HypMol
We are pleased to announce that HYP*MOL has been approved as a Collaborative Research Center / Transregio of the German Research Foundation and will be funded with more than 13 million Euros. From October 2023 to mid-2027, Leipzig University and Chemnitz University of Technology will host this research network of 17 subprojects with a total of 29 project leaders.
Graphic: Jacob Müller; Photos used: Jacob Müller & Christian Hüller
A new study with the participation of HYP*MOL spokespersons Georgeta Salvan and Jörg Matysik, the results of which have now been published in the journal Chemical Science, demonstrates a polaron effect in cyanobacteriochromes. It is a light-induced switching process that could be traced in detail over individual sub-process steps, also thanks to innovative sample preparation methods developed by first author Lisa Köhler. Corresponding effects are known primarily from solid-state physics, so that semiconductor physicist Georgeta Salvan played a key role in data interpretation.
Image: Jacob Müller
The Deputy Spokesperson of HYP*MOL, Georgeta Salvan became a member of the Editorial Board of Scientific Reports in April 2023. Salvan who is focusing on semiconductor physics, is now active in the journal’s condensed matter physics section.
Photo: Jacob Müller
On April 14, 2023, consortium member Tanja Gulder was admitted to the Saxon Academy of Sciences and Humanities, which has existed since 1846. The organic chemist with a focus on biomimetic catalysis is now part of the Mathematical-Natural Sciences Class. Membership in the Academy is reserved for top researchers and offers the opportunity for interdisciplinary exchange at the highest professional level. The honour assiociated with membership is underscored by a full 12 Nobel Laureates in the list of past and present academy members. In the video at this link, Tanja Gulder presents her exciting research to the Academy.
Photo: Dirk Brzoska, Image: Sächsische Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Leipzig
Kirill Monakhov is amongst Invited Speakers from imec, Samsung Electronics, Google, and other key technology companies and research institutions at the 26th edition of International Interconnect Technology Conference, a joint event with Materials for Advanced Metallization Conference in Dresden, May 22-25, 2023. He will present the results of his group about “Solution-Processable Molecular Oxides for Integrated Memories” at Session 10: Novel System and Emerging Technology.
The working groups of Matysik, Sommer, and Künze together with colleagues from Leipzig and Spain have obtained new insights into the mechanism by which enzymes degrade polyethylene terephthalate (PET), one of the most widely used plastic materials. Enzymatic PET degradation is considered a possible eco-friendly recycling solution for plastic waste. Using solid-state NMR spectroscopy and numerical simulations, the authors were able to monitor the PET hydrolysis catalyzed by the thermophilic enzyme TfCut2 in real-time and detect important reaction intermediates and their interaction with the enzyme’s active site. The results of that study will be published in the next issue of ACS Catalysis.
In the jungle around the Störmthaler See, a lake between the cities of HYPzig and SPINnitz, biologists discovered a new flower. The new flower has been named “HYPERcinth” and because of its intense color: “Müller-red HYPERcynth”. See figure. For further taxonomic and genetic studies, the plant has been brought to the TU SPINnitz.
The group of Kirill Monakhov (IOM, Leipzig) in collaboration with the Institute of Spintronics and Quantum Information of the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań (Poland), the Quantum Chemistry Group of the Universitat Rovira i Virgili (Spain), and colleagues from the University of Leipzig discovers unique electron-transport compounds with bio-inspired crosstalk. The obtained results pave the way for tailoring and control of lanthanide-dependent charge-separated states and relaxation dynamics as well as of electron hopping between active building blocks of these solution-processable compounds.
The results have now been published in the journal Inorganic Chemistry and featured on the Front Cover.
Photo: Christian Hüller
The Wiegand lab recently contributed a chapter with the title “Solid-state NMR spectroscopy and dynamic nuclear polarization” to the book “Integrated Structural Biology”, which has just been accepted for publication at RCS. Several aspects of solid-state NMR and DNP, including recent advances and applications to integrated structural biology are discussed. A particular focus is also put on the role played by these techniques in concert with other experimental approaches.
HYP*MOL member Christoph Tegenkamp spoke on “Electronic transport along chiral nanostructures” at the CISSORs seminar (March 15 2023), which is held regularly by the CISS Effect community initiated by the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot. Our highly esteemed colleague Yossi Paltiel is one of the essential minds behind this network. Feel free to take a look at the talk: