out on top in a selection process run by the German Research Foundation (DFG). The organisation will fund his research on the evolution…
How does a typical day in the life of a scientist look like? Girls'Day at MPL
For Girls' Day 2021, the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light welcomed twenty girls who wanted to know how a day in the life of a scientist looks like. The idea: to introduce girls to professions that are typically male-dominated.
Due to the pandemic situation, this year’s Girls’Day could…
Fast and efficient diagnoses through artificial intelligence
The mechanical properties of cells can reveal which diseases a patient is suffering from. Researchers at the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin in Erlangen are taking advantage of this effect - and revolutionising diagnostics. Their goal: instead of costly examining blood samples in the…
Coveted EU funding for Michael Becker
Michael Becker, postdoc in the nano-optics division of MPL Director Vahid Sandoghdar, was able to convince with his project idea and receives the coveted funding from the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions of the European Commission for two years. In his project, Becker wants to develop a novel quantum…
With new technology, researchers can look deep into the interior of cells – in 3-D
Tracking the mystery of cell division: Scientists of the IRI Life Sciences of Humboldt University and the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen, have combined two microscopic methods in such a way that they can examine in detail the molecular machine called the mitotic spindle:…
March
Launch of the Forum Erinnerungs- und Zukunftsort Heil- und Pflegeanstalt Erlangen
During National Socialism in Germany, crimes against humanity, especially medical crimes, also occurred in Erlangen. In order to commemorate the victims appropriately, the municipality's city council unanimously commissioned the administration to create a place of remembrance in 2015. In the…
Dresden Excellence Award for Maik Herbig
The city of Dresden awarded Maik Herbig, former PhD student of MPL Director Jochen Guck, the Dresden Excellence Award 2020 for his doctorate. The Saxon capital, together with the network "Dresden - City of Science", honors with the prize annually four scientists for their excellent final theses.
In…
February
Quantum communication: new efficient source for entangled photons
Innovative quantum technologies for communication, imaging, and metrology depend on photon pairs, two light particles which are connected even over long distances. Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen together with colleagues from Singapore have now…
Emmy Noether Travel Grant from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light: Learning from role models
Women are still underrepresented in many areas of science - including physics. The new Emmy Noether Travel Grant of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light supports women on their way to leadership positions.
Emmy Noether, born in Erlangen, was a mathematician and in 1922 Germany's first…
Artificial knee tissue to help in the fight against arthritis
In a project funded by the European Union with almost six million euros, researchers from Europe and Turkey are reproducing tissue from the knee - on a biochip. The goal: to better understand what happens in the joint during inflammations such as rheumatoid arthritis, to test active substances that…
When Light Beams Talk to Each Other
Light, when locked in a tiny ring called a microresonator, shows amazing behaviour: Two beams, going in opposite directions, become linked and start switching. This bizarre photonic effect could be used to build optical circuit components and encode information.
When laser light is concentrated…
January
New collaborative research centre at the interface of optics and solid-state physics
Even in the quantum world, the whole is more than the sum of its parts. Scientists will investigate this collective behaviour of quantum systems in a new Collaborative Research Centre/Transregio (CRC/TR) of the German Research Foundation (DFG). Among them: numerous working groups from the Max Planck…
When severed spinal cord grows back together again
After an injury to the spinal cord, patients often remain paralysed because damaged nerve tracts do not regrow due to the formation of scar tissue. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen, together with colleagues from Dresden and Athens, have now been able to…
New mathematical model: How dangerous bacteria form colonies
Disease-causing microbes as well as cancer cells gang together to form larger structures - and only then become dangerous to humans. Scientists at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin in Erlangen and the Max Planck Institute for the…
December
Darkness from light
Microresonators are small glass structures in which light can circulate and build up in intensity. Due to material imperfections, some amount of light is reflected backwards, which is disturbing their function. Researchers have now demonstrated a method for suppressing these unwanted back…
High-brightness source of coherent light spanning from the UV to THz
An international team of scientists reports in Nature Photonics on a novel technique for a high-brightness coherent and few-cycle duration source spanning 7 optical octaves from the UV to the THz.
Analytical optical methods are vital to our modern society as they permit the fast and secure…
BMBF initiative "QuNET" presents systems for highly secure quantum communication
An initiative of the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has been researching new possibilities for tap-proof communication for a year now. The “QuNET“ initiative is working on procedures for exchanging information between authorities or in critical infrastructures - without…
November
Press conference: Update on research on quantum communication - Project QuNET offers a look inside the laboratories
Quantum communication is a key technology to ensure a safe life in the digital world in the future. Since 2015, quantum communication has therefore been an integral part of the Federal Government's Research Framework Programme for IT Security. The QuNET initiative, which Federal Minister of…
Teaching Award of FAU for Silvia Viola-Kusminskiy
Every year, the Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg awards the Teaching Award for Young Scientists to one person per faculty, in recognition for exceptional teaching performance. This year, our group leader Silvia Viola-Kusminskiy received the 3,000 Euro prize for the Faculty of Natural…
Glycocalyx: New research group investigates the sweet husk around cells
From Stanford to Erlangen: A team led by chemist Leonhard Möckl is studying sugar compounds on the surface of cells at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light – and wants to use light-activated substances to fight cancer.
At the interface between optics, biochemistry, and medicine, Leonha…
October
Partial demolition of the HuPfla starts
With construction companies having finished securing the so-called Mittelrisalit - the protruding central part of the building - demolition work on the west wing of the historic Erlangen mental asylum (Heil- und Pflegeanstalt, Hupfla) is now starting. On the vacated site, the new Max-Planck-Zentrum…
Another five years of German-Canadian cooperation
Funding secured for the Max Planck - University of Ottawa Centre for Extreme and Quantum Photonics - German ambassador guest during the annual meeting
Second half for the Max Planck - University of Ottawa Centre for Extreme and Quantum Photonics (MPC-EQP): After a very successful evaluation, the…
Symbolic ground-breaking ceremony for the new Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin in Erlangen
First Mayor Florian Janik and representatives of University Hospital, University, and Max Planck Institute emphasise the importance for the research activities in the metropolitan region - a "beacon project with nationwide impact".
An idea is taking shape: After years of preparation and planning,…
September
Max Planck School of Photonics: Application Phase Started
The Max Planck School of Photonics is Germany‘s outstanding graduate program offered by the best German universities and research organisations dedicated to photonics. Now the application phase has started - apply until 1 December 2020.
August
July
Congratulations to our apprentices
We are happy that Nadja Kupfahl, Viktoria Kupfer, Simon Nussel and Samuel Rothfischer have successfully completed their apprenticeship at MPL! All four will remain with the institute after the end of their apprenticeship and strengthen the personnel department, the Welcome Center, the IT support…
Michael Becker wins SPS-Award 2020
Congratulations! On July 1, 2020 Michael Becker received the SPS-Award of the Swiss Physical Society for Applied Physics donated by Oerlikon Surface Solutions for his work on 'Exciton dynamics and light-matter interaction of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals'.
The SPG has been awarding prizes…
June
70th birthday symposium for Gerd Leuchs has been re-scheduled to June 2021
Update: Unfortunately, we had to cancel the symposium completely due to the still ongoing coronavirus restrictions.
The symposium "Light, Lasers and Quanta", scheduled to celebrate our director emeritus Gerd Leuchs' 70th birthday, had to be re-scheduled as a result of the coronavirus emergency. We…
May
Light, sound, action: extending the life of sound waves
Information carried by light can be stored into sound waves that travel at a speed a 100 000 times slower than light. For information processing, sensing and other applications, this temporary storage can be very useful. However, hypersonic sound waves have a very short lifetime of several…
Observing the freely behaving brain in action
A team of scientists led by Jason Kerr, Director at the center of advanced european studies and research (caesar) in Bonn, Germany, has developed a novel head-mounted miniature microscope in collaboration with the Russell Division and TDSU 3 at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light: It…
April
March
Top 50 Nature Communications physics article
The article "Formation of optical supramolecular structures in a fibre laser by tailoring long-range soliton interactions" of our scientists Wenbin He, Meng Pang, Dung-Han Yeh, Jiapeng Huang, Curtis R. Menyuk and Philip St. J. Russell is in the Top 50 Nature Communications physics articles published…
POSTPONED: 70th Birthday Symposium for Gerd Leuchs: Light, Lasers and Quanta
As a result of the current coronavirus emergency, we sadly have no choice but to postpone the 70th birthday symposium "Light, Lasers & Quanta" for our Director emeritus Gerd Leuchs, probably until next year. Tentative dates are June 18-19, 2021, just before the CLEO/Europe meeting in Munich. We will…
CANCELED: Girls'Day
Unfortunately, we had to cancel our Girls'Day programme scheduled for 26 March. Due to the current situation regarding the COVID-19 virus, the Max Planck Society has decided to cancel all public events in the near future as a precautionary measure. By now, the complete Girls'Day in all institutions…
POSTPONED: Opening Symposium for Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin
Unfortunately, we had to postpone the opening event for the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin planned for March 16. Due to the current situation regarding the COVID-19 virus, the Max Planck Society has decided to cancel all public events in the near future as a precautionary measure. The…
Katja Zieske heads new research group
As of February 2020 Katja Zieske joined the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light to set up her laboratory. Starting in May she will head a new Max Planck research group addressing how biological systems are assembled from modular building blocks across multiple lengths scales.
The research…
February
70th Birthday Symposium for Gerd Leuchs: Light, Lasers and Quanta
To celebrate our Director Emeritus Gerd Leuchs' 70th birthday, the Symposium "Light, Lasers and Quanta" will take place at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen from 25 - 26 June 2020.
Further information and registration on: 70-andnowiser.mpl.mpg.de.
Registration closes on…
Sensitive detection of molecules
To observe molecules, one has to use sensitive tools. Such measurements would be important for determining the concentration of minute particles in blood samples or during neuronal information transfer in the brain. A team of Max Planck scientists has taken a decisive step in this direction - they…
January
New Microphotonics Research Group
As of January 2020 Pascal Del’Haye heads the new Microphotonics Research Group at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light.
New Particle Analysis Technique Paves Way for Better Air Pollution Monitoring
Efficient monitoring of airborne particulate matter (PM), especially particles with aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5 μm (PM2.5), is crucial for improving public health. Researchers in the group of Philip Russell at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) now develop a new technique…
Let's go! Work starts for the new Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin
The first steps to build the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin will start in the following week. Here you can find more informations about the construction project and the scientific center.
Physik und Medizin
Das Max-Planck-Institut für die Physik des Lichts und seine Kooperationspartner stellen das neue Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin vor. Weitere Informationen rund um das Forschungszentrum finden Sie hier.
December
November
Humboldt Professorship for Management Member of the Max-Planck-Zentrum
Kristian Franze receives five million euros for his research on physical biology. He has been selected by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation for a Humboldt Professorship - the highest endowed international research prize in Germany. He will be a member of the Executive Board of the…
Max Planck School of Photonics – Application Portal open NOW
The Max Planck School of Photonics is Germany‘s outstanding graduate program offered by seven of the best German universities and research organisations dedicated to photonics. Our application phase has started and our portal is open now. Apply NOW by December 15, 2019!
New President for the Erlangen OSA Student Chapter
The OSA Student Chapter in Erlangen has a new president: Dominik Rattenbacher took over the position in November 2019. He is a PhD student at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light and has been a member of the Student Chapter for one year.
Kick-Off in Jena: BMBF initiative QuNET for bug-proof quantum communication
On November 12, 2019 about 30 project participants met at the Fraunhofer IOF in Jena for the launch of QuNET. As part of the BMBF-funded initiative, the Max Planck Society, the Fraunhofer Society and the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) will set up a pilot…
Circularly Polarized Light from Linear Dipoles
Surprisingly, linear electric dipole emitters can also generate circularly polarized light. These findings may drive development of novel single-photon sources and enable completely new functionalities in on-chip nanophotonic devices in the classical and quantum domain.
Max Planck School Matter to Life – Application Portals open NOW
The new Matter to Life Master’s programs at Heidelberg University, Göttingen University, and Technical University of Munich (TUM) offer you an unique environment to study in an interdisciplinary setting with students of different scientific backgrounds.
October
Annual Meeting of the Max Planck-uOttawa Centre
From October 29 – 31, the 2019 annual meeting of the Max Planck-uOttawa Centre for Extreme and Quantum Photonics (MPC) took place in Erlangen. As in previous years, members of the MPC reported on new ideas, potential collaborative projects as well as recent breakthroughs.
A Memory Effect at Single-Atom Level
An international research group has observed new quantum properties on an artificial giant atom and has now published its results in the high-ranking journal Nature Physics. The quantum system under investigation apparently has a memory - a new finding that could be used to build a quantum computer.
Long Night of Science at the Max Planck Institute
On Saturday, 19 October 2019, the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) took part in Germany's largest science festival - more than 1,200 visitors came to the institute to take a look behind the scenes of research.
Cellular Evolution Group
As of October Jona Kayser heads new Research Group "Cellular Evolution" at the Max Planck Institute for the science of light.
Cellular evolution is one of the most fundamental principles of life. At the same time, it is at the root of some of the most pressing challenges of modern health care, such…
New Max Planck Research Group Leader
Hanieh Fattahi will head the new Max Planck Research Group "Femtosecond Fieldoscopy" at the Max Planck Institute for the science of light.
September
Swinging Molecules
A theoretical method allows the description of molecules coupled to light - the vibrations of the molecule play the central role.
Gerd Leuchs new OSA Director-at-large
From 2020, Prof Gerd Leuchs and Prof Polina Bayvel will be members of the board of directors of OSA.
Max Planck School of Photonics starts up
The selection and admission process for the first round of applications of the Max Planck Schools has been completed. First students start at the Max Planck Schools.
August
Research group leader Birgit Stiller interviewed on Deutschlandfunk
Birgit Stiller appeared on a podcast of the series "Forschung aktuell" broadcasted by Deutschlandfunk. She talked about her research on converting light to sound and how to achieve longer storage times.
Launch of a New Distinguished Lecturer Series
In November, a new Distinguished Lecturer Series (DLS) begins at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light.
Taming the ultraviolet
When UV light is transported through a special gas-filled hollow glass fibre, undreamt-of possibilities arise
MPL PhD student awarded for best conference poster
Gaetano Frascella, PhD student at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, was awarded for the best poster at this year`s “Quantum“ conference in Turin.
July
Kristian Franze Appointed New Director at MPZPM
On August 1, Kristian Franze will become one of the directors of the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin (MPZPM) - at the same time he will become director of the Institute for Medical Physics and Microtissue Engineering at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU). The MPZPM…
Jochen Guck appointed FAU professor
Jochen Guck, Director of the Division Biological Optomechanics, was appointed professor at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU). He will be Professor of Biological Optomechanics.
Jochen Guck is also founding director of the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin, which is…
Prof Karimi awarded with MPL Visiting Fellows Title
Prof Florian Marquardt awarded the title of MPL Visiting Fellows to Prof Ebrahim Karimi in recognition of his great scientific achievements!
After Karimi's Ph.D., he worked as a postdoctoral fellow under Phorbitech FET project, and in Prof. Robert Boyd’s Quantum Optics group. He is currently…
Guided Tour to the Coolest Place of the Metropolitan Region
Günther Beckstein and Forchheim District Administrator Hermann Ulm visit the Max Planck Institute.
Erlangen, July 08, 2019. The Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light was founded during the office of retired Prime Minister Günther Beckstein and it is already celebrating its tenth birthday…
Wissenschaftlicher Pioniergeist in Erlangen: Forschung am MPZPM hat bereits begonnen – Blutdiagnosen werden schneller und differenzierter
Auch wenn der Bau des Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin (MPZPM) erst in vier Jahren abgeschlossen ist, wird schon jetzt interdisziplinär zwischen dem Max-Planck-Institut für die Physik des Lichts (MPL), dem Universitätsklinikum Erlangen (UK) sowie der Friedrich-Alexander-Universität (FAU)…
June
Otto Hahn Prize Winners Honoured
The Max Planck Society awards highest distinction for junior scientists at its Annual Meeting.
28 early career researchers were awarded the Otto Hahn medal this year. Hahn, the first President of the Max Planck Society would have been proud of the outstanding scientific successes they achieved…
May
Construction work for the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin starts
The construction work for the new Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin (MPZPM) will start: The construction site at the Schwabachanlage in Erlangen will be set up from Tuesday, June 2, 2020. On June 8, the clearing of the site and the preparatory work will beginn, the demolition of the Novalis…
Max Planck researchers develop the "ultimate cell sorter"
By combining imaging of deformed cells and artificial intelligence, researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light and the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin in Erlangen have succeeded in developing a high-speed method for identifying and sorting cells that does not require…
The coronascope on television
Recently, a film team of the Bayerischer Rundfunk (Bavarian broadcasting organisation) visited the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light: The programme about the coronascope, which is currently located in the virus laboratory of the University Hospital Erlangen and takes pictures of cells…
Stiller - New Max Planck Research Group
Welcome to the Max Planck Institute for the science of light! We are happy to announce that Birgit Stiller has taken up her position as the head of a new Max Planck Research Group. Birgit joins us from the University of Sydney with a background in nonlinear optics, quantum communications and…
A pulse for tap-proof quantum communication
In the future, it will be possible to exchange data in a tap-proof manner - with the aid of quantum physics. To achieve this goal, the German government will massively increase its support for optical quantum communication in the coming years. At a press conference at the Fraunhofer Forum in Berlin…
April
The Coronascope – Scientists at Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin observe an infection with Sars-CoV-2 live
A kind of video surveillance could contribute to getting an insight into the life cycle of the coronavirus: Researchers at Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Light (MPL) and Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU) want to monitor live how cells get infected with Sars-CoV-2. To…
Following a protein nano-rover on the cell membrane
The human body is composed of billions of cells, each one representing the smallest self-sustaining unit of life. We know that surfaces of our cells are carpeted with a layer of densely crowded molecules which rush about in a perpetual frenzy. In the blink of an eye, these molecules undergo…
March
Technology from Erlangen exploring the Atmosphere
Klaus Mantel from MPLs TDSU developed a spatial heterodyne inferometer which is now on a satellite in low Earth orbit.
February
Turning a molecule into a coherent two-level quantum system
Physicists at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) have succeeded in turning an organic molecule into a nearly ideal quantum system with only two well-defined energy levels.
International Day of Light
We are celebrating UNESCOs International Day of Light on May 16
January
In Memoriam: Roy Jay Glauber
We note with sadness the passing on December 26, 2018 of Roy Jay Glauber, the founding father of quantum optics and member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL).
December
Bavarian Maximiliansorden
Director Prof. Dr. Gerd Leuchs received the Bavarian Maximiliansorden for Science and Art. The award was officially presented on Monday, December 17th by the Bavarian Prime Minister Dr. Markus Söder.
Let there be light
At the traditional christmas lecture of the Friedrich-Alexander-University (FAU) on December 13th, everything revolved around visible and invisible laser beams and light sources. Around 450 visitors enjoyed the two-hour demonstration.
November
AAAS and MPL Announce 2018 Fellows
Prof. Dr. Gerd Leuchs has been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Election as a AAAS Fellow is an honor bestowed upon AAAS members by their peers.
This year 416 members have been awarded this honor by AAAS because of their scientifically or socially…
Peter Hommelhoff becomes MPL Fellow
As of November 2018, Prof. Dr. Peter Hommelhoff, who holds the Chair of Laser Physics at the Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg, will become a Max Planck Fellow.
"It is wonderful to be able to further intensify the already close cooperation with the MPL colleagues."
Since 2012, Prof.…
October
New MPL Research Group
We are happy to announce that as of October 2018, Kanwarpal Singh started his work at MPL as head of a new Research Group. Kanwarpal, who previously worked as a research fellow at Harvard Medical School, focuses on developing high resolution miniaturized endoscopic devices for applications ranging…
Jochen Guck becomes new director at MPL
As of Oktober 2018, Prof. Guck will lead the new MPL-Division "Physics & Medicine".
We would like to warmly welcome our new director Jochen Guck: As of October 1st, he will lead the newly formed fifth division "Physics & Medicine"!
Prof. Guck and his team will begin their research in the field of…
September
Laser Swords at Max Planck Day
On September 14th MPL, along with all other Max Planck Institutes, opened its doors to the general public. Some 700 visitors from Erlangen and the surrounding area came to the event, curious to find out about our research – and not least to inspect the new MPL building! By all accounts they greatly…
August
Herbert-Walther Award 2018
On March 7 2018, at a ceremony held during the Spring Meeting of the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft (DPG), Gerd Leuchs received the 2018 Herbert Walther Award for “for his pioneering and widespread scientific contributions ranging from ultrasmall focii of light to nonlinear optics, squeezed…
Symposium for the Science of Light 2018
A Symposium for the Science of Light took place 23 to 26 July, in celebration of 150 years of optics in Erlangen, 15 years since the formation of the Max Planck Research Group at FAU and 1.5 years since MPL moved into its new building. After opening remarks by Gerd Leuchs, Frank Duzaar (Dean of the…
July
June
May
April
March
February
January
New Max Planck Research Group
As of January 2018, Silvia Viola Kusminskiy has taken up her position as the head of a new Max Planck Research Group (MPRG). Her group "Theory of hybrid systems for quantum technologies" will explore the interaction between light and condensed matter systems at the micro/nanoscale. Her current…
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