Press Releases

Researchers and entrepreneurs from Jena are winning hearts – literally. Together with the start-up NovaPump from Jena and the Jena University Hospital, the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF has developed innovative heart valves and pumps. On the occasion of World Heart Day on September 29, we look back on the history of a long-standing and cordial cooperation.

The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is funding a new regional research alliance in Thuringia with approximately twelve million euros: QUANTIFISENS. The aim is to develop an innovative sensor platform based on fiber-optic and quantum technology processes. The Free State of Thuringia will thus be further strengthened to become the leading center for special optical fiber technologies. With a kickoff on September 27 in Jena QUANTIFISENS has now entered its three-year research phase.

The Thuringian Ministry of Science has provided eleven million euros in funding for developing an infrastructure for quantum communication networks in the Free State Thuringia, Germany. This includes a fiber-based test route between Jena and Erfurt. Partners of the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF have now successfully exchanged quantum keys on the 75 km route for the first time.

30 years ago, the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF was founded in Jena. The institute celebrated three decades of optics and photonics research with an anniversary celebration on July 7. Among the guests were representatives of state and federal politics as well as the Fraunhofer Executive Board. They also celebrated the topping-out ceremony for the institute's newest research building. In the future, especially quantum research will be advanced here.

The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has funded the "Quantum Photonics Labs" at the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF with 8.5 million euros since 2019. The project aimed to develop instruments for controlling quantum systems and thus developing key components for the challenges of the second quantum revolution. Now the project results are available.

New hope in the fight against cancer: A research team at the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF has worked closely with Varian Medical Systems (Fraunhofer IOF’s industrial partner) to develop a novel system for tumor radiotherapy, which improves cancer patients’ chances of recovery. The scientists behind the project were awarded the Joseph von Fraunhofer Prize for the overall system, which is ready for production.

Recently, the first hyperspectral satellite developed and built in Germany was launched into space. Its name: EnMAP. In the future, it will analyze Earth’s environment from space, making visible not only the consequences of climate change but also potential natural hazards. A total of eleven mirrors and various optical layers for telescope and spectrometer optics were manufactured for this mission at the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF in Jena. One month after the launch, the first images from space are now available.

Was there life on Mars? This is the question that the European Space Agency (ESA) is setting out to answer with its ExoMars mission. The mission, in which Russia is a participant, is scheduled to launch this fall, although recent political developments have raised questions as to whether this will be possible. Part of the mission is an exciting analytical system that was designed to operate in space and was created as part of the research work conducted at the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF. The Jena-based researchers developed the miniaturized laser module for the Exo-Mars Rover's mobile laboratory. The institute will present this Raman spectrometer, which is fitted with a diode-pumped solid-state laser and is the size of a 50-cent coin, at the LASER World of Photonics in Munich from April 26 to 29.

The World of Quantum is celebrating its premiere this year at the world's leading trade fair for photonics. The LASER trade fair is thus taking the rapidly growing market for quantum technologies into account. From April 26 to 29, several Fraunhofer institutes will be presenting their latest developments in this field and their respective areas of application in Hall A4, Booth 180.

The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is funding a consortium led by the Stuttgart-based quantum start-up Q.ANT with 45 million euros. The consortium partners are contributing a further eight million euros. The funding will be used to build a demonstration and test facility for photonic quantum computer chips and other quantum computing components. The consortium also includes the Institute of Applied Physics (IAP) at Friedrich Schiller University Jena and the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF. Both are taking on development tasks worth 12.6 million euros in the project.