Four scientists from the Fritz Haber Institute attended the 74th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting in Chemistry, held from June 29 to July 4, 2025. The event featured 33 Nobel Laureates and over 600 young scientists worldwide. more

Researcher from the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society (FHI) have recently contributed to the 8th African School on Electronic Structure Methods and Applications (ASESMA), held from June 9th to 20th, 2025, at the University of Ghana. more

The Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society is pleased to announce that Prof. Dr. Héctor D. Abruña has been selected as the 2025 Ertl Lecture Awardee. This prestigious award recognizes outstanding contributions to the field of electrocatalysis, honoring individuals who have made significant advancements in scientific research. more

Prof. Dr. Thomas Lunkenbein, formerly the group leader in the Department of Inorganic Chemistry at the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, has been appointed as a professor at the University of Bayreuth and has accepted the position. Starting in June, he will assume the professorship for Operando Analytics of Electrochemical Energy Storage. more

Researchers have developed a new microscope that can visualize the optical response of surfaces at an unprecedented spatial resolution of one nanometer. This paves the way for optical microscopy of atomic-scale structures, such as single molecules and atomic defects. Such capability is important for optical engineering of nanomaterials and surfaces at angstrom scales. more

In order to develop improved electrolysers for regenerative hydrogen production, the processes on the surfaces of the metal electrodes used must be precisely understood. Researchers from the Theory Department at the Fritz Haber Institute have now been able to show that even the smallest spillover of metal electrons into the aqueous electrolyte environment is sufficient to increase the energy storage capacity more than tenfold. Only if computer simulations take this quantum mechanical effect into account can they be used reliably to investigate promising new electrolyser materials. more

Researchers from the Interface Science Department (ISC) of the Fritz Haber Institute and the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) have provided insight into the significant morphological changes that Cu surfaces undergo during the electrochemical reduction of CO₂, which influences the type of products formed. This combined theory (UCLA)-experimental ISC-FHI) study highlights the importance of specific surface defects, that are created and transformed in the course of the reaction, for enhancing the efficiency of CO₂ conversion into industrially valuable chemicals. more