Scientists driven by pure curiosity create the basis for new techno logies – with convincing results, in both material and non-material terms. They are the ones who explain what holds the world together at its core.
Trying to controvert a seemingly incontrovertible law is a hard job. And Stefan Hell discovered just how hard when he attempted to thwart the resolution limit of optical microscopes. Initially, his ideas fell on deaf ears. Today, however, Stefan Hell is a Director at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry.
The development process from a candidate agent identified by basic research to the final pharmaceutical product requires painstaking and expensive research. The Lead Discovery Center develops potential drugs to the point at which industry can take over.
Steel used for vehicles should make them light and economical, offer protection in accidents and impose as few limits on designers as possible. Scientists working with Georg Frommeyer create alloys to meet these requirements.
Rechargeable lithium batteries have a big future as energy storage. Discoveries by Joachim Maier and his co-workers in the field of nanoionics help boost their performance.
The staff at Max Planck Innovation help turn bold ideas into applications. They assist researchers with licensing negotiations and establishing spin-offs.
