News & updates
Latest developments from our institute
Stay informed about new research results, awards, events, and collaborations across our scientific community.
Marie Curie Grant for understanding fungal decision making
In the last year, AMOLF postdoc Achille Joliot uncovered many fascinating details about mycorrhizal fungi. Now, he is able to take his research further as recipient of the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Individual Fellowship. Using the grant, Achille is eager to answer an ecologically important question: how are these fungi able to make sophisticated decisions without a central nervous system. This work will be carried out in the Physics of Behavior group led by Tom Shimizu.
How disordered materials age and what we can learn from that
From the crinkle of a candy wrapper to the squish of a metal kitchen scrubber, disordered materials that lack a regular structure share a surprising secret. Despite their differences, they age in a similar way. This is important knowledge to enable production of more durable products, and it helps to explain why some models – like large AI models – sometimes get stuck. Together with international collaborators, researchers from the Mechanical Metamaterials group present their findings in the journal PNAS on February 18.
What is the exchange rate in plant–fungi nutrient trade?
Most plants on earth rely on symbiotic nutrient exchange with fungal partners to boost their growth, but what are the exact terms of this trade? AMOLF researchers, together with collaborators from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Ecole Normale Superieur de Lyon, discovered that the ‘exchange rate’ for carbon (from plants) and phosphorus (from fungi) remains remarkably constant over time, but depends on the type of plant involved in the exchange. The findings are published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA (PNAS) on February 6th.
Oral presentation prize for Nienke Reitsma
Nienke Reitsma not only has great scientific ideas; she also presents them very well! At the Soft Robotics for Healthcare Network (SoRoH) conference, Nienke received the ‘Best Oral Presentation Prize’ for a talk highlighting her contribution to the Holland Hybrid Heart project.
Bacterial ‘brains’ on the brink of order and disorder
The sensory proteins that control the motion of bacteria constantly fluctuate. AMOLF researchers, together with international collaborators from ETH Zurich and University of Utah, found out that these proteins can jointly switch on and off at the same time. The researchers discovered that this protein network operates at the boundary between order and disorder. The findings are published in Nature Physics on January 29th.
Proof of Concept grant for Wim Noorduin and Marc Serra Garcia
The European Research Council (ERC) announced that AMOLF group leaders Wim Noorduin and Marc Serra Garcia have received an ERC Proof of Concept grant. Together with collaborators they will enable applications that address important societal challenges: the need for single-handed molecules for drug development and a simpler way to monitor damage in wind turbine blades.
A remarkable run of PhD ceremonies
Giel Keijsers Title: Strong light-matter interactions in coherently driven open-access optical cavities Date: November 4 [caption id="" align="alignright" width="290"] Giel Keijsers after defending his thesis[/caption] How can you influence the…
Faculty of Impact Award for AMOLF start-up
After filing for a patent together with colleagues, Agustin Alvarez (Hybrid Solar Cells) is ready for the next step. Recently, he received an NWO Faculty of Impact Award that helps him to take an important next step towards achieving societal impact with his invention.