Research

How can fossils predict the consequences of climate change? A German research team from FAU, the Museum of Natural History Berlin and the Alfred Wegener Institute compared data from fossil and marine organisms living today to predict which groups of animals are most at risk from climate change.

Wouldn’t it be handy if you were able to record your baby’s heartbeat or even take an ultrasound scan just using a smartphone app at home, without having to make an appointment to visit your obstetrician, with all the additional waiting time that entails? FAU and Universitätsklinikum Erlangen (UKER) are investigating what would be needed in order to offer a service like this. The Federal Ministry of Health is providing funding of approximately 3.2 million euros for this purpose.

A team of researchers at FAU has developed a method which can be used to reliably measure the speed of electron transfer between two materials. This could lead to the development of innovative electronic components with ultrafast transfer rates. The results were published in the specialist journal Nature Photonics under the title ‘Attosecond-fast internal photoemission’.

How is reading changing in the age of digitalisation and social change? What significance and function will it have in future? Together with researchers from other institutions, researchers at FAU are investigating these questions in the newly-founded ‘Network for Reading Research’.

The programme offers excellent young FAU researchers support to apply to an external funding provider within the funding period (12 months), for example the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) or the European Research Council (ERC).

In 2014 Dr. Weiqing Mao completed a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry at Soochow University, China. Subsequently, in 2019 he received his PhD in Organic Chemistry from the Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry at the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences. Until September 2021, Dr. Mao will work on the synthesis, structure and reactivity of highly reactive Iron complexes at the Chair of Inorganic and General Chemistry of FAU. His stay is supported by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.

Dr. Sandip Shinde's research interest is in organic synthesis in order to develop fluorination methods and their applications in pharmaceutical and agro-chemical companies. Findings from his PhD research work were transferred and patented to various multinational companies. Dr. Shinde will further his research at the Clinic of Nuclear Medicine at the Universitätsklinikum Erlangen. His stay is supported by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.

The 21st century poses considerable challenges to mankind, and science has a major role to play in mastering them. Researchers at FAU also have a valuable contribution to make. The University has now launched two Maps focussing on its expertise in two areas which are particularly important for society: the AI Map and the Energy and Climate Map.

A team of scientists and engineers led by Prof. Julien Bachmann from FAU plan to combine the expertise of the various consortium partners in the chemical control of ultrathin coatings, in gas delivery, microelectromechanical devices, and microprocessing and automation, in order to demonstrate the potential of “atomic-layer 3D printing”.

Developing fundamental new approaches against multi-resistant pathogens is the aim of the new Bavarian research network called New Strategies Against Multi-Resistant Pathogens by Means of Digital Networking – bayresq.net. A scientist from FAU is also conducting research in an interdisciplinary sub-project in the network, which the State of Bavaria is funding for five years with a total of almost 10 million euros.