Recommended reading: Bunsen magazine with focus on molecular water research

Water not only has some well-known anomalies, but is still full of surprises. The first issue 2023 of the Bunsen Magazine is dedicated to molecular water research, from the ocean to processes in electrolysis. The issue presents contributions from researchers cooperating within the framework of a European research initiative in the "Centre for Molecular Water Science" (CMWS). A team at HZB presents results from the synchrotron spectroscopy of water. Modern X-ray sources can be used to study molecular and electronic processes in water in detail.

With their report on "Local and collective properties of water", Annette Pietzsch, Robert Seidel and Alexander Föhlisch from HZB describe insights on the nature of water, gained with synchrotron spectroscopy at BESSY II. For example, water, which is normally a perfect insulator, can become metallic under certain conditions.

Other contributions explain the challenges of desalinating seawater, processes in electrolysis or structures in ice on the nanoscale.

These insights help in the design of even better climate models, in environmental research, the design of drugs and vaccines, but also in the development of novel catalysts for green hydrogen or other important technologies. 

Downloads

arö

  • Copy link

You might also be interested in

  • Leading Sasol scientist appointed as Industrial Research Fellow at HZB
    News
    11.02.2025
    Leading Sasol scientist appointed as Industrial Research Fellow at HZB
    Within the CARE-O-SENE project, HZB is cooperating with the South African company Sasol on innovative catalysts for sustainable aviation fuels (SAF). Now, the collaboration is intensifying: Dr. Denzil Moodley, a leading scientist in the field of Fischer-Tropsch at Sasol Research and Technology, is being appointed as Industrial Research Fellow at HZB. Moodley will contribute his expertise at HZB with the aim of accelerating the innovation cycle for sustainable fuel technologies.
  • HZB Sets New World Record for CIGS Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells
    News
    04.02.2025
    HZB Sets New World Record for CIGS Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells
    Combining two semiconductor thin films into a tandem solar cell can achieve high efficiencies with a minimal environmental footprint. Teams from HZB and Humboldt University Berlin have now presented a CIGS-perovskite tandem cell that sets a new world record with an efficiency of 24.6%, certified by the independent Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems.

  • Nanoislands on silicon with switchable topological textures
    Science Highlight
    20.01.2025
    Nanoislands on silicon with switchable topological textures
    Nanostructures with specific electromagnetic patterns promise applications in nanoelectronics and future information technologies. However, it is very challenging to control those patterns. Now, a team at HZB examined a specific class of nanoislands on silicon with interesting chiral, swirling polar textures, which can be stabilised and even reversibly switched by an external electric field.