DFG priority program
New in 2015: Start of bilateral network with SHARED EPR
As a major goal, new application fields shall be opened up by EPR such as the investigation of megadalton molecular machines, in cell protein-protein interactions or enzymatic mechanisms, catalytic processes on single-crystalline surfaces, or the light-induced degradation of thin-film solar cells. The intrinsic diversity of the studied systems implies that the envisaged sensitivity enhancement does not only rely on advances on the side of EPR hardware but also involves alternative polarisation and detection schemes and the adaptation of the method to “real world” samples.
The program encompasses collaborative projects that focus on four major research areas. The first two comprehend methods to increase the sensitivity of EPR experiments:
1) methods for improved excitation and manipulation of electron spin magnetisation and 2) methods for improved EPR detection. The third and fourth areas explore the applicability of these methods in fields of biological and materials sciences, which are not amenable to EPR spectroscopy at the current state-of-the-art. The synergy between the methodological work, on the one side, and application-oriented research on the other side, will be progressively established.