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Project week during the autumn holidays
During the autumn holidays, highschool students in classes 8 and 9 enjoyed an eventful week full of physics, experiments and research at the Alfried Krupp Schülerlabor at the Ruhr University Bochum. In the workshop ‘From Plasma to Gold Coating,’ the students discovered the exciting characteristics of luminous gases and their numerous applications, such as in surface coating. They visited laboratories, observed researchers at work and learned that plasmas can also be ignited in liquids. In Prof. Scherer's lecture ‘From Diamonds, Pencil Tips and Symmetries,’ they learned how to (theoretically) turn a pencil tip into a diamond. Other highlights included a visit to the planetarium, meals together in the mensa and a physics duel followed by pizza. We would like to thank all participants for their curiosity and fascination for physics and are already looking forward to the next project week!
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Plasma experiments with the mouse
On 3th October, we celebrated the nationwide Mouse Day.
The Faculty of Physics at Ruhr-University Bochum invited children to discover the exciting world of physics and try their hand at lots of experiments.
In our workshop, the children were able to explore the glow of plasma and its applications. As a souvenir, the Mouse fans coated small ducks with gold using plasma.
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The student's project week during the fall vacations
The project week at the Ruhr University Bochum took place again this autumn break. Students could choose from three workshops. In the workshop 'From Plasma to Gold Layer', they learned exciting facts about the properties and diverse applications of plasmas. The students used the sputter coater to create thin layers of gold and examined the coatings. They investigated the best way to deposit the layers and presented their research in a poster session. The project week also provided an opportunity to learn about the working environment of scientists and current research projects and to get a taste of university life.
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Luminous plasmas were ignited at MINTsight.BOchum
On 18th February the MINTsight.BOchum, a study orientation day took place. High school students attended a lecture, were guided through laboratories, and could participate in exciting workshops. In our plasma workshop, students gained hands-on experience with these fascinating gases and gained insight into studying electrical engineering and physics, as well as plasma research at the Ruhr University Bochum.
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Unconcious Bias
On Tuesday, March 4, 2025, members of the SFB 1316 participated in a workshop on the topic of Unconscious Bias led by Dr. Juliane Handschuh. The workshop's objective was to understand the impact of prejudices in scientific research and general work environments and learn to recognize unconscious biases in oneself and in the workplace. After Dr. Handschuh gave an introductory talk on the topic, the group was divided into groups of Early Career Researchers (ECRs) and Principal Investigators (PIs) to encourage an open exchange. In preparation for the workshop, participants had been encouraged to anonymously submit personal incidents where they experienced a bias. The group exercises were used as case studies and foundation for discussion. Together, strategies to recognize and adequately approach unconscious biases were developed as a directly affected person and as a bystander. At the end of the workshop, both groups joined again for a final discussion. The workshop provided valuable insights into the complex topic of unconscious biases and has provided the members of the SFB with practical tools to foster a more inclusive research environment.
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Plasma Physics for high school students
The project week for high school students is an educational program of the CRC 1316, the Faculty of Physics and Astronomy at the RUB and of zdi (Zukunft durch Innovation; Future through innovation). Which takes place twice a year.
From April 3-6 , the project week was hosted for 60 female students in grades 8 to 10. The girls chose be- between four workshops: plasma physics, astronomy, physics in medicine and sustainable house design. The project “From Plasma to Gold Layers” allows the students to gain an insight into the generation and applications of plasmas. Using the sputter coater and professional laboratory equipment, the students could deposit and examine gold layers themselves. During the project week, the students attended a lecture by Prof. Dr Judith Golda on “hands-on plas- mas – between material science and medicine“, and visited laboratories and the Planetarium Bochum. On the closing day, the results of the students’ research were presented in a poster session, followed by a quiz and lunch. The next project week in Autumn for female and male students in grades 8 and 9 will take place from October 9-13 .
The Faculty of Physics enables students to complete a school internship in Physics. From March 27-31, we welcomed two interns from grade 9. After a short introduction to plasma physics, the students worked on the sputter coater. They examined the coated samples. For this purpose, they determined the transmission with a spectrometer, the layer thickness with the profilometer and the conductivity. The interns also gained experience in handling data and in data evaluation. The goal of the internship is also to give an impression of laboratory work and current research. Therefore, doctoral students, bachelor’s and master’s students guided the interns through the labs and presented their experiments. The interns also visited the NRW state competition “Jugend forscht”, which took place at the Ruhr University Bochum March 27-29 .
The “mobile plasma workshop” took place for the first time on June 5, and visited an 11th-grade physics class in Essen. In the beginning, the students watched a short movie and received basic knowledge about plasmas and their applications. After a short quiz, they worked on the experiments in smaller groups. The students examined the light emitted by plasmas with an optical spectrometer and observed how electric and magnetic fields can influence plasmas. Information on the experiments on the students' tablets guided the workshop. The workshop was a success, and the students showed great interest. Through the students’ feedback, we have gained insights on how to improve our workshop going forward. 
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Plasma barbeque 2019
On Wednesday July 3rd, the annual Plasma barbeque took place at Ruhr-Universität Bochum. Students from the physics faculty as well as from the electrical engineering could meet PhD students from both faculties and inform themselves about plasma studies in a pleasant atmosphere.