Marc Kobbenbring joins the Group as a Research Intern!

04.2025

We’re joined by Marc Kobbenbring, who will be supporting the team as a research intern this term, once again as part of a collaborative project with Prof. Dr. Katharina Al-Shamery, head of the group Nanophotonics and Surface Chemistry. Marc is currently doing his Masters in Chemistry at the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg and will be working on STM studies of TiS₂ nanomaterials together with Niko. 

We look forward to insightful contributions during his time with us!

Hosting a Student Intern at our Group!

04.2025

Over the past few weeks, we had the pleasure of hosting Sara in the Hybrid Catalysts group as part of a short-term internship. During her time with us, she got a glimpse into what studying chemistry at university can look like — from hands-on lab experiences to discussions on research topics, and the day-to-day life of academic work.

It was great to share different sides of what we do and to support early exploration in science. Thanks for spending time with us, Sara — and best of luck with everything ahead!

Photo Credit: C.v.O. Universität Oldenburg / Matthias Knust (PI) 

Welcome our new Research Intern: Jonas Knake!

04.2025

We’re happy to welcome Jonas Knake to our laboratories! As part of a collaborative project with Prof. Dr. Katharina Al-Shamery, head of the group Nanophotonics and Surface Chemistry, Jonas will be completing a research internship under the co-supervision of Lars Mohrhusen. They will be working on TiO₂-water-interactions with respect to the defect density of the TiO₂ surface. 

We’re looking forward to their contributions and the insights they’ll bring to the project. Welcome to the team, Jonas!

Lars Mohrhusen receives the Ewald Wicke Prize!

04.2025

Dr. Lars Mohrhusen has been awarded the Ewald Wicke Prize for his research into the (photo)chemistry of molecules on defect-rich oxides, single-atom catalysts and 2D materials. The Ewald Wicke Foundation and the German Bunsen Society for Physical Chemistry (DBG) award the prize to young researchers aged 35 or under for outstanding work in the field of applied physical chemistry. 

The award ceremony took place at this year's Bunsen-Tagung in Leipzig. The photo shows (from left): Prof. Dr. Rolf Hempelmann, representative of the Ewald Wicke Foundation; Prof. Dr. Robert Franke, 1st Chairman of the DBG; Dr. Lars Mohrhusen and the laudator Prof. Dr. Katharina Al-Shamery from the University of Oldenburg.

More information can be found on the University of Münster Website: here (German only).

Photo Credit: TROPOS / Arnhold

Celina and Fangliang at the Bunsen-Tagung 2025!

03.2025

We’re pleased to share that Celina Groothuis and Fangliang Li recently attended the Bunsen-Tagung 2025 at the Leipzig University, where they had the opportunity to present their research, exchange ideas with fellow scientists, and gain insights for our ongoing projects. 

Celina presented the results of her research internship about the optimization of time-resolved XPS, while Fangliang showcased his design of a NAP reactor for operando performance testing of our photocatalytic systems.

Many thanks to the organizers for a great event—we’re looking forward to next year!

Back at MAX IV – Experiments at the FlexPES Beamline!

03.2025

Fresh from our beamtime at HIPPIE, we had the exciting opportunity to conduct our first experiments at the FlexPES beamline at MAX IV Laboratory! This time, we focused on high resolution XPS and NEXAFS of our novel Ti-based photocatalysts.

Building on our previous measurements, FlexPES provided new insights into the effects of different synthesis substrates and the introduction of defects into our nanostructured materials.

A big thank you to Alexander Generalov and the FlexPES team for their support, as well as to Martin Hedevang and Sergi Campos Jara from the group of Jeppe V. Lauritsen for joining the experiments—we're eager to analyze the results in detail and further develop our understanding of the new materials!

First Beamtime at MAX IV's HIPPIE Beamline!

03.2025

Exciting time for the Hybrid Catalysts - Research Group! We recently conducted our first beamtime at the HIPPIE beamline at MAX IV Laboratory, moving our research on greenhouse gas (photo-)activation from UHV towards more realistic conditions. 
We explored the chemistry of different greenhouse gases on defective oxide (photo-)catalysts under near ambient pressure conditions, i.e. the few mbar range.

A huge thank you to Andrey Shavorskiy and his incredible team at HIPPIE for their support and expertise, as well as to Filip Hallböök from Sara Blombergs group for joining the experiments—this was an invaluable experience, and we can’t wait to dive deep into the data!

Looking forward to many more successful experiments at MAX IV!

Lars Mohrhusen receives Special Mention of the Gian-Paolo-Brivio Award

02.2025

Lars Mohrhusen recently had the honor of attending the opening ceremony of the 222nd academic year of the Istituto Lombardo Accademia di Scienze e Lettere, a prestigious scientific academy in northern Italy. During the ceremony in Milan, he received a special mention of the Gian-Paolo-Brivio Award, which recognizes outstanding early-career scientists in the fields of chemistry, physics, and materials science.

The award, jointly conferred by the European Network of Physics and Chemistry of Advanced Materials (PCAM), highlights significant contributions to cutting-edge research in these disciplines. This recognition underscores the impact of our ongoing work and the dedication of our team to advancing scientific knowledge in materials science. We are incredibly proud of this achievement and deeply grateful to all colleagues, collaborators, and supporters who have contributed over the years. 

Photo credit: Martina Crespi, Istituto Lombardo Accademia di Scienze e Lettere

Justin and Niko at the 2025 GRC on Reactions at Surfaces!

02.2025

We’re happy to share that two members of our group, Justin Klimek and Niko Kruse, recently attended the latest of the Gordon Research Conferences on Chemical Reactions at Surfaces in beautiful Ventura, CA.

They introduced their recent research through poster presentations, highlighting their work over the past couple of months. Justin presented his work on point defects in rutile TiO₂ (110) surfaces for greenhouse gas conversions, while Niko's work focused on the synthesis and structure of TiS₂ nanoparticles on the Au(111) surface.

This conference was a great opportunity to connect with leading researchers in surface science, exchange ideas, and gain valuable feedback on their work.

Thanks to Justin and Niko for the great representation of the group! 

School Intern Tamino joins the group!

01.2025

The new year starts with a new face at the Hybrid Catalysts Group! 
Tamino, a student intern from the Jade-Gymnasium, was able to gain many different insights into our work over the course of January. He not only supported the work on UHV systems and in the wet lab, but also helped with the design of an experiment for students of our university lab course. 
Many thanks, Tamino, and good luck for the future!

More information about student internships at the Institute of Chemistry of the University of Oldenburg as well as an interview with Tamino can be found here (at the time of writing only available in German).

Photo Credit: C.v.O. Universität Oldenburg / Marcus Windus (PI)