HZB is member of the IGAFA initiative in Adlershof
What are the activities of IGAFA?
Since September 2020, the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin is again a member of IGAFA - the Initiative of Non-University Research Institutions in Adlershof. Prof. Dr. Jan Lüning, scientific director of the HZB, was elected to the association's board.
The tasks of IGAFA include the promotion of interdisciplinary cooperation, the promoting of scientific content through publications and events and the care of international guests in two meeting centers (see figure).
In addition, IGAFA sees itself as an interface between research and the public interested in science. For this reason, IGAFA participates, for example, in the Adlershof Dissertation Prize, the Long Night of Sciences, or supervises the Adlershof Ladies Network.
- HZB patent for semiconductor characterisation goes into serial productionAn HZB team has developed an innovative monochromator that is now being produced and marketed by a company. The device makes it possible to quickly and continuously measure the optoelectronic properties of semiconductor materials with high precision over a broad spectral range from the near infrared to the deep ultraviolet. Stray light is efficiently suppressed. This innovation is of interest for the development of new materials and can also be used to better control industrial processes.
- BESSY II: Heterostructures for SpintronicsSpintronic devices work with spin textures caused by quantum-physical interactions. A Spanish-German collaboration has now studied graphene-cobalt-iridium heterostructures at BESSY II. The results show how two desired quantum-physical effects reinforce each other in these heterostructures. This could lead to new spintronic devices based on these materials.
- Postdocs at HZB: Crucial for research, innovation and diversityAt HZB, 117 postdocs from 29 countries are employed. They play a crucial role in driving the main research activities, fostering creativity and innovation. To honor them, the Postdoc Appreciation Week was first organised in the USA in 2009 and has in the meantime become a regular event in Germany as well in the third week of September every year.