News & press releases

In der Physikalisch-Technischen Bundesanstalt (PTB) steht ein Wechsel im Präsidium an – ein Wechsel, der zugleich Kontinuität verspricht. Der Halbleiter- und Festkörperphysiker Hon-Prof. Dr. Roman Schwartz scheidet altersbedingt aus dem Amt des Vizepräsidenten, das er vor sechs Jahren übernommen hatte, aus. Sein Nachfolger, Dr.-Ing. Prof. h. c. Frank Härtig, der ebenso wie Schwartz zuvor die...

From fundamental physics related to Einstein's special theory of relativity to fundamentals of metrological applications in the range of thousandths of micrometers (i.e. nanometers) – the bandwidth of this year's Helmholtz Prize is considerable. The Helmholtz Prize, which recognizes outstanding scientific and technological research in the field of precision measurement in physics, chemistry and...

It is usually considered impolite to regift presents so soon after receiving them, but the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) is making an exception in this case. PTB received several thousand masks from Chinese research colleagues in Wuhan and immediately brought 4,000 of them to Braunschweig's Fire Department. The people there know what the best use for the masks is right now.

The Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) is sparing no effort in protecting its staff members from infection at work and curbing the spread of the coronavirus to the greatest extent possible. It is imperative that the exponential growth in the number of confirmed cases be interrupted; this will allow our healthcare system to provide the best possible medical treatment for all emergency...

Because the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) is continuing to spread unabated, the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) is adopting even more comprehensive measures. The crisis management team of PTB has decided to reduce operations at its Berlin sites to a minimum. This “restricted operational status” will take effect at both Berlin sites of PTB (Charlottenburg and Adlershof) on Monday, 23 March....

The coronavirus has, of course, also affected the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) with its sites in Braunschweig and Berlin. The virus has currently (as of 17 March 2020) only been detected in a few people who had been on holiday. Those people went straight into quarantine on their return. To date, none of PTB’s staff working in Braunschweig or Berlin have tested positive for the...

Dort, wo üblicherweise gefräst, gespant und gebohrt wird, hat sich für den 17. März 2020 hoher Besuch zum Gespräch angekündigt. In der „Woche der beruflichen Bildung“ (vom 17.-24. März) schaut Niedersachsens Kultusminister Grant Hendrik Tonne auch in der Physikalisch-Technischen Bundesanstalt (PTB) vorbei, um sich hier ganz gezielt über die Ausbildung der PTB zu informieren und um mit...

Scientists from the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) and the Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics (MPIK) have carried out pioneering optical measurements of highly charged ions with unprecedented precision. To do this, they isolated a single Ar^{13 +} ion from an extremely hot plasma and brought it practically to rest inside an ion trap together with a laser-cooled, singly charged ion....

The number is gigantic: Within the scope of medical diagnostics, about 100 million examinations are carried out with “magnetic resonance imaging” (MRI) every year – and every scanner worldwide uses technology that was developed by Jens Frahm’s team in Göttingen. The physicist, who is the head of the Biomedical NMR research group at the Max-Planck-Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, was mainly...

A functional quantum computer is one of the most intriguing promises of quantum technology. With significantly increased computing power, quantum computers will be able to solve tasks that conventional computers cannot handle, such as understanding and inventing new materials or pharmaceuticals as well as testing the limits of cryptographic techniques. In order to reduce error rates and provide...