Science News

With the aim of advancing integrated CO₂ capture and electrochemical conversion, researchers from the Interface Science Department of the Fritz Haber Institute investigated how the concentration of KHCO₃, a typical CO₂ capture medium, controls the electrochemical conversion of CO₂ on copper in a membrane-electrode-assembly (MEA) electrolyzer.
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Researchers from the Molecular Physics and Physical Chemistry Departments of the Fritz Haber Institute have shown how two highly synchronized infrared (IR) laser beams can control molecules as they switch between different structural conformations. Their technique provides a new window into how molecules rearrange themselves during chemical reactions, offering fundamental insights into the microscopic processes that govern chemistry. more

An international team of researchers from the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society and the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) directly observed how angular momentum is transferred and conserved within a crystal lattice. Using intense terahertz laser pulses, the researchers were able to selectively control these processes, which unveiled a surprising effect: during the angular momentum transfer, the direction of rotation reverses – caused by the rotational symmetry of the material. The results provide new insights into the foundation of magnetism and open up possibilities for tailored control of quantum materials. more

Researchers from the Department of Physical Chemistry at the Fritz Haber Institute and Freie Universität Berlin have revealed the arrangement of water molecules at the interface between liquid water and air. Their findings help to better understand interfacial chemistry, which is largely determined by the specific arrangement of the water molecules. The study shows that one parameter in particular - one that has been neglected until now - is of fundamental importance: the water twist. more

With the aim to precisely understand its function, researchers from the Inorganic Chemistry Department and Interface Science Department of the Fritz Haber Institute, together with colleagues from the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Energy Conversion investigated the Cu/ZnO/Al₂O₃ catalyst system used for industrial methanol production during reaction conditions. They found that the dynamic, temperature-sensitive nature of the Cu-ZnO interaction is the key to its function – opening up new avenues for rationally improving this process. more

Researchers in the Inorganic Chemistry Department at the Fritz Haber Institute, together with partners in the National Research Data Infrastructure project FAIRmat, have developed a repository for standardized experimental catalysis data. The platform enables reliable data sharing and provides a strong foundation for artificial-intelligence-driven analysis. more

Self-driving laboratories (SDLs) powered by artificial intelligence (AI) are rapidly accelerating materials discovery, but can they also explain their results? Researchers from the Theory Department of the Fritz Haber Insitute, in collaboration with BASF, and BasCat – UniCat BASF JointLab, show that they can. Their new AI-driven strategy works hand-in-hand with SDLs to identify better catalysts while revealing the chemistry behind their performance. The approach was validated on the industrially crucial conversion of propane into propylene. more