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Awards
Outstanding Master theses
Huge congrats to Robin Labenski for winning the student prize for his master thesis at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum!
His master thesis “Laser induced influence of charges in a dielectric barrier discharge under atmospheric pressure” discusses the improvement of plasma catalysts using a metal grid array with cavities of diameters between 50 and 200 µm. Using an Nd:YAG laser, the surface charges of the reactor could be manipulated to investigate the behaviour of the discharge.
Project A6 of the CRC 1316 (funded by the German Physical Society (DFG)), where this thesis was set, seems to be very successful in winning this prize. 2021 David Steuer won it for his master thesis and in 2023 Henrik van Impel won the prize with his bachelor thesis.
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Conference
Invited talk at the GEC
In October 2024, Prof. Dr. Judith Golda has been invited to present on "Plasma-surface interaction in plasma catalysis" at the 77th Annual Gaseous Electronics Conference in San Diego, USA. In her 30 minute-talk, she gave an overview of the current research on combining plasmas with catalysts in order to store, for instance, renewable energy in chemical forms. The design and diagnostics of atmospheric pressure non-equilibrium plasmas has been as well a focus as theoretical and experimental research in the field. In particular, applications, such as biocatalysis, gas conversion, and catalyst surface modification for processes like electrolysis have been discussed.
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Conference
Plenary talk at the EPS
In July 2024, Prof. Dr. Judith Golda has been invited to give a plenary talk about atmospheric pressure plasmas at the 50th EPS conference on Plasma Physics in Salamanca, Spain.
Her talk, titled with "Atmospheric pressure plasma: From basic physics to environmental applications", provided an overview of the current status of plasma catalysis. Low temperature plasmas have been used for surface modifications for more than five decades. However, several plasma-surface interactions remain to be discovered. Particularly the non-equilibrium character of low temperature plasmas seems to be a promising candidate to improve the commonly known thermal catalysis. Plasma catalysis could be used to tackle, for instance, the current challenges in storing renewable energy in chemical resources.
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Conference
Invited lecture at the FLTPD
On April 30th 2024, Prof. Dr. Judith Golda has been invited to give a talk on "Diagnostics for atmospheric pressure plasmas in plasma catalysis" at the Frontiers in Low Temperature Plasma Diagnostics (FLTPD XV) conference, which was held in Prague, Czech Republic. The Conference Centre of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic proved to be an excellent venue for both, intriguing talks and posters on the latest advancements of plasma research, and scientific networking in the after hours.
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Public Outreach
Saturday Morning Physics
On December 14, 2024, Prof. Dr. Judith Golda brought the magic of physics to life during the Saturday Morning Physics lecture series, held at St. Paul's Church in the heart of Bochum.
In this special Advent edition, the audience was amazed by self-made snow, shimmering golden miniature reindeer, and tinsel that moved as if by magic - without a single touch. A particularly enchanting moment came when a Rubens tube transformed sound waves into flickering flames, like multiple candles of varying heights dancing to the melody of a Christmas song.
With participants ranging in age from 2 to 82, the event was a great success, offering a captivating glimpse into the wonders of physics.
Further informartion is provided on our instagram channel: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DDxL30ps12G/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
and on our website: https://www.physik.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/transfer/physikalischer-winterzauber-gelungene-premiere/
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Outgoing research stay
Laboratory stay in the USA
As part of his PhD, PhD student David Steuer (project A6) is spending nine weeks at the Sandia Plasma Research Facility (PRF) in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA. Researchers can apply at PRF to submit project ideas. After a successful review process, there is then the option of using one of the excellently equipped laboratories or handing over the experiment to the cooperation partner.
The PRF also offers simulation capacities. In David's project, atomic oxygen densities are to be measured within a microcavity plasma array. A state-of-the-art picosecond laser system from the PRF can be used for this purpose.
The stay was funded by the Research School of the Ruhr-Universität Bochum (PRINT programme) and the CRC 1316.
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Publications
Paper on the cover of "Plasma Processes und Polymers"
The paper by Eloise Mestre, Inna Orel, Daniel Henze, Laura Chauvet, Sebastian Burhenn, Sebastien Dozias, Fabienne Brule-Morabito, Judith Golda and Claire Douat made it onto the cover of the renowned journal Plasma Processes and Polymers. This covers the interdisciplinary field of low-temperature plasma science. Congratulations to the authors!
