Max Planck Institutes and Experts

The terrestrial biosphere is an integral component of the Earth system. Are there general principles which might explain and predict the functioning of the biosphere and its interaction with the Earth system? This question is central to the work of the biospheric theory and modeling group at the Max-Planck-Institute for Biogeochemistry, and is addressed by using concepts from thermodynamics, statistical mechanics and optimality. After a brief description of the biosphere as a dissipative system, three examples are given to demonstrate the strength of these approaches.

Many organisms exhibit photoreceptors in order to adapt to changing light conditions. The photoreceptor family of phototropins and the only recently identified BLUF (sensor of blue light using FAD) photoreceptors control a number of interesting cellular processes depending on blue light signals. By quantum chemical and structural investigations, important insights into the mechanism of function of these light switches have been gathered at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research.

Nanostructures are in the focus of research in technology, medicine and biology. The Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics in Halle currently develops a major research project which deals with the deposition of thin inorganic films, biological, organic and inorganic nanostructures and the exploitation of such functionalized materials, for applications in medicine, electronics, catalysis, and sensing.

Complex metallic alloy phases are intermetallic compounds with prominent features compared to simple metallic systems. They are based on giant unit cells comprising up to more than thousands atoms per cell, hierarchical structures and inherent disorder phenomena. The characteristic features originate from a cluster substructure, which controls short and long range order as well as the physical properties.

Three novel techniques for micro- and nanostructuring soft and delicate materials, such as polymers are presented. Compared with conventional processes they have the advantage of being low-cost, fast, and straightforward. They are based on simple physical and chemical effects: polymers can be crosslinked with plasma or UV-irradiation, and they can be locally solved or swollen with solvents.