Empa

Twelve years of intense work are now bearing fruit – researchers at Empa have developed unique carbon materials with quite astonishing, hitherto unattained electronic and magnetic properties, which one day could be used to build quantum computers with novel architectures. A million-dollar grant from the Werner Siemens Foundation for the next ten years now gives this visionary project an unusually long research horizon, greatly increasing the prospects for success.

Seemingly less hazardous than Delta, but significantly more infectious: The spread of the omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus raises the question of whether it can push the healthcare system to its breaking point. Empa researchers have worked with partners to model scenarios for both Switzerland and Germany – and conclude that this is an unlikely course of events. Nevertheless, some risks remain.

In a large-scale fundraising campaign, popular YouTubers like Mister Beast and Mark Rober are currently trying to rid the oceans of almost 14,000 tonnes of plastic waste. That's about 0.15 per cent of the amount that ends up in the oceans every year. But it's not just our waters that are full of plastic. A new study shows that the spread of nanoplastic through the air is a more widespread problem than previously thought.

Mickael L. Perrin wants to build tiny power plants from graphene nanoribbons that generate electricity from heat. His ambitious project won him one of the prestigious ERC Starting Grants from the EU and one of the 32 Eccellenza Professorial Fellowships by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF). He will take up an assistant professorship at ETH Zurich – and continue his research at Empa.

How much does a country's vehicle fleet consume on average? How does it change from year to year? With the increasing number of electric vehicles and more and more "crossover" models that can hardly be assigned to one vehicle segment, analysis is becoming increasingly difficult. Empa researchers analyze databases using deep learning methods - and can make precise statements: In which region of the country do the fattest cars drive? What can car buyers do to reduce CO₂ consumption?