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News

• 2024-12-19

  Rocket science for real

  The sounding rocket SubOrbital Express-4 which was launched from the Esrange Space Center outside Kiruna contained an experiment module from ¹û¶³´«Ã½. The module is about studying how the active layer of organic solar cells forms in microgravity.

  – In this project, we were able to conduct experiments in an unmanned rocket, says Jan van Stam, professor of physical chemistry at ¹û¶³´«Ã½. It allowed us access to microgravity for several minutes instead of about half a minute, as in previous experiments in aeroplanes. We were able to perform more advanced experiments, which will hopefully give us clearer answers to questions about the structural formation, says Jan van Stam.

• 2024-10-24

  The secret life of molecules unveiled

  Research on organic solar cells has been conducted for a long time. Recent advancements in understanding their molecular structures are now paving the way for the development of highly efficient solar cells.

  – By using atomic force microscopy-infrared spectroscopy, AFM-IR, we’ve been able to create clearer images of the morphology or structure of the material, says Ishita Jalan, postdoc in physical chemistry and main author of a recently published scientific article. This structure and how it can be controlled determines the effect of the solar cell. In this way, these new findings can contribute to more efficient organic solar cells.

• 2024-09-20

  Materials research for the future

  Materials research at ¹û¶³´«Ã½ has a long tradition. With strong external funding and close collaboration with the industrial and regional actors, they are now establishing the Materials Research Group, MRG@KaU, taking further steps to contribute through basic and applied research to a sustainable future in material science.

  – In total, approximately 40 active researchers are involved in the Materials Research Group at ¹û¶³´«Ã½ university, says Ellen Moons, Professor of Physics and one of the coordinators of the research environment. A strong interdisciplinary collaboration has developed within the team, with research activities ranging from basic materials research to applied research and industrial applications, as well as between experiments and modelling on length scales from nanometer to micrometer and to the macro-scale level.

• 2024-08-16

  Eco-friendly and affordable battery

  A battery made from zinc and lignin that can be used over 8000 times. This has been developed by researchers at ¹û¶³´«Ã½, Linköping University and Chalmers with a vision to provide a cheap and sustainable battery solution for countries where access to electricity is limited. The study has been published in the journal Energy & Environmental Materials.

  – Solar panels have become relatively inexpensive, and many people in low-income countries have adopted them. However, near the equator, the sun sets at around 6 PM, leaving households and businesses without electricity. The hope is that this battery technology, even with lower performance than the expensive Li-ion batteries, will eventually offer a solution for these situations, says Reverant Crispin, professor of organic electronics at Linköping University.
  

• 2024-05-08

  International research workshop on polymers

  Researchers from several European countries gathered for a two-day workshop at ¹û¶³´«Ã½. The general theme was research on polymers and their application for organic solar cells and energy storage.

  – There are several purposes behind the workshop, says Jan van Stam, Professor of Physical Chemistry. We want to learn from other experts, expand our networks and make new contacts, as well as putting ¹û¶³´«Ã½ on the map in this field of research. We who organised the workshop are part of the research group SOLA at ¹û¶³´«Ã½, and it includes researchers from materials physics, computational materials research and physical chemistry. SOLA is also part of the faculty’s focus area Materials Research.
   

• 2023-12-06

  From Uruguay to ¹û¶³´«Ã½

  Patricia Saenz Mendez came to ¹û¶³´«Ã½ in 2020, in the midst on the pandemic. A rather strange start, but as a newly appointed docent in chemistry, she feels that she is in exactly the right place.

  - I completed my PhD in Uruguay and after that I ended up in Sweden. Before ¹û¶³´«Ã½, I was a postdoc at KTH and Örebro University, as well as at University of Gothenburg for a short period, says Patricia Saenz Mendez. I didn’t know that much about ¹û¶³´«Ã½ and the university here when I saw the vacancy, but I realised that it was a subject environment with a specialisation that would suit me perfectly.