Registration for Summer School Quantsol is now open!
The Quantsol will be held from 2. to 9. September 2018 in Hirschegg, Kleinwalsertal, Austria.
© K.Lips /HZB
Learning about solar fuels and photovoltaics goes green: Last year’s Quantsol students came from all over the world to meet solar energy experts in the Austrian Alps. The location offers space for 56 students. © K. Lips /HZB
It is already the eleventh time that the International Summer School on Photovoltaics and New Concepts of Quantum Solar Energy Conversion (Quantsol) will be held from 2. to 9. September 2018 in Hirschegg, Kleinwalsertal, Austria. The school is organized by the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin and the Technical University of Ilmenau. Applications can be submitted through the school’s homepage until May 18th , 2018.
“The Quantsol summer school offers a very comprehensive introduction to the field of photovoltaics and photocatalysis and is a great learning experience and a “must attend” for PhD students and postdocs in their early career. In the past, we have received an overwhelmingly positive feedback leading to oversubscription of the school every year” says Prof. Dr. Klaus Lips from Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin.
Invited speakers, all internationally recognized scientists from leading world institutions, will give lectures covering topics on the fundamental principles of the conversion of solar energy into chemical and electrical energy as well as the physical and technical challenges of their technological implementation. Another focus lies on solar-specific material science and their characterization. In addition, the school will give hands-on training on how to build your own solar cell as well as an introduction to solar cell simulation.
If you are interested to participate in the Quantsol Summer School you can find much more detailed information on our homepage or in our flyer (download right).
The deadline for application is May 18, 2018.
Here you get directly to the application form.
If you will not be able to attend this years’ Quantsol summer school – no worries - the next school has already scheduled for September 1 to 8, 2019.
- Porous Radical Organic framework improves lithium-sulphur batteriesA team led by Prof. Yan Lu, HZB, and Prof. Arne Thomas, Technical University of Berlin, has developed a material that enhances the capacity and stability of lithium-sulphur batteries. The material is based on polymers that form a framework with open pores (known as radical-cationic covalent organic frameworks or COFs). Catalytically accelerated reactions take place in these pores, firmly trapping polysulphides, which would shorten the battery life. Some of the experimental analyses were conducted at the BAMline at BESSY II.
- Shedding light on insulators: how light pulses unfreeze electronsMetal oxides are abundant in nature and central to technologies such as photocatalysis and photovoltaics. Yet, many suffer from poor electrical conduction, caused by strong repulsion between electrons in neighboring metal atoms. Researchers at HZB and partner institutions have shown that light pulses can temporarily weaken these repulsive forces, lowering the energy required for electrons mobility, inducing a metal-like behavior. This discovery offers a new way to manipulate material properties with light, with high potential to more efficient light-based devices.
- Key technology for a future without fossil fuelsIn June and July 2025, catalyst researcher Nico Fischer spent some time at HZB. It was his sabbatical, he was relieved of his duties as Director of the Catalysis Institute in Cape Town for several months and was able to focus on research only. His institute is collaborating with HZB on two projects that aim to develop environmentally friendly alternatives using innovative catalyst technologies. The questions were asked by Antonia Rötger, HZB.