HZB to participate in two Clusters of Excellence
Scientists at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) are researching novel systems of materials that can convert or store energy. The HZB will now also be contributing this expertise to the "MATH+" and "UniSysCat" Excellence Clusters being coordinated by Berlin universities. Over the next three years, the Helmholtz Association will fund HZB's participation under the Helmholtz Excellence Network with a total of 1.8 million euros.
Prof. Christiane Becker, who heads the Nanooptics Group at HZB in the Renewable Energies division, is involved in the "MATH+" Excellence Cluster. Becker investigates and develops optoelectronic materials with nanoscale features for solar cells and sensors and cooperates closely with mathematicians in MATH+. Their common goal is the development of highly efficient next-generation solar energy technologies, such as improved light management in tandem perovskite-silicon solar cells, for example. They will also work together on hybrid components for the production of solar fuels and develop simulation and optimisation methods.
MATH+ partner
MATH+ is the short name for "Forschungszentrum der Berliner Mathematik / Berlin Mathematics Research Center". The Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Technische Universität Berlin as well as the Weierstrass Institute for Applied Analysis and Stochastics and the Zuse Institute Berlin are all participating in this project. The Helmholtz Association will fund HZB's participation with 800,000 euros from the Helmholtz Initiative and Networking Fund over the next three years.
UniSysCat: Focus on catalysis
Researchers in the "UniSysCat" (Unifying Systems in Catalysis) Excellence Cluster are developing complex catalytic systems. They focus on catalytic processes that are activated by sunlight. “These processes make it possible to use sunlight for generation of chemical fuels as well as for high energy-density compounds in a sustainable way. A particular challenge here is to link the rapid absorption processes in semiconductor materials with the often much slower electrochemical reactions of the bound catalyst“, explains Prof. Roel van de Krol, head of the HZB Institute for Solar Fuels. The HZB is contributing its particular expertise in material synthesis of thin-film absorbers, photoelectrochemistry, and time-resolved optical spectroscopy.
UniSysCat partner
UniSysCat is being coordinated by the Technische Universität Berlin. In addition, teams from Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, the University of Potsdam, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Fritz Haber Institute, Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces (MPIKG), and the Leibniz Institute for Molecular Pharmacology (FMP) are also participating. The Helmholtz Association will fund the HZB‘s participation with 1 million euros over the next three years from the Helmholtz Initiative and Networking Fund.
- BESSY II: How intrinsic oxygen shortens the lifespan of solid-state batteriesAlthough solid-state batteries (SSBs) demonstrate high performance and are intrinsically safe, their capacity currently declines rapidly. A team from the TU Wien, Humboldt-University Berlin and HZB has now analysed a TiS₂|Li₃YCl₆ solid-state half-cell in operando at BESSY II using a special sample environment that allows for non-destructive investigation under real operating conditions. Data obtained by combination of soft and hard X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS and HAXPES) revealed a new degradation mechanism that had not previously been identified in solid-state batteries. They have gained some surprising insights, particularly regarding the harmful role played by intrinsic oxygen. This study provides valuable information for improving design and handling of such batteries.
- Spintronics at BESSY II: Real-time analysis of magnetic bilayer systemsSpintronic devices enable data processing with significantly lower energy consumption. They are based on the interaction between ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic layers. Now, a team from Freie Universität Berlin, HZB and Uppsala University has succeeded in tracking, for each layer separately, how the magnetic order changes after a short laser pulse has excited the system. They were also able to identify the main cause of the loss of antiferromagnetic order in the oxide layer: the excitation is transported from the hot electrons in the ferromagnetic metal to the spins in the antiferromagnet.
- Electrocatalysts: New model for charge separation at the solid-liquid interfaceHydrogen is at the heart of the transition to carbon neutrality, as both an energy carrier and a reagent for green chemistry. However, large-scale production of hydrogen via electrolysis, as well as the production of many other chemical products, requires significantly cheaper and more efficient catalysts. A precise understanding of the electrochemical processes that take place at the interface between the solid catalyst and the liquid medium is highly useful for developing better electrocatalysts. In the journal Nature Communications, an European team has now presented a powerful model that determines charge separation at the interface, the formation of the electric double layer and local electric potential variations, and the resulting influence on the catalytic activity.