Explore upcoming scientific events

Each year during the national Weekend of Science, AMOLF opens its doors to visitors of all ages to share our enthusiasm for science. AMOLF organizes Wetenschapsdag together with four other research organizations at Amsterdam Science Park: ARCNL, Nikhef, CWI, and University of Amsterdam.

This year at the opening of the parliamentary year (Prinsjesdag) Minister of Education, Culture and Science Rianne Letschert wears a spectacular hat and shoulder ornament. Both of them are inspired by the microscopic structures studied by group leader Wim Noorduin (AMOLF/UvA), which look remarkably like tiny flowers under a microscope. Artist and designer Malou Beemer translated these shapes, normally invisible to the naked eye, into wearable art.

For the first time, AMOLF participated in the Netherlands’ largest summer festival, Zwarte Cross. Together with volunteers from NWO, the AMOLF team introduced children to the fascinating world of molecules. The AMOLF booth was located in the festival’s children’s area, Blagenparadijs, as part of the NWA (National Science Agenda) carried out by NWO.

On June 19, physicists and chemists in the Netherlands came together to learn about recent discoveries on light for driving and monitoring chemical reactions. Light is a powerful and sustainable tool for steering such reactions with precision. AMOLF organized the bi-annual symposium at Amsterdam Science Park.

On June 11, researchers gathered at the Autonomous Matter Symposium to discuss the concept of autonomy from different perspectives. Professor Jay Groves (UC Berkeley) argued that autonomy may not begin with decision-making, but with amplification. Professor Elisabetta Chicca (University of Groningen) offered a complementary perspective from the field of neuromorphic engineering.

On May 8, a group of 120 young researchers came to Amsterdam Science Park for the third edition of WomenNetPhysics (WNP), the largest Dutch networking event for women in physics. Bringing together both women and men, the event united participants through a shared interest in improving the position of women in the field.  WomenNetPhysics 2026 was organized by: AMOLF, UvA IoP, ARCNL, and NIKHEF.

Each spring, AMOLF participates in ‘ExpeditieNext’, the national science festival for kids. This year, AMOLF expanded its contribution by offering two activities: ‘Make your own hologram’ and the newly developed ‘Flavor enhancers’. ‘ExpeditieNext’ 2026 took place in Enkhuizen on May 1.

On April 17, around 250 researchers gathered at AMOLF in Amsterdam for the fourth edition of the annual OrganoidNL Symposium. Organoids, which are small, simplified models of organs grown from stem cells in the lab, are powerful tools to study, for example, how our bodies work and how diseases develop.

On April 16 and 17, AMOLF organized the first ‘Multistable Active Matter’ symposium. The initiative for this new symposium came from Martin van Hecke (Mechanical Metamaterials), with the aim of starting a discussion about a new direction in the field: the design and understanding of multistable active systems.

Electrochemists working on nanoscale electrochemical interfaces came together in Amsterdam to share recent findings and explore new collaboration opportunities. The ANION Symposium was the first edition organized by the Advanced Netherlands Institute of Nanoelectrochemistry (ANION), with AMOLF and UvA as co-organizers. The symposium took place on Friday, October 31.

What a wonderful Wetenschapsdag we have had on October 4th! The visitors were enthusiastic and eager to take part in lab tours, workshops, and other activities. Many were returning guests, while lots of new faces discovered the Amsterdam Science Park campus for the first time. As the cherry on top, the sun came out unexpectedly.

The conference Metamaterials2025 brought together 400 researchers from around the world to share their results and vision. Metamaterials was held at Felix Meritis in Amsterdam from September 2 – 6.