Solar cells from algae

Fossil diatoms could be used to produce silicon in the future

07-Oct-2024 - The HAWK University of Applied Sciences and Arts Hildesheim/Holzminden/Göttingen is researching the suitability of fossil algae as a raw material for solar cells in cooperation with the University of Oran in Algeria. These algae are found in so-called diatomaceous earth, also known as diatomite. ...

How can life emerge in a world of minerals?

The European Research Council (ERC) has awarded an ERC Synergy Grant to the project “The role of silica at the dawn of life on our planet” (PROTOS)

30-Oct-2023 - How did our planet become habitable? The first five hundred million years of planet Earth – the so-called Hadean – have been shrouded in mystery so far because there are no remains of rocks from those times. The discovery that the planet already had water then has opened up new perspectives on a ...

Nanomaterials: 3D Printing of Glass without Sintering

Process Works at Relatively Low Temperatures and Reaches Highest Resolution for Use in Optics and Semiconductors

20-Jun-2023 - A new process developed at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) enables printing of nanometer-scale quartz glass structures directly onto semiconductor chips. A hybrid organic-inorganic polymer resin is used as feedstock material for 3D printing of silicon dioxide. Since the process works ...

Nanoparticles drill holes at will in silicon

Industrially usable technique for producing porous silicon and glass opens up fresh perspectives for numerous applications

21-Feb-2023 - A Hamburg-based research team has developed a new method for producing a network of large to very fine pores in silicon and glass. At DESY’s X-ray source PETRA III, scientists led by DESY researchers Stella Gries and Patrick Huber were able to analyse the porosity using X-ray tomography. The ...

A sieve for molecules

“Materials like this with selective permeability are in high demand in industry”

09-Mar-2022 - Scientists have long tried to use graphene, which is composed of carbon, as a kind of sieve. But this material doesn’t have any pores. Now, a team has found an alternative material which comes with pores from the outset. Researchers from Bielefeld, Bochum and Yale have succeeded in producing a ...

Merck opens second production line for silica-based effect pigments in Gernsheim

Investment of nearly € 28 million in Gernsheim strengthens manufacturing site

22-Sep-2021 - Merck opens a second production line for silica-based effect pigments. Around 750 employees work at this site, which is home to Merck's largest pigment production facility worldwide. With this investment, Merck will significantly increase production capacities for silicon dioxide flakes, a ...

Ultrafast snapshots of relaxing electrons in solids

18-Sep-2017 - Using ultrafast flashes of laser and x-ray radiation, scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics took snapshots of the briefest electron motion inside a solid material to date. The electron motion lasted only 750 billionths of the billionth of a second before it fainted, setting a ...

A perfect team for nanoelectronics

Polymer-coated silicon nanosheets as alternative to graphene

09-Mar-2017 - Silicon nanosheets are thin, two-dimensional layers with exceptional optoelectronic properties very similar to those of graphene. Albeit, the nanosheets are less stable. Now researchers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) have, for the first time ever, produced a composite material ...

Evonik acquires silica business for 630 million US dollars

12-Dec-2016 - Evonik Industries AG acquires the silica business of the US company J.M. Huber for 630 million US dollars. This enables Evonik to expand its position in North America and Asia in this profitable and resilient business. “Huber Silica will significantly strengthen our growth segment Resource ...

Electric current at record speed

Scientists have generated the fastest electric current that has ever been measured inside a solid material

27-Oct-2016 - In the field of electronics, the principle 'the smaller, the better' applies. Some building blocks of computers or mobile phones, however, have become nearly as small today as only a few atoms. It is therefore hardly possible to reduce them any further. Another factor for the performance of ...