New DFG Collaborative Research Center decodes chirality of molecules

For basic research in physics, but also for medicine and life science, it is important to understand "chirality", i.e. the fact that two molecules can be made up of the same atoms but in mirror image. Thus, a chemical can be toxic in one variant and a drug in the other. The Kassel research group aims to analyze chiral molecules with high sensitivity and ultimately manipulate and reverse their chirality or "handedness." To do this, the molecules will be bombarded with extreme lasers and detected using state-of-the-art detection techniques. The research project will thereby create the world's first gas-phase laboratory for the physics of chiral molecules driven exclusively by light.

The DFG will initially fund the Collaborative Research Center for the next four years with approximately 9.0 million euros. Thereafter, two extension periods to a maximum of 12 years are possible. The spokesperson is Prof. Dr. Thomas Baumert, head of the Department of Femtosecond Petroscopy and Ultrafast Laser Control. Seven professorships of the University of Kassel are involved in the Collaborative Research Center, other partners are the German Electron Synchrotron (DESY) Hamburg, the Philipps University Marburg and the Goethe University Frankfurt.

The President of the University of Kassel, Prof. Dr. Reiner Finkeldey, congratulated the participating scientists: "This is a great success and proves that top research alliances have been formed at our university that are nationally and internationally competitive - a DFG Collaborative Research Center, that means top of the national league." Finkeldey emphasized, "The DFG's decision reinforces the university's management in its course of providing greater support to scientists in acquiring research projects and thus further sharpening the university's research profile."

In their future work, the consortium led by Prof. Baumert can build on results obtained in a LOEWE research project on molecular chirality. With the LOEWE program, the state of Hesse supports the establishment of internationally significant research consortia. "This was an important step for the further development of structures in the Institute of Physics," emphasized Prof. Dr. Arno Ehresmann, Vice President for Research and himself an experimental physicist. "We also want to use existing clusters in other departments to attract larger projects in the future."

SFB spokesman Prof. Baumert announced, "In recent years, we have acquired an unparalleled wealth of knowledge in the study of chirality at the Institute of Physics and the Institute of Chemistry together with our cooperation partners. In addition, we have at our disposal the most advanced tools in atomic and molecular physics as well as optics and quantum optics. We intend to build on this to establish an internationally leading science center for the light-driven physics of chiral molecules in the gas phase."  

Contact:
Prof. Dr. Thomas Baumert
University of Kassel
Institute of Physics
Department  Femtosecond Petroscopy and Ultrafast Laser Control
Tel.: +49 561 804-4452
E-mail: baumert@physik.uni-kassel.de

Sebastian Mense
University of Kassel
Communications, Press and Public Relations
Tel.: +49 561 804-1961
E-mail: presse@uni-kassel.de
www.uni-kassel.de