MERCUR Funds Three New Research Projects with Around € 1.25 Million

The researchers involved are using the MERCUR funding to build up research networks within UA Ruhr over the longer term. A good half of the funding is provided by the Mercator Foundation, and the other half is financed proportionally by the universities.

Developmental ­psy­cho­lo­gy

Professor Norbert Zmyj from TU Dortmund University is conducting research in the field of developmental psychology together with Professor Sabine Seehagen from RUB. Funds of around € 350,000 will be allocated to the project “ManyRuhrBabies: The Role of Contextual Factors in the Development of Social-Cognitive Abilities”. Sudden fluctuations in immediate well-being are characteristic for infants and toddlers. Astonishingly, however, little is known about how immediate well-being impacts on early childhood cognition. That is why the team, with the help of innovative methods and a cooperative approach, would like to launch a systematic examination of the interaction between well-being and cognition in infancy.

DNA nanotechnology

Professor Guido Clever from TU Dortmund University and Professor Thomas Happe from RUB are working together in the field of DNA nanotechnology. They will receive around € 420,000 for their project “Design of DNA-based Redox Systems”. In DNA nanotechnology, researchers develop functional materials from DNA for technical, chemical or medical applications. In the framework of this project, the participants want to produce novel, DNA-based redox modules for sensor technology and green chemistry applications, e.g., in hydrogen production.

Ultrashort pulse lasers

Professor Mirko Cinchetti from TU Dortmund University and Professor Clara Saraceno from RUB are conducting research on ultrashort pulse lasers. They will receive total funding of € 480,000 for the project “Towards a UA Ruhr Ultrafast Laser Science Center: Tailored fs-XUV Beamline for Photoemission Spectroscopy”. The objective of the project is to link ultrashort pulse laser research, development and applications more closely. The team will build an ultrafast spectroscopic tool with unique performance and flexibility, which is based on state-of-the-art ultrafast laser technology and customized specifically for photoemission spectroscopy. The project should form the basis for submitting an application for an ERC Synergy Grant as well as for establishing a new “UA Ruhr Ultrafast Laser Science Center”.

The University Alliance Ruhr

Ruhr Universität Bochum, TU Dortmund University and the University of Duisburg-Essen have been working closely and strategically together under the umbrella of UA Ruhr since 2007. By joining forces, the partner universities’ performance is systematically upgraded. Reflecting the motto “better together”, there are meanwhile over 100 cooperative projects in research, teaching, and administration. With over 120,000 students and almost 1,300 professors, UA Ruhr is one of Germany’s largest and top-performing centers of science and research.

Further information about MERCUR (German only)