ETH News

A biologist, a neuroscientist, a materials scientist and a physicist have each been awarded one of the prestigious grants of the Swiss National Science Foundation.

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.

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.

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.

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.

At its meeting of 6 and 7 March 2024 and upon application of Jo?l 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

At its meeting of 24 and 25 May 2023 and upon application of Jo?l 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.

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.

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 Jo?l 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.

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 ¨C and can be reused multiple times.

On the current list of Highly Cited Researchers, 21 have a connection to ETH Zurich. Four of these appear on the list for the first time.

Materials scientists Nicole Kleger and Simona Fehlmann have developed a 3D printing process for creating salt templates that they can fill with other materials. One area of application is the creation of highly porous lightweight metal components. The two Pioneer Fellows are now trying to transfer this process to industry.

The Venture Awards for Swiss start-ups were presented yesterday evening for the 25th time. In addition to the three certified ETH spin-offs DeepJudge, Kaspar& and Versics, the 15 winners included five other start-ups founded by ETH students and alumni.

Colours can be created in surprisingly different ways. And in addition to being pleasing to the eye, colour can also serve a useful purpose.

Researchers at PSI and ETH Zurich have observed for the first time how tiny magnets in a special layout align themselves solely as a result of temperature changes. This view into processes that take place within so-called artificial spin ice could play an important role in the development of novel high-performance computers.

ETH Pioneer Fellow Martin Hofmann has developed a method to produce high-quality plant-based meat alternatives. His research on the flow properties of soft materials enables him to imitate the marbling of real steaks. ?

A team of ETH researchers led by Athina Anastasaki have succeeded in breaking down plastic into its molecular building blocks and in recovering over 90 percent of them. A first step towards genuine plastic recycling. ?

Through its new doctoral programme, the MaP Doctoral School, ETH Zurich plans to train specialists in materials and processes who will work across disciplines to tackle the big challenges of our time, such as climate change, sustainable development and personalised medicine.

Researchers at ETH Zurich have developed a new photocatalyst made from an aerogel that could enable more efficient hydrogen production. The key is sophisticated pretreatment of the material.

World¡¯s most highly cited scientists list includes 17 from ETH Zurich. Many of whom conduct cross-disciplinary research.

Collaboration between talented members of multidisciplinary teams provides the best foundation for innovative, useful and trustworthy applications of artificial intelligence. This approach has been demonstrated at a joint event by ETH Entrepreneur Club and the ETH AI Center.

Quantum physics opens our eyes to the holistic nature of reality. Nothing can be observed in isolation ¨C and everything is governed by chance.

ETH Zurich researchers have developed a new type of laminate that changes colour as soon as the material is deformed. This way, the materials researchers can kill two birds with one stone: a lightweight composite material that inspects itself.

Athina Anastasaki joined ETH Zurich in 2019. Her research focuses on the next generation of polymers and recycling processes for these. She wants to recover all the starting materials and use them to produce new materials for other applications.

Chiara Gattinoni, a materials theorist and Marie Curie Fellow at ETH Zurich, uses the ¡°Piz Daint¡± supercomputer at CSCS to investigate a special class of materials: ferroelectrics. In the future, these materials could constitute the heart of low-energy-consuming, miniaturised data storage in electrical devices. One ferroelectric Gattinoni analysed is, according to her, truly magical.

An ETH Zurich research team is using 3D printing to produce a new type of bioresorbable airway stent. This could greatly simplify the future treatment of upper airway obstruction.

Great honour for ETH professor Nicola Spaldin: the European Commission has elected the materials researcher as a member of the ERC Science Council.

Quantum research has long since ceased to be an exclusive domain of physics. The purpose of the new ETH Quantum Center is to ensure ETH Zurich¡¯s various competences and activities in this area are networked even more closely and to raise their public profile.

Seven ETH researchers can look forward to generous funding for their projects: the European Research Council (ERC) has approved a total amount of around 15 million Swiss francs. ?

Researchers at ETH have managed to make an efficient material for broadband frequency doubling of light using microspheres made of disordered nanocrystals. The crucial idea for the method arose during a coffee break. In the future, the new approach could be used in lasers and other light technologies.

ETH Zurich researchers have been able to show why biological cells can take on such an astonishing variety of shapes: it has to do with how the number and strength of ?local forces acting on the cell membrane from within. This knowledge feeds into the development of better minimal model systems and artificial cells.

The materials scientist, chemist and world-renowned tribologist Nicholas Spencer will be retiring soon. His departure could signal the loss of a specialist discipline within ETH Zurich.

Researchers at ETH Zurich have coaxed tiny spheres made of polymer gels into forming complex patterns by themselves through a two-step process. Surfaces with tailor-made optical and mechanical properties could be realized in this way.

ETH researchers have developed a new method for producing polymers with different lengths. This paves the way for new classes of polymer materials to be used in previously inconceivable applications.

Computers normally store and process data in separate modules. But now researchers at ETH Zurich and the Paul Scherrer Institute have developed a method that allows logical operations to be performed directly within a memory element.

Researchers at ETH and Empa have shown that tiny objects can be made from silicon that are much more deformable and stronger than previously thought. In this way, sensors in smartphones could be made smaller and more robust.

Right now, the 3D printers at the ETH spin-off Spectroplast are working at full capacity as never before: the young company has started producing silicone attachments for breathing masks on behalf of medical companies.

Researchers from ETH Zurich and the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) have set a new world record: they 3D printed complex objects with higher cellulose content than that of any other additively manufactured cellulose-based parts. To achieve this, they used a clever trick.

Researchers at ETH have measured the timing of single writing events in a novel magnetic memory device with a resolution of less than 100 picoseconds. Their results are relevant for the next generation of main memories based on magnetism.

In her prior role as Director of Studies, Professor Nicola Spaldin oversaw the comprehensive revision of the curriculum for the bachelor¡¯s degree course in the Department of Materials. In this interview, the ETH professor describes the most important changes and the benefits she hopes they will bring.

ETH researchers are making chocolates shimmer in rainbow colours without the addition of colourants. They have found a way to imprint a special structure on the surface of the chocolate to create a targeted colour effect.

ETH researchers used a 3D printing process to produce complex and highly porous glass objects. The basis for this is a special resin that can be cured with UV light.

Researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI and ETH Zurich have developed a micromachine that can perform different actions. First nanomagnets in the components of the microrobots are magnetically programmed and then the various movements are controlled by magnetic fields. Such machines, which are only a few tens of micrometres across, could be used, for example, in the human body to perform small operations.

ETH researchers have recently been able to monitor the corrosion of bioresorbable magnesium alloys at the nanoscale over a time scale of a few seconds to many hours. This is an important step towards accurately predicting how fast implants are resorbed by the body to enable the development of tailored materials for temporary implant applications.

Materials researcher Nicola Spaldin talks in the ETH Podcast about her pioneering work in the research of multiferroic drugs.

Markus Niederberger¡¯s team of researchers at ETH has used stretchable materials to develop a battery that can be bent, stretched and twisted. For applications in bendable electronic devices, this is precisely the kind of battery they need.

Nicola Spaldin, Professor of Materials Theory at ETH Zurich, has been awarded the Swiss Science Prize Marcel Benoist for her outstanding research into multiferroic materials. Her work has laid the foundations for new ultrafast and energy-efficient data storage technologies.

With the help of a 3D printed salt template, ETH researchers have succeeded in producing magnesium scaffolds with structured porosity that are suitable for bioresorbable bone implants.

ETH spin-off Spectroplast has developed a method to make silicone products using a 3D printer. The young company now plans to bring to market customised medical products such as hearing aids, breast prosthesis for breast cancer patients and eventually even artificial heart valves.

Scientists at ETH Zurich and the South African company Strait Access Technologies are using 3D printing to produce custom-made artificial heart valves from silicone. This could help meet an ageing population¡¯s growing demand for replacement heart valves.

3D printing has become an increasingly important production method. Researchers at ETH have now developed a new 3D printing technique by which micrometre-sized objects made of several metals can be produced with high spatial resolution.

Researchers from the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI in Villigen and the ETH Zurich have discovered a special phenomenon in magnets. This phenomenon takes place at the nanoscale and enables magnets to be assembled in unusual configurations, which could also be useful for computer technology and data storage.?

The ETH Board has appointed or promoted nine new professors, six of them working in the fields of biology and biomedicine. For the first time, these candidates were proposed by the new ETH President, Jo?l Mesot. They include a high proportion of women: over forty percent.

ETH researchers from the Group for Complex Materials led by Andr¨¦ R. Studart successfully replicated the structure of biological nacre at three length scales.

ETH Zurich is fostering responsible air travel to help resolve the conflict between international research activities and climate protection. ETH units worked together to set targets for reducing flight-related CO₂ emissions.

ETH Zurich rethinks design in Davos during the World Economic Forum¡¯s Annual Meeting. Exhibiting cutting-edge materials and technologies, researchers show how innovative design can shape industries, economies, and ultimately the future.

ETH researchers developed an imitation comparable to mother-of-pearl, the physical properties of which can be specifically adjusted.

Three researchers from the ETH Domain, including ETH professor Nicola Spaldin, and a scientist from Stockholm University have received an ERC Synergy Grant of EUR 13.9 million.

ETH material researchers are developing a method with which they can coat the droplets with controlled interfacial composition and coverage on demand in an emulsion in order to stabilise them. In doing so they are fulfilling a long-held dream of researchers and industry.

Scientists can spend a long time in heated debates over tiny details ¨C for example, how and whether atoms in a crystal move when heated, thereby altering the symmetry. Using computer simulations for the mineral lead telluride on the CSCS supercomputer ¡°Piz Daint¡±, ETH researchers have resolved a long-standing controversy.

Perfectly inverting complex structures is of great technical importance. Researchers at ETH have now succeeded in turning the magnetic and electric structure of materials into their opposites using a single magnetic field pulse.? ????

Three ETH alumni have developed a 3D printer capable of manufacturing components from carbon fiber composites. Their ETH spin-off, 9T Labs, could bring a breakthrough for the manufacturing and utilization of extremely lightweight and strong parts.

At its meeting of 4/5 July 2018 and upon application of the President of ETH Zurich, Professor Lino Guzzella, the ETH Board appointed 9 professors.

Lucio Isa and his team of researchers have explained how the surface characteristics of microspheres affect rapid increases in the viscosity of suspensions, thus laying the groundwork for applications such as smoothly flowing cement.

In a video interview with the German Physical Society, ETH professor Nicola Spaldin talks about the fascination of materials research.

ETH Zurich researchers have developed multifunctional origami structures, which they then fabricated into 3D printed objects. The design principle mimics the structure of an earwig¡¯s wing.

Chiara Gattinoni¡¯s specialism is the surface properties of materials. In ETH¡¯s Materials Theory Laboratory, her research focuses on bismuth ferrite, an extremely promising new material.

ETH physicists have developed a silicon wafer that behaves like a topological insulator when stimulated using ultrasound. They have thereby succeeded in turning an abstract theoretical concept into a macroscopic product.

Digital fabrication techniques for buildings and breathtaking concrete roofs, a heart made of silicone, and a new degree programme in medicine; in 2017, teaching and research at ETH Zurich were characterised by new ventures and a pioneering spirit.

Science has to prove its relevance to society. ETH Zurich is therefore expanding its blog activities: in future, the Zukunftsblog will cover digitalisation and health alongside the topic of sustainability.

ETH researchers have developed a biocompatible ink for 3D printing using living bacteria. This makes it possible to produce biological materials capable of breaking down toxic substances or producing high-purity cellulose for biomedical applications.

On this year¡¯s Materials Day, the Department of Materials will award the Materials Research Prize to a talented young researcher for the first time. The prize winner is Bozhi Tian, Assistant Professor at the University of Chicago.

ETH researchers have discovered a new method to design stable foams. Their findings could make beer froth and ice cream last longer ¨C and revolutionise construction materials such as concrete.

Magnetic data storage has long been considered too slow for use in the working memories of computers. Researchers at ETH have now investigated a technique by which magnetic data writing can be done considerably faster and using less energy.

Fifty students from ETH Zurich and other Swiss universities want to revolutionise transport. For a race set up by Elon Musk, they have developed a zero emission capsule that could in future transport people and goods through a vacuum tube at almost the speed of sound.

ETH researchers led by Lucio Isa have developed microparticles with a rough, raspberry-like surface that stabilise emulsions following a new principle.

ETH Professor Nicola Spaldin will today be honoured for her revolutionary research in the field of materials science. In Paris, she is set to receive the L'Or¨¦al-Unesco For Women in Science award for Europe, which carries prize money of 100,000 euros.

Using a nano-tomography method, material scientists have succeeded in localizing hydrogen inclusions within a structural metal in 3D for the first time. This was made possible by a uniquely modified measurement method developed at ETH Zurich.

The ETH Board appointed three new professors and awarded the title of Professor to five recipients upon application of ETH President Lino Guzzella

ETH material scientists have developed a new method of manufacturing ceramics that does not require the starting materials to be fired. Instead, they are compacted under high pressure at room temperature in a significantly more energy-efficient process.

Three ETH Zurich researchers have received ERC Consolidator Grants from the European Research Council (ERC). Their projects will each receive approximately 2 million Swiss francs in funding.

Upon application of ETH President Lino?Guzzella the ETH?Board appointed a total of eight professors and awarded the title of professor to one individual.

Switzerland¡¯s credentials as a research location have been enhanced with a major new facility: the SwissFEL X-ray free-electron laser was put into operation at the PSI yesterday. ETH researchers are among those expecting to use the system to gain insights into hitherto hidden processes at the molecular and atomic level.

A team that includes ETH Zurich scientists is the first to use materials with a network-like structure to create a full spectrum of intense colours. The principle has long existed in nature: for example, in the colourful plumage of a particular species of bird in South America.

ETH researchers have used an additive manufacturing process to print an extremely porous ceramic component. Manufacturing a material of this kind with a 3D printer is a considerable achievement.

Researchers at ETH Zurich have developed a lithium-ion battery made entirely of solid material: it contains neither liquids nor gels. The battery cannot ignite, even at very high temperatures, giving it a safety advantage over conventional batteries. In addition, they allow new forms of battery design.

A new method allows scientists at ETH Zurich and IBM to fabricate artificial molecules out of different types of microspheres. The researchers would like to one day use such tiny objects in micro-robots, for photonics and basic biochemical research.

The ETH Board has appointed ten professors at ETH Zurich in accordance with the application submitted by ETH Zurich President Lino Guzzella.

A new 3D microprinting process allows scientists to manufacture tiny, complex metal components easily. The technology used was designed by ETH researchers years ago for biological research and has now been further developed for a completely different application.

Upon application of the President of ETH Zurich, Lino Guzzella, the ETH Board appointed a total of four professors, and awarded the title of professor to two individuals.

ETH material researchers are developing a procedure that allows them to mimic the complex fine structure of biological composite materials, such as teeth or seashells. They can thus create synthetic materials that are as hard and tough as their natural counterparts.

Nicola Spaldin, Professor for Material Theory at ETH Zurich, is being awarded the K?rber Prize in Hamburg today. In this interview, the British scientists explains what fascinates her about materials science and why she loves unanswered questions.

ETH researchers have produced a thin film and extremely fine pillars from a new class of alloys made of multiple finely distributed elements. The material is resistant to extreme pressures and temperatures.