Press Releases

The future has a color: it is extreme ultraviolet (EUV). With the help of light in this particularly short-wave spectral range, so-called EUV light, it is possible, for example, to produce smaller and more powerful microchips than ever before. But further research faces a problem: Experiments with laser-like EUV light can usually only be conducted at expensive large-scale research facilities. Jena scientist Robert Klas wants to change that. He has developed a compact EUV laser module that can be used to generate this special light much more cost-effectively. Potential applications are possible in semiconductor manufacturing and microscopy. Robert Klas has now been awarded the Hugo Geiger Award for his work.

The European Union is providing 4.3 million euros in funding for a new project to research high-security quantum communication via satellites. In the QUDICE project, an international team of researchers, including members of the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF, aims to develop components for space-based distribution of quantum keys. The new hardware is expected to become one day the basis of a European satellite network. At Fraunhofer IOF, a miniaturized source for generating entangled light particles in the telecommunications wavelength range will be built specifically for this purpose. The project has recently started its three-year term.

They fly high above our heads and are indispensable for our globally networked world: satellites. For a long time, they used radio waves to exchange data with each other and with ground stations. But in a highly networked world with a rapidly growing volume of data, these have long been insufficient to cope with the volume of data. The solution: light. Light enables data to be transmitted much faster - and, especially with entangled light particles known as quanta, much more securely. At SPIE Photonics West from January 31 to February 2, the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF will be presenting several innovations for laser- and quantum-based communication together with its project partners from quantum communication and space research.

Optics that do not fog up and almost do not reflect - this will be possible in the future due to a new optical coating system developed by researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF. The technology is expected to help improve the performance of lidar systems and cameras in, for example, autonomous driving cars. The research team has now presented the new process in a paper published in the journal "Applied Optics".

To support start-ups and fresh ideas in the field of optics and photonics: That is the goal of the "Digital Innovation Hub Photonics" (DIHP). On January 12, for the fifth time, the Hub invited photonics fans and (prospective) founders to present their innovative research and business projects in an "Elevator Pitch". Awards were given for research ideas that aim to stem the death of bees, for example, but also for projects in bioanalytics or medical technology.

An international team of researchers, including scientists from Jena, has succeeded in developing a new and particularly precise type of measurement in tiny quantum systems. Applications are conceivable in semiconductor manufacturing, for example, but also in mobile radio technology or microscopy in the future. Experimental tests to prove the study were carried out on Germany's first quantum computer, the Fraunhofer "QSystemOne", among others. The researchers have now published their results in the journal "Nature Physics".

As the crow flies, the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF is 1.7 kilometers away from the Stadtwerke Jena (engl.: public utilities Jena). Over this distance, the institute is using a test link to research the exchange of quantum keys via free beams, i. e. through the air. With the help of this technology, our communication should become highly secure in the future. During the "Lange Nacht der Wissenschaften" (engl.: Long Night of Sciences Jena) on November 25, guests can experience the test link live in action.

Researchers from Europe and Canada want to jointly create the basis for an intercontinental network for quantum communication. The HYPERSPACE project will focus on the investigation of the distribution of entangled photons via satellite. The research project has now started its three-year term.

Bioanalytics, mobile communication, weather research - this year, the winners of the "Applied Photonics Award" have once again demonstrated how broad the fields of application of photonics research are. The young researcher award of the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF was presented to the five award winners of 2022 on October 5 as part of the "Photonics Days Jena".

In a joint research project with car manufacturer BMW, researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF have developed a miniaturized wide-angle 3D camera system. In the future, the camera will monitor the interior of autonomously driving vehicles using 3D sensors, thus ensuring greater safety on the roads of the future. The system will be presented at the K trade fair in Düsseldorf from October 19 to 26.