Braunschweig continues to expand its strengths in the manufacture of individualized pharmaceutical products. For this purpose, the Fraunhofer Institute for Surface Engineering and Thin Films IST and the Center of Pharmaceutical Engineering (PVZ) of the Technische Universität Braunschweig are cooperating for the first time. The Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft is providing 0.5 million euros to support the establishment of a translational laboratory for “Individualized Pharmaceutical Production” in Braunschweig as part of the new Lower Saxony High-Performance Center “Medical and Pharmaceutical Engineering”. A mutually…
The number of data-transmitting microdevices, for instance in packaging and transport logistics, will increase sharply in the coming years. All these devices need energy, but the amount of batteries would have a major impact on the environment. Empa researchers have developed a biodegradable mini-capacitor that can solve the problem. It consists of carbon, cellulose, glycerin and table salt. And it works reliably. The fabrication device for the battery revolution looks quite unconspicuous: It is a modified, commercially available 3D printer,…
The spatially resolved determination of which of the two enantiomorphic structural variants – the left-handed or the right-handed – of a chiral phase is present in a polycrystalline material is the focus of our publication in Science Advances. With the EBSD (electron backscatter diffraction) -based technique, this is shown for the first time for the chiral element structure β-Mn for which a determination of the handedness with usual x-ray diffraction methods is not possible so far. Left- or right-handedness is…
Scientists found a new and promising qubit at a place where there is nothing. In the world of quantum mechanics, researchers can even make empty space, the lack of something, do their bidding. Scientists from the Katsaros group at the Institute of Science and Technology (IST) Austria together with an international team of researchers have now created a new setup to control the absence of electrons in a solid material. They want to use these holes as a basis for…
Lithium-ion batteries require in addition to lithium metal a number of sophisticated functional materials for their performance. Some of them sound rather unspectacular: conductive additives. In fact, conductive additives like carbon black or carbon nanotubes are a decisive component for the performance and environmental benignity of lithium-ion batteries. The recently launched collaborative project HiQ-CARB aims to provide new carbons with a superior performance and a low carbon footprint for future green batteries in Europe. HiQ-CARB is receiving EU funding from…
How to Retard Time for Cells… Scientists at Leipzig University, in collaboration with colleagues from Germany and England, have succeeded in reversibly slowing down cellular processes. A team of biophysicists led by Professor Josef Alfons Käs and Dr Jörg Schnauß were able to show in experiments that cells can be transferred into slow motion without changing the temperature. From a physical point of view, such possibilities have so far only been available in the context of the theory of relativity….
Computer simulations visualize in atomic detail how DNA opens while wrapped around proteins. Researchers from the Hubrecht Institute in Utrecht (The Netherlands) and the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine in Münster (Germany) used computer simulations to reveal in atomic detail how a short piece of DNA opens while it is tightly wrapped around the proteins that package our genome. These simulations provide unprecedented insights into the mechanisms that regulate gene expression. The results were published in PLoS Computational Biology…
The European Labour Market Barometer climbed to 103.3 points in May. With a rise of 2.0 points compared to April, the leading indicator of the European Network of Public Employment Services and the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) therefore registered its strongest growth since its records began. “The grip of the pandemic is easing,” says IAB head of forecast Enzo Weber, feeling optimistic. “Europe’s labour markets are starting to recover.” The outook having been cloudy for a long time due…
Researchers at DTU Health Tech have developed a new material that can facilitate a near-perfect merger between machines and the human body for diagnostics and treatment. A DTU research team consisting of Malgorzata Gosia Pierchala, Firoz Babu Kadumundi, and Mehdi Mehrali from #TeamBioEngine headed by Alireza Dolatshahi-Pirouz, have developed a new material – CareGum – that among other things has potential for monitoring motor impairment associated with neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s. A green material with many properties The CareGum…
Evolut™ PRO+ offers more blood flow with a smaller construction. Narrowing of the aortic valve, known as aortic valve stenosis, is the most common heart valve defect in old age. The valve leaflets of the aortic valve are thickened and have difficulty opening and closing. A heart valve replacement is the only treatment option for aortic valve stenosis. For many patients today, a catheter-based replacement of the aortic valve, or TAVI (Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation), is a safe and gentle…
As digitization continues, connected devices are making their way into more and more areas of everyday life. However, these are often vulnerable to cyberattacks; in the past, many end consumers, such as users of online services, were affected in addition to industry and businesses. A German consortium of industry, university and research institutes aims to make these systems more secure thanks to light-based data transmission and computation. Over the next three years, the “Silhouette” project will develop universally applicable solutions….
Biofunctionalized materials… In general, plastics are processed at way over a hundred degrees Celsius. Enzymes, by contrast, cannot usually withstand these high temperatures. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research IAP have managed to reconcile these contradictions: They are able to embed enzymes in plastics without the enzymes losing their activity in the process. The potentials this creates are enormous. Materials that clean themselves, have anti-mold surfaces or are even self-degrading are just a few examples of what…
A gene, found only in humans, leads to a larger brain, increased memory flexibility and reduced anxiety in mice. During human evolution, the neocortex, the evolutionarily youngest part of the cerebral cortex, expanded dramatically and made the human brain larger. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics (MPI-CBG) in Dresden had shown in previous studies that in the developing neocortex, the human-specific gene ARHGAP11B stimulates the production of more neural progenitor cells, and consequently of…
Use of tablets in mathematics… Low-achieving pupils benefit more in mathematics lessons from learning materials on tablet PCs than high-achieving children. They are obviously helped by individualized learning paths, immediate feedback and the hands-on processing of interactive content. This conclusion was reached in a study conducted by the Technical University of Munich (TUM) with sixth-grade students. The team of researchers has developed an eBook for learning fractions, which is available free of charge in English, Spanish and German. Fractions are…
Interactive design tool from Fraunhofer for innovative energy infrastructures. Germany is supposed to become climate-neutral by 2045. The federal govern-ment’s new climate protection law stipulates this. Greenhouse gas emissions are supposed to drop at 65 percent below their 1990 values by the year 2030. Many innovative ideas and solutions are needed to implement this ambitious plan. Together with their partners, research scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute for Factory Operation and Automation IFF are making a contribution in the RIGRID project:…
A new direction of topological research is ready for take off. Through a recently developed experimental platform, topological matter can be realized in a fast, cost efficient, and versatile way. It was only about two years ago that researchers of the Cluster of Excellence ct.qmat–Complexity and Topology in Quantum Matter realized “Topolectric Circuits” and did important pioneering work on their conceptualization for synthetic topological matter. Another breakthrough has now been achieved by the team led by Würzburg physicist Prof. Dr….
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