From the neutron guide hall to Trieste

Live connection from Trieste to the neutron guide hall to Laura Guasco at the MLZ (left on the screen). © CERIC-ERIC

Live connection from Trieste to the neutron guide hall to Laura Guasco at the MLZ (left on the screen). © CERIC-ERIC

The Euroscience Open Forum (ESOF) in Trieste from September 2 to 6 proved that an online conference can be successful: more than 400 participants from 56 countries exchanged views on the topic “Freedom for science, science for freedom”. At the accompanying Science in the City Festival, MLZ scientists gave online lectures and showed films.

Together with eight other major European research institutions, the Heinz Maier-Leibnitz Zentrum participated in the Science in the City Festival. Due to Corona travel restrictions, the participants could not visit the venue. Therefore, a total of 16 Italian scientists tuned in live from their scientific instruments in Germany, Great Britain or Sweden directly to Italy. The visitors in Trieste were thus able to listen to lectures in Italian, see the scientific environment and ask questions directly.

The three MLZ lecturers at the Science in the City Festival in Trieste (from above): Gaetano Mangiapia, Laura Guasco and Stefano Pasini. © Reiner Müller

The three MLZ lecturers at the Science in the City Festival in Trieste (from above): Gaetano Mangiapia, Laura Guasco and Stefano Pasini. © Reiner Müller

Three researchers at the MLZ participated in the live broadcasts. Laura Guasco, PhD student at the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research, is researching new materials for hydrogen storage at the NREX instrument. Her lectures were entitled “Nuovi materiali per lo stoccagio di idrogeno e come trovarli” and are available online.

Dr. Stefano Pasini, lead scientist at Forschungszentrum Jülich, reported in his live presentations how neutrons decode the side effects of ibuprofen. This was investigated by scientists of Forschungszentrum Jülich using neutron spin echo spectrometry. There is also a recording on YouTube (start at 10:22).

Stand der Großforschungseinrichtungen der ERF-AISBL auf der ESOF The joint booth of the ERF-AISBL large-scale research facilities at ESOF. Here the visitors could participate in the live broadcasts © CERIC-ERIC

The joint booth of the ERF-AISBL large-scale research facilities at ESOF. Here the visitors could participate in the live broadcasts © CERIC-ERIC

Dr. Gaetano Mangiapia, instrument scientist of the Helmholtz Center Geesthacht at MLZ, was talking about solar energy. Using the neutron reflectometer REFSANS, scientists of the TU Munich had investigated how organic solar cells can increase their efficiency. His lecture is available on YouTube (start at 01:09:00).

Between the live broadcasts, English films about the research at the individual scientific institutes were shown. The MLZ participated with a film about research on antibiotic resistance at the BioDiff diffractometer with Dr. Johanna Jochum and Dr. Tobias Schrader and a film about imaging with neutrons at the NECTAR radiography facility with Dr. Adrian Losko.