Physicists led by Prof Raphael Wittkowski and Prof Uwe Thiele from the Institute of Theoretical Physics at the University of Münster has developed a new model for the dynamics of systems consisting of many self-propelled particles. The study of active particles is one of the fastest-growing areas of physics. With „active particles“ physicists refer to objects which move by themselves as a result of internal self-propulsion. These include living things such as bacteria and fish swimming, birds flying or humans…

… blowing bubbles in the central region of the Teacup Galaxy. When matter falls into supermassive black holes in the centers of galaxies, it unleashes enormous amounts of energy and is called an active galactic nuclei (or AGN). A fraction of AGN release part of this energy as jets that are detectable in radio wavelengths that travel at velocities close to light speed. While the jet travels across the galaxy, it collides with the clouds and gas around it and in some…

If climate change causes more rain, this promotes the weathering of rocks and thus the erosion of the soil. The dissolved substances reach the sea via rivers. A new model from Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon shows: The process has an impact on CO2 storage there. If global emissions of greenhouse gases increase sharply, as they have in the past, this increases the ability to bind them. When emissions are low, the opposite happens. The study looked at the factors that favor sequestration…

The polar regions are exposed to an increasing load of pollutants. Under the leadership of the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon and the Umweltbundesamt (UBA), experts from the European Commission, the Stockholm Convention, the Arctic Council and the Antarctic Treaty Conference, environmental sample banks, data centers and leading research institutions have now formulated the “Berlin Statement”. The resulting recommendations for action were recently published in the journal Chemosphere. Ecological crises have an impact even in the remotest corners of the earth. For example,…

The seven worst years for polar ice sheets melting and losing ice have occurred during the past decade, according to new research, with 2019 being the worst year on record. The melting ice sheets now account for a quarter of all sea level rise – a fivefold increase since the 1990’s – according to IMBIE, an international team of researchers who have combined 50 satellite surveys of Antarctica and Greenland taken between 1992 and 2020. Their findings are published today…

KIT researchers develop first two-dimensional photonic time crystal – Application promises enhancements in wireless communication and laser technology. Photonic time crystals, whose properties change periodically, promise significant enhancements in microwave engineering, optics, and photonics. Researchers from Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and partners from Aalto University and Stanford University have unveiled a groundbreaking 2D photonic time crystal and demonstrated important applications. Their approach simplifies the realisation of photonic time crystals and may improve the efficiency of future communication systems. The…

Breakthroughs in ancient genome reconstruction and biotechnology are now revealing the rich molecular secrets of Paleolithic microorganisms. In a new study published in Science, a transdisciplinary team of researchers led by the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology, the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, and Harvard University reconstructed bacterial genomes of previously unknown bacteria dating to the Pleistocene. Using their genetic blueprints, they built a biotechnology platform to revive the ancient bacteria’s natural products. Microbes are…

Sensitive, reliable and durable sensors created for multiple industries. Extreme environments in several critical industries – aerospace, energy, transportation and defense – require sensors to measure and monitor numerous factors under harsh conditions to ensure human safety and integrity of mechanical systems. In the petrochemical industry, for example, pipeline pressures must be monitored at climates ranging from hot desert heat to near arctic cold. Various nuclear reactors operate at a range of 300-1000 degrees Celsius, while deep geothermal wells hold…

… in would-be superconductor. Precision measurements reveal connection between electron density and atomic arrangements in charge-ordered states of a superconducting copper-oxide material. What makes some materials carry current with no resistance? Scientists are trying to unravel the complex characteristics. Harnessing this property, known as superconductivity, could lead to perfectly efficient power lines, ultrafast computers, and a range of energy-saving advances. Understanding these materials when they aren’t superconducting is a key part of the quest to unlock that potential. “To solve the problem,…

From mangroves to fjords, coastal ecosystems can take up or emit greenhouse gases. But globally, they’re a vital sink. A new greenhouse gas budget shows coastal ecosystems globally are a net greenhouse gas sink for carbon dioxide (CO2) but emissions of methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) counteract some of the CO2 uptake, according to international researchers led by Australia’s Southern Cross University. The new findings of the coastal greenhouse gas balance (CO2 + CH4 + N2O) in ten world…

New cryo-EM structure of a zinc-transporter protein reveals how this molecular machine functions to regulate cellular levels of zinc, an essential micronutrient. Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory have determined the atomic-level structure of a zinc-transporter protein, a molecular machine that regulates levels of this crucial trace metal micronutrient inside cells. As described in a paper just published in Nature Communications, the structure reveals how the cellular membrane protein shifts its shape to move zinc…

New Collaborative Research Center for Software Methods at KIT – DFG funds excellent KIT research with around EUR 11 million. Cyber-physical systems, such as vehicles, trains, airplanes, smart homes, or production facilities, combine electronic and mechanical elements with software. Development of these systems is highly complex due to the large number of dependencies among the components. “When a car’s wire harness is modified, the diameter of the cable duct also has to be changed,” says Professor Ralf Reussner, Spokesman of…

On Germany’s highest mountain, the Zugspitze, the air is thin and contains very few pollutants. Ultrafine particles only exist there when they are transported through the atmosphere over long distances. A research team from the University of Bayreuth led by Prof. Dr. Anke Nölscher has now installed a new module for collecting ultrafine particles at the summit of the Zugspitze. The sampling at the Schneefernerhaus Environmental Research Station and the subsequent laboratory analyses are part of the Bavarian project network…

Process developed at KIT works at relatively low temperatures and reaches highest resolution for use in optics and semiconductors – publication in Science. Printing of micro- and nanometer-scaled quartz glass structures from pure silicon dioxide opens up many new applications in optics, photonics, and semiconductor technologies. So far, processes have been based on conventional sintering. Temperatures required for sintering silicon dioxide nanoparticles are above 1100°C, which is much too hot for direct deposition onto semiconducting chips. A team headed by…

… smallest particles will deliver the drug to the lungs in future. KIT and Research Center Borstel present nanoparticles with a high antibiotic concentration for inhalation – nanocarriers of antibiotics can reduce resistances and enhance compatibility. Tuberculosis is the infectious disease with the highest death rate worldwide. As reported by WHO, therapy-resistant tuberculosis infections are increasing. Diseases due to this bacterial infection may also occur in Germany. Tuberculosis represents a special challenge for two reasons: First, the bacteria encapsulate in…

Tunneling spectroscopy uncovers the clearest proof yet that this exotic superconducting state of matter exists without a magnetic field in an iron-based superconductor. In the field of superconductivity—the phenomenon in which electrons can flow through a material with essentially zero resistance—the “holy grail” of discovery is a superconductor that can perform under everyday temperatures and pressures. Such a material could revolutionize modern life. But currently, even the “high-temperature” (high-Tc) superconductors that have been discovered must be kept very cold to…

An international team of chemists led by Professors Frank Glorius (University of Münster) and Kendall N. Houk (University of California, Los Angeles, USA) has succeeded for the first time in using structural editing to insert a four-membered molecular ring into a larger, aromatic ring. This resulted in a structurally complex bicyclic ring system. Most drugs on the market consist of cyclic (ring-shaped) molecules, many of which contain multiple rings. Developing simple and powerful methods for constructing important and novel ring…

Nitrous oxide has a much stronger effect on the climate than carbon dioxide. Soils, peatlands and rivers are potential nitrous oxide sources. However, when, where and how much nitrous oxide is emitted into the air has not yet been sufficiently researched. A team led by Gesa Schulz, a doctoral student at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, has now studied nitrous oxide production in the Elbe estuary in greater detail and discovered real hotspots. The results, which were recently published in the journal…

In the 1980s, the Elbe estuary had largely lost its function as an estuarine filter due to heavy metal pollution. After decades, the estuary was able to recover from this, as a team led by doctoral student Louise Rewrie from the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon has discovered by measuring carbon and other parameters. Only in the last few years have biogeochemical processes in the Elbe River Estuary resumed naturally. The results recently appeared in the journal Limnology and Oceanography. River estuaries can…

Spinoff of KIT facilitates moves and replacements of production plants. Old production machinery has to be replaced due to changed requirements. However, high weight and limited space in plants often make it very difficult to assemble and disassemble big machines or to reposition them. Frequently, this is done by hand using heavy-duty rollers. FORMIC Transportsysteme, a spinoff of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), has developed a semi-automatic transportation system for the replacement of production plants, which works like a swarm….