Materials Chain
Materials Chain is the first and largest competence field of the University Alliance Ruhr. It offers a platform for interdisciplinary networking that brings together researchers from fundamental natural sciences to applied materials science and production technology. More than 200 scientists from more than 150 chairs and research groups from Ruhr-Universität Bochum, TU Dortmund University, and the University of Duisburg-Essen research and teach under the umbrella of the competence field. The profile is complemented by cooperations with 11 regional partner institutions.
Building on the proven strengths at the respective university locations, Materials Chain initiates new research projects and associations to strengthen the role of the Ruhr Area as an internationally leading research region for modern materials and their production. The most prominent example that emerged from the program is the UA Ruhr Research Center Future Energy Materials and Systems (FEMS).
Latest News
Light switch for electrons
Researchers create conductive interface in nickelate materials
UV light can be used to switch an extremely conductive state on and off at the interface between two oxide materials - in a matter of seconds. This newly discovered "light switch for electrons" marks a milestone on the way to light-controlled electronics and could also be used in superconductivity in the future. The journal Nature Materials reports. Part of the international team are Materials Chain... read more
Quantum noise tamed in the tunnel effect
When disruptions become useful
What is usually considered a disturbance can be surprisingly useful under certain conditions: noise. Researchers at the University of Duisburg-Essen have shown how the random noise caused by the quantum mechanical tunnel effect - a phenomenon that is also the focus of this year's Nobel Prize in Physics - can be specifically influenced. The results, which have now been published in Communications Physics,... read more
Novel metal alloy resists extreme conditions
A research team co-led by Prof. Dr. Alexander Kauffmann of Ruhr University Bochum, formerly at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), has developed a new refractory metal alloy combining chromium, molybdenum, and silicon. The material is both malleable at room temperature and highly resistant to oxidation and extreme heat, with a melting point near 2,000°C. Compared to conventional nickel-based... read more
Who are we? Why is collaboration important in modern materials science? And what are we working on?
Upcoming Events
7th Materials Chain International Conference, MCIC 2025: Future Energy Materials and Systems, September 22th 2025 at Ruhr-Universität Bochum
Seminar Series “Materials and Energy: Challenges and Opportunities”
The Materials Chain Seminar Series “Materials and Energy: Challenges and Opportunities” brings together highly visible researchers across the various fields of materials science who investigate the intricate relationship between energy and materials. “Energy” and “Materials” have an overarching importance for the future development of our society. They are coupled in multiple ways ranging from fundamental science to real-world applications. Analyzing their intricate relationship as energy-materials nexus, however, is a new approach. Because solutions are urgently needed, this field requires intense interaction and collaboration across scientific disciplines and along the entire chain from fundamental science to industrial application.
The seminar series takes place during winter term on Thursdays and/or Fridays, typically from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. The lectures are held in different ZOOM rooms, which will be proclaimed here as well as in the invitations sent to all members of the Materials Chain, who have been signed up for the Newsletter.
Everybody is welcome. Registration is not required. If you receive an invitation as Materials Chain member, please feel free to forward it to other interested researchers at your institution and beyond. Early career researchers, like PhD students, are welcome as well!
Lectures for the upcoming winter term will be annouced in due time.
Video
Take a look behind the laboratory doors of some of the natural scientists and engineers working within the Materials Chain network: