Steve Albrecht is one of the “Highly Cited Researchers 2023”
Only a few researchers manage to become internationally recognised in their field. Perovskite researcher Steve Albrecht is one of them, in particular because his team did contribute to several world records for silicon perovskite tandem solar cells. © M. Setzpfandt / HZB
Every year, countless articles are published in specialist journals. The information service provider Clarivate uses a recognised method to measure the influence of the published articles on the respective subject area. According to this year's evaluation, HZB researcher Steve Albrecht is one of the most "highly cited researchers" having a significant influence on his field. Albrecht and his team have been involved in several world records for tandem solar cells in recent years and have published the results in high-ranking scientific journals.
Only one in 1000 active researchers belongs to the circle of “Highly Cited Researchers”. Over the past ten years, those selected have produced a number of excellent publications that other work can build on and which are therefore frequently cited. However, citation activity is not the only selection indicator, writes Clarivate, a company that analyses the Web of Science: For example, publications that show evidence of citation cartels or self-citations have been weeded out. This year, 6,849 researchers from 68 countries and regions were honoured.
From the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin, Prof. Dr Steve Albrecht was identified as a “Highly Cited Researcher”. Albrecht leads a team researching perovskite materials for solar cells. Together with other groups at HZB and partner institutions, he has set several world records for the efficiency of tandem solar cells. His research is widely recognised, as evidenced by the “Highly Cited Researchers” award, and is making a significant contribution to the advancement of research in solar energy.
Note: HZB researcher Antonio Abate is also one of the "Highly Cited Researchers 2023", albeit not as an HZB researcher, but with an affiliation to one of his previous academic stations. Abate is also researching perovskite solar cells, which makes HZB perovskite research visible worldwide.
- Marcel Risch has been appointed Professor at the Freie Universität BerlinMarcel Risch was appointed to a W2-S professorship in the Department of Physics at Freie Universität Berlin in August 2026. His research group has been transformed into the department 'Mechanisms of Sustainable Electrocatalysis'. Risch investigates the fundamental mechanisms of electrocatalytic reactions and, on this basis, develops knowledge- and data-driven strategies to improve electrocatalysts for the sustainable production of hydrogen, fuels and chemicals.
- BESSY II: Evaporated perovskites in tandem solar cells improvedPerovskite-silicon tandem solar cells achieve significantly higher efficiencies than silicon solar cells on their own. One particularly attractive method is co-evaporation of the perovskite precursor molecules on top of the silicon subcell. Scientists at HZB have analysed film growth on the nanoscale at BESSY II and found a new way to improve the quality of the perovskite layer: adding a thin seed layer of caesium chloride between the two sub-cells promotes uniform perovskite growth and suppresses the formation of undesired lead iodide at the interface.
- Hatice Mutlu appointed to the Helmholtz Institute HIPOLE in JenaProf. Dr Hatice Mutlu is the new professor of sustainable polymer chemistry at HIPOLE Jena, the Helmholtz Institute for Polymers in Energy Applications. On 17 August 2026, she visited the HZB campus in Berlin-Adlershof including the BESSY II lightsource and discussed future collaboration with researchers and the board of directors.