News

Researchers of the Laboratory for Mesoscopic Systems with colleagues at the Paul Scherrer Institute, the University of Oxford and the Max Plank Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids have developed a pioneering X-ray technique to probe the 3D orientation of a material’s building blocks at the nanoscale. The technique allows the visualization of crystal grains, grain boundaries and defects - critical factors that govern material performance.

On 6 December 2024, eight doctoral students and postdocs followed an invitation by the Competence Center for Materials and Processes (MaP) Doctoral School Small track on an excursion to Basel. They were curious about the new ETH D-BSSE building and the research of two of the MaP research groups located there.

Research team led by the Laboratory for Soft Materials and Interfaces have created microcapsule arrays that can simultaneously record the different history of stress levels by changing color. This technology enables monitoring microscale damage and pressure in materials.

The Golden Owl honours lecturers who have provided exceptional teaching and motivates them to continue with their excellent teaching.

The MaP Doctoral School hosted its 2024 onboarding event at the Dozentenfoyer last Tuesday, 12 November. Around 60 doctoral students gathered to connect, exchange ideas, and enjoy Zurich’s iconic views over the city and lake. This year’s event focused entirely on building connections — true to the school's motto: “Connecting doctoral students.”

The Dandelion Award is the first award to recognize professors for their outstanding efforts to promote entrepreneurship at ETH Zurich and beyond.

Researchers at the Laboratory for Nanometallurgy have developed a new fabrication method for non-primitive metasurfaces. Thereby the colors of these metasurfaces represent and visualizes light-matter interactions.

Where is generative AI already proving its worth in teaching and what are its limits? Will avatars soon replace lecturers? In this interview, Jan Vermant, Vice Rector for Curriculum Development, talks about trends at ETH and his own experiences.

Materials researchers have created a new composite material that combines two incompatible properties: stiff yet with a high damping capacity.

The MaP ALIVE Symposium, held from 12-13 September 2024 at ETH Zurich, was a resounding success, with over hundred attendees coming together to hear about advancements in engineering with living materials.

Carla Fernandez-Rico has been awarded the SNSF Group Leader Ambizione Fellowship to start her independent research within the Complex Materials' group.

We are delighted to invite you for the inaugural lecture of Prof. Hedan Bai, who will share with us some of the research her team has initiated in the newly established Robotic Materials group at Department of Materials.

Each year outstanding doctoral theses are honored with the Silver Medal of ETH Zurich. This year’s awardees that were supervised by a D-MATL faculty member received their medal at the last doctoral awards ceremony on July 12, 2024.

ETH researchers have modified certain bacteria with UV light so that they produce more cellulose. The basis for this is a new approach with which the researchers generate thousands of bacterial variants and select those that have developed into the most productive.

This well deserved honour recognises Nicola Spaldin's pioneering research on multiferroics. The Honorary Doctorates has been conferred at a special ceremony on June 25th at the Queen's University Belfast.

Using a special wafer-thin gold membrane, ETH researchers have made it significantly easier to study surfaces. The membrane makes it possible to measure properties of surfaces that are inaccessible to conventional methods.

On 20 June 2024, the 19th edition of the MaP Graduate Symposium & MaP Award Final was held at ETH Zentrum. This annual event showcased the innovative research of doctoral students across various departments, fostering a vibrant exchange of ideas and collaboration.

Dr Thaylan Pinheiro Araújo has been awarded the MaP Award 2024 for his exceptional doctoral thesis on "Design of Promoted Reducible Oxide Catalysts for Green Methanol Synthesis".

Researchers at ETH Zurich have shown that quantum states of single electron spins can be controlled by currents of electrons whose spins are evenly aligned. In the future, this method could be used in electronic circuit elements.

Hedan Bai thinks robots should help people and be compostable. She is working on creating robots made of soft materials that can do both.

Athina Anastasaki, Head of Polymeric Materials, receives the 2024 Journal of Polymer Science Innovation Award which recognizes significant research innovation and achievement in a polymer scientist under 40.

Congratulations to Alberto for winning the prize for his poster "solid_dmft: Grey-​boxing the description of strongly correlated materials" on the occasion of the 20-​years-of Nanosience celebration.

Although realized by few, total solar eclipses are one of the most unusual events that nature has to offer. An impression from the Laboratory for Multifunctional Ferroic Materials.

Each year the world's largest association in magnetism – the Division of Magnetism of the German Physical Society (DPG) awards the INNOMAG Prize for the best dissertation. This year it goes deep into the quantum world where magnetism competes with other correlated states.

At its meeting of 6 and 7 March 2024 and upon application of Joël Mesot, President of ETH Zurich, the ETH Board appointed nine professors. The Board also awarded the title of "Professor" three times and the title of "Professor of Practice" once.

Light is an effective tool to probe the polarization and domain distribution in ferroelectric materials non-invasively. With the emergence of oxide electronics, there is now a strong demand to expand the role of light toward active control of the polarization. A research team led by Prof. Trassin and Prof. Fiebig at the ETH Zurich in the DMATL demonstrated the optical control of the ferroelectric polarization in prototypical epitaxial heterostructures.

Athina Anastasaki, Head of Polymeric Materials, receives the 2024 Macromolecular Rapid Communications Junior Researcher Award in the fields of chemistry, physics and application of polymer systems.

The Laboratory of Polymeric Materials presents a new method of initiating and accelerating radical polymerizations.

Professor Jos Malda from the University Medical Center Utrecht and University Utrecht held a lecture at ETH Zentrum last Wednesday, 15 February 2024. About 40 people turned up to hear him talk about “Biofabrication Technologies for Osteochondral Regeneration”. MERCK sponsored the event.

On 1 February 2024, MaP Doctoral School invited its doctoral students on a guided tour through the Zentrum campus facilities of the Student Project House (SPH).

We completed the fourth edition of the workshop Ethics and Scientific Integrity (Part 2) on 12 and 19 January 2024, with 35 participants from MaP Doctoral School. In a peer-​learning format, different approaches to problem-​solving in regards of ethics and scientific integrity were identified and trained, among others, through a role-​play.

Impressions from the MaP Doctoral School Onboarding Event now in motion pictures. Please enjoy!

MaP Doctoral School invited doctoral students affiliated with the Competence Center for Materials and Processes (MaP) to its annual Onboarding Event. After presentations by the school’s track chairs, the attendees networked over snacks and drinks and then headed over to Audi Max for a concert by ManSound, an a cappella group from Ukraine.

Athina Anastasaki, Head of Polymeric Materials, receives the 2024 Werner Prize for outstanding research in the field of chemistry.

Prof. Neil Lin, coming all the way from UCLA to ETH Zurich, contributed a special talk to the Mechanobiology Seminar Series on 6 December 2023.

Athina Anastasaki, Head of the Laboratory of Polymeric Materials, received the EuChemS Lecture Award in recognition of her major achievements, and her outsanding research profile on the field of polymer chemistry.

Modelled on nature: researchers have developed a new material that replicates the structure responsible for the blue feathers of the North American song bird, among many other birds. It also has other striking advantages.

Frans Spaepen was bestowed with an honorary doctorate at the ETH Day in 2020. Because this celebration only occurred online during the Corona pandemic, we now have organized a one-day symposium to celebrate the event. The symposium will end with the Staudinger-Durrer Lecture, presented by Prof. Spaepen, and his honoring with the Staudinger-Durrer Prize by the rector of ETH Zurich, Prof. Günther Dissertori.

Last Wednesday afternoon, Prof. Safa Jamali from Northeastern University (USA) talked about micro- and meso-mechanics of dense suspensions under flow.

Dr. Sara Morgenthaler, study coordnator and lecturer, wins the Golden Owl 2023 awarded by VSETH, for excellent teaching. Congratulations!

Using a new 3D printing technique, researchers at ETH Zurich have developed special ceramic structures for a solar reactor. Initial experimental testing show that these structures can boost the production yield of solar fuels.

Prof. Robert S. Langer (MIT) gave an online lecture about his research journey – from “this approach will not work” to becoming one of the world's most recognised scientists. The lecture was organised by MaP and hosted by Prof. Mark Tibbitt (D-MAVT).

Carla Fernandez-Rico, an ETH Postdoctoral Fellow in the group of Soft and Living Materials, and Complex Materials, has been selected among six other talented scientists, as the 2023 winner of the Women Interactive Materials Award.

Safe the Date: The Department of Materials invites you to the inaugural lectures by Prof. Arkadiy Simonov, Prof. Tanja Zimmermann and Prof. Tae-Lim Choi

After the Corona pandemic, people at LMPT finally had the opportunity to present their accumulated results at international conferences over the Summer and Fall 2023. The results were well received by the international community.

The Laboratory of Polymeric Materials presents the photocatalytic depolymerization of polymers synthesized by ATRP.

Doctoral students presenting and discussing their ideas and research in an informal setting over lunch - that's the idea behind 'MaP Minds & Munchies'. The first edition of the new event series took place on Wednesday, 11 October 2023 at ETH Hönggerberg.

Young scientists from all over the world got together in Corsica to learn about emerging topics in the field of oxide electronics. The summer school was sponsored by MaP Doctoral School.

Researchers from the Laboratory for Nanometallurgy developed an approach that utilizes two self-assembly processes in series to build an optical metamaterial with two distinct functional components: a disordered network and spherical nanoparticles.

Prof. em. ETH Dr. Nicholas D. Spencer and Prof. Antonella Rossi (University of Cagliari, I) have both won the Tribochemistry Award of the Japanese Society of Tribologists (JAST). The awardees are renowned for their research in tribochemistry over a period spanning three decades. The researchers collaborated at the Laboratory for Surface Science and Technology in the Department of Materials, ETH Zurich.

Material surfaces encompass structural and chemical discontinuities that often lead to the loss of the property of interest in so-called dead layers. It is problematic in nanoscale oxide electronics, as it results in a thickness threshold required for the emergence of the materials functionality. An international team, led by Professors M. Trassin and M. Fiebig at D-MATL, reports a groundbreaking achievement: the stabilization of ultrathin ferroelectricity, right from the very first unit cell.

Prof. Aurélien Roux from Geneva University crossed the Röstigraben to wow his audience with fascinating videos of cellular tornadoes and a hydra re-growing back its heads.

25 ALIVE CLiMa stream members met last Tuesday to bring each other up to date on work status and to receive input on open problems.

The MaP Doctoral School was present at the Orientation Event organised by the ETH Zurich Doctoral Administration on September 12, 2023. The aim of the event is to introduce doctoral students to structures and objectives of ETH Zurich, whilst offering an overview of the main services provided by ETH.  

The ETH Industry Day 2023 took place on September 6, 2023, on ETH Campus Hönggerberg. The ETH Competence Center for Materials and Processes (MaP) was present with a booth presenting our further education programme ETH Sabbatical | CAS Advanced Materials and Processes.

The laureate of the 2023 Lise Meitner Award is Professor Nicola Spaldin, who is awarded for “Fundamental theoretical contributions and discoveries in the field of multiferroics”.

17 postdocs met over lunch to listen to three presentations by fellow researchers. Minghan Hu (D-MAVT, formerly D-MATL), Tanner Jankins (D-CHAB), and Alexander Henkes (D-MAVT) detailed their experiences on successfully winning a postdoc fellowship.

The Laboratory of Polymeric Materials presents the bulk depolymerization of polymers synthesized by either ATRP or RAFT polymerization.

Are you a technical expert from industry interested in further educating yourself in the field of advanced materials, process and manufacturing technologies? Come meet us at the ETH Industry Day 2023 and learn about our customised training programme for industry experts.

ETH Zurich mourns the death of materials scientist Ueli W. Suter, ETH Professor Emeritus and former Vice President Research. A personal obituary by his long-time colleague Nicholas Spencer, Professor Emeritus of Surface Science and Technology.

We completed the third edition of the workshop Ethics and Scientific Integrity (Part 2) on 30 Juni 2023, with 19 participants from D-MATL, D-MAVT, D-HEST and D-BAUG. In a peer-​learning format, different approaches to problem-​solving in regards of ethics and scientific integrity were identified and trained, among others, through a role-​play.

Christopher Dreimol (D-BAUG) was elected as student representative in the Executive Committee of the MaP Doctoral School on the occasion of the MaP Graduate Symposium. He is succeeding Zazo Meijs (D-MATL) in this function.

The 18th edition of the MaP Graduate Symposium took place on 22 June 2023 at ETH Zentrum. The Department of Materials was again very successfully represented this year. It is therefore not surprising that several of the awards were given to members of the D-​MATL.

Last Thursday, 22 June 2023, the 18th gathering of ETH Zurich's Materials and Processes community was held at the Zentrum campus. The event featured talks, posters, and networking opportunities. Over 180 people attended.

From 7 to 9 June 2023, the 6th edition of the ETH Raman Workshop took place at ETH Hönggerberg. The workshop featured talks by renowned Raman scientists, instrument demonstrations, young investigator pitches, and a small poster exhibition.

Four invited finalists presented their research at the MaP Graduate Symposium to determine the most promising thesis of 2022 in Materials and Processes at ETH Zurich. A jury of academic and industry representatives awarded the prestigious prize to Dr. Riccardo Rizzo of D-HEST.

The first edition of the ALIVE Open Science Day was held on Monday, June 19, 2023. The ALIVE fellows, professors and collaborators met for a morning of research, exchange and networking.

On 8 June 2023, the 2nd Material Strength & Durability Symposium took place in the Alumni Pavillon at ETH Zentrum. Over 60 participants followed talks by top-class speakers and five doctoral students pitching their research.

Pulmonary surfactant is a special fluid released by cells in the lungs. For premature babies and COVID-19 patients in intensive care, it can mean the difference between life and death. An ETH materials scientist hopes to shed some light on this complex substance.

Athina Anastasaki, Head of the Laboratory of Polymeric Materials, has been selected as one of the Chemical & Engineering News Talented 12, which recognizes young rising stars in chemistry who are not afraid of taking risk in the early stages of their career.

At its meeting of 24 and 25 May 2023 and upon application of Joël Mesot, President of ETH Zurich, the ETH Board appointed Dr Hedan Bai (*1993), currently Postdoctoral Researcher at Northwestern University, Illinois, USA, as Tenure Track Assistant Professor of Robotic Materials in the Department of Materials.

At its meeting of 24 and 25 May 2023 and upon application of Joël Mesot, President of ETH Zurich, the ETH Board appointed nine professors and awarded the title of professor twice. At the same time, the Board also bid farewell to nine professors and thanked them for their service.

Laura Heyderman, who leads the Mesoscopic Systems Group at PSI and ETH Zurich, has been elected Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS). Her nomination recognises almost 30 years of research into magnetic materials and magnetism on the nanoscale, most notably, in the field of artificial spin ice.

A jury of experts from academia and industry nominated four candidates for the MaP Award Final, taking place on 22 June 2023 during the MaP Graduate Symposium.

Athina Anastasaki, Head of the Laboratory of Polymeric Materials, wins the 2023 ACS Macroletters/Biomacromolecules/Macromolecules Young Investigator Award which seeks to recognize two individuals, early in their careers (under 40), who have had a major impact on the field of polymer science.

This year, the expert jury immediately reached a unanimous decision: from among the five inventions nominated for the Spark Award 2023, the whole panel chose the novel corrosion protection developed by researchers from the Laboratory for Multifunctional Materials.

More effective, reusable and self-repairing: a new kind of corrosion protection developed by the ETH researchers Marco D'Elia, Walter Caseri und Markus Niederberger has been honoured with ETH Zurich’s Spark Award 2023. The innovation offers excellent market potential and could significantly slow down the deterioration of buildings and vehicles.

We completed the second edition of the workshop Ethics and Scientific Integrity (Part 2) on 24 March 2023, with 15 participants from D-MATL, D-MAVT and D-HEST. In this one-day programme, doctoral students were guided to recognise and analyse ethically-relevant situations in their scientific research.

Dr. Hossein Rezai from Singapore gave a talk on 'Of Systems, Complexity and Regeneration' at ETH Hönggerberg on 13 March 2023. The seminar was organised by the Green Team of the PhD and Postdoc Association at PSI and supported by MaP Doctoral School.

After three intensive course blocks between October and December 2022, the course 'Advanced Machine Learning Techniques applied to Microscopy Data Analysis' of the MaP Doctoral School Soft Track concluded on 17 March 2023 with students presenting their own machine learning projects.

About twenty doctoral students and scientists interested in the magnetism of nano- and microwires signed up for a talk by Prof. em. Manuel Vázquez of the Spanish Council for Research (CSIC).

Researchers at ETH Zurich, Empa and EPFL are developing a 3D-printed insole with integrated sensors that allows the pressure of the sole to be measured in the shoe and thus during any activity. This helps athletes or patients to determine performance and therapy progress.

At its meeting of 8 and 9 March and upon application of Joël Mesot, President of ETH Zurich, the ETH Board appointed 14 professors and awarded the title of professor five times. At the same time, the Board also bid farewell to three professors and thanked them for their service.

Mechanobiology enthusiasts, please take note that from March on, the Mechanobiology Seminar Series events will take place at ETH Hönggerberg (HCI J 498). Sign up now to receive info on the details of the next seminar(s).

ETH Zurich researchers have developed an extraordinary protection against corrosion after a chance discovery. It glows in places where it is not damaged, repairs itself – and can be reused multiple times.

From 13 to 17 February 2023, eight MaP Doctoral Students and two post-docs delved into 'Corrosion and Assisted Cracking, and Their Mitigation: Fundamentals and Advances', a course taught by Prof. Raman Singh, currently visiting from Monash University.

Finally again – a Master’s degree graduation ceremony without special restrictions. It was wonderful to see the smiles of our 37 graduates and celebrate together with their families and friends!

Last weekend, over 40 MaP doctoral students travelled to Graubünden. After an intense day of thinking through options and setting goals to plan their careers, they played in the snow and networked across departments.

The Laboratory of Polymeric Materials reports an unsual Atom Tranfer Radical Polymerization whereby oxygen favors the polymerization by forming superoxido species at room temperature.

Thomas Weber, the head of the X-ray platform at D-MATL, receives the Will-Kleber Commemorative Coin from the German Society for Crystallography.

In their latest work, Maxence Menétrey and co-workers from the Laboratory for Nanometallurgy present a novel approach for microstructure control in nanopillars synthesized by electrohydrodynamic redox 3D printing. Their Christmas-inspired picture was featured on the cover of the Christmas issue of Small.

MaP Competence Center for Materials and Processes and MaP Doctoral School wish you a very happy and healthy New Year and success for all your scientific endeavours!

The Green Team of the PhD and Postdoc Association at PSI are launching a new seminar series dedicated to the climate and the environment: the Climate Seminar Series.

Almost 50 doctoral students, who had signed up for the MaP Winter Retreat on 'Time and Career Management for Scientist', attended the online kick-off workshop with trainer Dr. Karin Bodewits from NaturalScience.Careers.

On Tuesday, 13 December 2022, the third installment of the Mechanobiology Seminar Series was held at ETH Zentrum. Dunja Al-Nuaimi (Experimental Continuum Mechanics, D-MAVT) and Rodi Odabasi (Laboratory for Fetal Healing and Tissue Engineering, USZ) talked about endothelial cells and networks.

About 50 participants took part in the first in-person event of the 'Sustainable & Bioinspired Seminar Series' last Friday and listened to Prof. Fratzl’s ‘Thoughts on Bioinspired Materials and Sustainability’.

MaP Doctoral School welcomed doctoral students from groups affiliated with the Competence Center for Materials and Processes (MaP) to its 'Doctoral Students Onboarding Event'.

Manfred Fiebig and his group visualize ferroic states with the help of non-linear laser optics. Now the physicist and materials scientist is being honoured with the Stern-Gerlach Medal of the German Physical Society, their highest distinction in Experimental Physics.

The MaP Doctoral School | Advanced Manufacturing thematic track offered a new workshop on 'Scientific Storytelling', curated by Marco Zbinden of Future Now Consultants.