What does "resolution" mean here? Microscopy puzzle solved

New microscopy method can identify molecules: The question of resolution proved to be a difficult puzzle

11-Feb-2025 - When judging the quality of a microscope, the crucial question is: How large are the smallest structures that can just be made visible with it? How close can two objects come to each other before they can no longer be seen as two separate objects, but blur into a single image blob? With ...

Insights into the Nanoworld: Volker Deckert Receives the 2025 Lamb Award

A Pioneer in Tip-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy

31-Jan-2025 - How can structures be made visible that are far smaller than what conventional light microscopes can capture? With tip-enhanced Raman scattering (TERS), Volker Deckert has established a method that provides precise insights into the nanoworld of molecules—without the need for markers. For his ...

Quantum technology and AI: the key to safe second-life applications for lithium-ion batteries

Innovative rapid test method for precise determination of battery condition for industrial use

31-Jan-2025 - To promote the sustainability of electromobility and enhance resource efficiency, upcycling of lithium-ion batteries is gaining increasing importance. Efforts are focused on slowing down material cycles by repurposing used batteries from electric vehicles for new applications instead of ...

European Consortium Launches DELYCIOUS Research Project to Optimize Operation of Renewable Hydrogen Production Units

31-Jan-2025 - A consortium of eight European partners announces the launch of DELYCIOUS (Diagnostic tools for ELectrolYsers: Cost-efficient, Innovative, Open, Universal and Safe) research project on 1 January, 2025 – aimed at developing advanced diagnostic and monitoring tools for water electrolysers. The ...

The Secret Life of Catalysts

New Discoveries in Chemical Reactions

30-Jan-2025 - Scientists from the Interface Science Department of the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society in collaboration with beamline scientists at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin have made an advancement in the field of electrocatalysis. Their latest research, published in the journal Nature ...

Efficient energy transport through covalent organic frameworks

New prospects for the development of sustainable organic materials in photocatalysis and optoelectronics

16-Jan-2025 - An interdisciplinary research team from LMU, the Technical University of Munich (TUM), and the University of Oxford has employed novel spectroscopic techniques to investigate the diffusion of excited states in so-called covalent organic frameworks (COFs). These modular materials can be adapted ...

Unlocking the potential of lithium-sulfur batteries

Researchers develop electrolyte additives for enhanced energy storage: “Synchrotron techniques provide powerful tools for characterizing battery materials”

15-Jan-2025 - Lithium-ion (Li-ion)batteriesare an integral part of society, from cellphones and laptops to electric vehicles. While Li-ion batteries have been a major success to date, scientists worldwide are racing to design even better​“beyond Li-ion” batteries in the shift toward a more electrified ...

Pioneering new tool will spur advances in catalysis

An automated analytical method to speed the discovery process in single atom catalysts

14-Jan-2025 - For decades,catalysts have been unsung heroes in daily life. These workhorses transform a starting material into a product or fuel with lower energy, like the yeast in bread making and human-made catalysts for converting raw materials into fuels more efficiently and sustainably. A promising ...

Lithium-sulphur pouch cells investigated at BESSY II

Degradation processes examined

10-Jan-2025 - A team from HZB and the Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology (IWS) in Dresden has gained new insights into lithium-sulphur pouch cells at the BAMline of BESSY II. Supplemented by analyses in the HZB imaging laboratory and further measurements, a new picture emerges of processes ...

From CO2 to acetaldehyde: Towards greener industrial chemistry

This breakthrough tackles two environmental issues at once

07-Jan-2025 - Acetaldehyde is a vital chemical used in making everything from perfumes to plastics. Today, its production largely relies on ethylene, a petrochemical. But increasing environmental concerns are pushing the chemical industry to reduce its reliance on fossil fuels, so scientists have been ...