Quantum Physics

A new method to cool gases of polar molecules to near absolute zero paves the way for studying quantum effects of exotic forms of matter more

Prof. Ferenc Krausz has been awarded the prestigious Wolf Prize for Physics. The Hungarian-Austrian physicist receives the prize for his pioneering contributions to ultrafast laser science and attosecond physics. more

Munich Quantum Valley formally founded as an association more

An ultra-fast microscope combines atomic spatial and temporal resolution and thus enables unprecedented insights into the dynamics of electrons in molecules more

Many publications by Max Planck scientists in 2021 were of great social relevance or met with a great media response. We have selected 12 articles to present you with an overview of some noteworthy research of the year more

Radioactive radiation could damage biological tissue also via a previously unnoticed mechanism more

The Max Planck Society and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation recognize the achievements of Pablo Jarillo-Herrero, Anastassia Alexandrova, and Sumit Gulwani more

The extremely precise control of nuclear excitations opens up possibilities of ultra-precise atomic clocks and powerful nuclear batteries more

Creating a metal with laser light more

Minister President Söder and the Presidents of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, the Ludwig Maximilian University, the MPG, and TUM sign declaration of intent more

Many publications by Max Planck scientists in 2020 were of great social relevance or met with a great media response. We have selected 13 articles to present you with an overview of some noteworthy research of the year more

The Berlin district of Dahlem plays a special role in the history of the Max Planck Society. Many institutes, such as the MPI for Physics or Biochemistry, have their roots there. A new app now enables users to explore this history on their own. more

Using a mechanical trick, scientists have succeeded in narrowing the spectrum of the pulses emitted by x-ray lasers more

In the quantum mechanical tunnelling effect, particles take a few attoseconds to overcome an energy barrier more

In the future, it will be possible to use quantum cryptography in global communication by transmitting quantum information from orbit more

Thanks to improved resolution, a quantum sensor can now identify individual atoms in biomolecules more

Quantum systems oscillate in synchronization after a short time just like classical pendulums more

A chemical reaction alters the colours of plasmonic prints more

An innovative fluorescence microscopy method makes it possible to image protein structures with a resolution of less than half an Angstrom more

Close to absolute zero, the particles exhibit their quantum nature more

In principle, almost any encryption key can be broken - all you need is the right computing power. The situation is different, however, with quantum cryptography: messages that are encoded with this method cannot be decrypted without the sender and receiver noticing. Gerd Leuchs is researching this encryption technology of the future. more

Ferenc Krausz is considered the founder of attosecond physics. His goal is to develop new laser techniques to track the movement of electrons in atoms, molecules and solids in real time and thus observe quantum mechanical processes directly. This new film explains the research of the Director of the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics in Munich. more