Honorary doctorate for Prof. Hans-Werner Schock

Prof. Hans-Werner Schock (3.f.l.) receives the honorary doctorate at University  of Tallinn.

Prof. Hans-Werner Schock (3.f.l.) receives the honorary doctorate at University of Tallinn.

Tallinn University of Technology (TTU) has named Prof. Hans-Werner Schock recipient of an honorary doctorate in recognition of Schock’s achievements during TTU’s integration into the Western research community after the 1990 fall of the Iron Curtain.

According to Schock, “TTU was already actively conducting research on monograin layer solar cells way before 1990.” Once the Iron Curtain came down, it was necessary to integrate solid Eastern European research sites like Tallinn into the European research community.

“At the time, I was coordinator for a major EU project and had the chance to win over Estland with TTU as one of our partnering institutes,” says Schock. This marked the beginning of a regular success story: The TTU Institute of Materials Science quickly became integrated in the wet european research alliances and built up a solid international reputation for itself. Schock continued to collaborate with TTU over the years: “At this point, TTU has established itself as an important player in photovoltaics research – our collaboration has consistently proven very fruitful.”

Today, the university is internationally ranked among the very top. Hans-Werner Schock is the man to thank for giving the initial impulse back in the 90’s. Reason enough for TTU to bestow upon him their honorary doctorate in mid-September of this year.

HS

  • Copy link

You might also be interested in

  • Perovskite solar cells: Predictions of long-term stability
    Science Highlight
    25.06.2026
    Perovskite solar cells: Predictions of long-term stability
    Reliable statements about the long-term stability of perovskite solar cells are still difficult to make. However, a new study by Dr Carolin Ulbrich’s team, published in the renowned journal Joule, highlights which methods are useful for this purpose and identifies areas where further research is needed.
  • Solar experts meet in Berlin
    News
    15.06.2026
    Solar experts meet in Berlin
    The sixth tandemPV Workshop will take place in Berlin, Germany from June 17-19, 2026, hosted by Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin.

  • AI agents deliver results – but do they reason scientifically?
    News
    01.06.2026
    AI agents deliver results – but do they reason scientifically?
    A research team co-led by Kevin Maik Jablonka from the Helmholtz Institute for Polymers in Energy Applications Jena (HIPOLE Jena) and N. M. Anoop Krishnan from the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi has developed Corral, a new benchmark for AI agents in science. The preprint “AI scientists produce results without reasoning scientifically” has been published on arXiv (https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2604.18805). The analysis shows that current systems can execute scientific workflows and deliver results; however, they often do not follow the basic principles of scientific testing and reasoning.