One particularly interesting, but at first glance counter-intuitive, idea for controlling the quantum world is to use the quantum fluctuations of the photon field to engineer the properties of materials. In our Cluster of Excellence, this idea is turned into reality by research projects of Prof. Angel Rubio and Dr. Michael...

Between simple periodic motion and chaos, nonlinear systems can display complex rhythms that never exactly repeat. In a new theoretical study, selected as an Editors’ Suggestion in Physical Review A, researchers from the University of Hamburg and the University of Konstanz show how such quasiperiodic motion survives in open...

When viruses travel through the air in tiny droplets, they can quickly start to dry out. Yet many viruses remain infectious after rehydration—something that is still not fully understood. Now, an international team of researchers have directly observed at the European XFEL how the protein shells of viruses can change shape...

Every year, the University of Hamburg presents an award for gender equality on campus. This year, the Academic Senate has selected two high-profile projects for the award.

Research with ultracold gas clouds shows the conditions under which superfluidity – flow without friction – is particularly stable. The new findings could help to better understand the behavior of a whole range of quantum systems. Part 2 of our series from the new magazine Advanced Imaging of Matter: Seven Years CUI in...

Understanding strongly interacting matter far from equilibrium requires both precisely defined initial conditions and a consistent description of how the system evolves. Researchers at the University of Hamburg have now shown that the transition from a dense Rydberg gas to an ultracold plasma can be systematically explored...