QuMat

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News Archive

Mo Tu

February 9, 2026

until February 10, 2026

Schloss Hünigen, Switzerland

Event

molQ Meeting
(date to be confirmed)

molq.physik.unibas.ch

Publication Highlight – NanoscaleHoriz 2025

Discharge and Electron Correlation of Radical Molecules in a Supramolecular Assembly on Superconducting Pb(111)

Precise control over the charge-state of radical molecules on surfaces is essential for engineering correlated electronic states in nanoscale architectures.

Nanoscale Horiz., 2025, 10, 2365-2373 and 2138

Mo Tu

September 15, 2025

until September 16, 2025

Meielisalp, Switzerland

Event

molQ Meeting

molq.physik.unibas.ch

Photo Gallery

SpinQueST Conference

Impressions from the SpinQueST Conference held from August 17th to 21st, 2025, at the conference center Congressi Stefano Franscini. It is situated in the south of Switzerland on top of a small mountain with the nickname "Mountain of Truth" i.e. "Monte Verità" linking to its past as an epicentre of cultural inspiration and liberal thinking.

QuMat & spinquest.dcbp.unibe.ch

Su Th

August 17, 2025

until August 21, 2025

Monte Verità, Ascona, Switzerland

Event

spinQueST Conference

spinquest.dcbp.unibe.ch

Media Monitoring

Innovative quantum technology with great potential

The "Werner Siemens-Stiftung" has officially launched the molQ project on their website:
"Although there are various approaches for developing quantum computers, no major breakthroughs have been made. Now, in a new project funded by the Werner Siemens Foundation, researchers at the universities of Basel and Bern hope to change this with their innovative strategy for building stable, energy-efficient quantum units."

2025/05/06 Werner Siemens-Stiftung

Media Monitoring

CHIMIA – Community News

PD Dr. Shi-Xia Liu to head a newly opened research laboratory at the University of Bern
(CHIMIA article based on the university's media release)

CHIMIA, 2025, 79(3), 184

Media Monitoring

Neues Forschungszentrum –
Unis in Bern und Basel setzen auf molekulare Quantensysteme

Ein neues Projekt der Universitäten Bern und Basel soll helfen, komplexe Probleme mit Quantencomputer lösen zu können.
(BZ article based on the university's media release)

2025/03/04 Berner Zeitung

Media Release UniBE

New WSS research center for molecular quantum systems

The University of Basel and the University of Bern are setting up a new research center to enable the construction of superconducting quantum units. The Werner Siemens Foundation is supporting the project with a total of CHF 15 million over the next eleven years.

2025/03/04 Media Release UniBE

Publication Highlight – ACSNano 2025

Individual Assembly of Radical Molecules on Superconductors

High-precision molecular manipulation techniques are used to control the assembly of radical molecules (S=1/2) on a superconductor. Here we present a low-temperature STM and STS study of molecules hosting single electrons on superconducting Pb(111).

ACS Nano, 2025, 19(3), 3403-3413

Mo Tu

February 17, 2025

until February 18, 2025

Schloss Hünigen, Switzerland

Event

molQ Kickoff Meeting

molq.physik.unibas.ch

Publication Highlight – AdvSci 2025

Spin Excitations of High-Spin Iron(II) in Metal-Organic Chains on Metal and Superconductor

We use on-surface coordination chemistry to synthesize on Ag(111) and superconducting Pb(111) iron-based spin chains that reveal low-energy spin excitations.

Adv. Sci., 2025, 12(7), 2412351/1-7 and 2570043

December 21, 2024

Jungfraujoch, Switzerland

Event

molQ meets WSS Board on Jungfraujoch

molq.physik.unibas.ch

Research Highlight @DCBPunibern – MoM_2024-12

Molecule of the Month
December 2024

Photoinduced Asymmetric Charge Trapping Stabilizes a Charge-Separated State

Group of PD Dr. Shi-Xia Liu

Media Release UniBE

New endowed lectureship in molecular quantum materials

Thanks to the support of the Bernese entrepreneur Walter Inäbnit, the University of Bern is able to establish a new endowed lectureship. It is based at the newly opened W. Inäbnit Laboratory for Molecular Quantum Materials at the Department of Chemistry, Biochemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences (DCBP). The purpose of this new lectureship is to develop new classes of materials which could potentially solve the problem of energy loss in electronics. The lectureship will be held by PD Dr. Shi-Xia Liu.

2024/10/11 Media Release UniBE

UniBE Foundation Video

Science Speed Dating
mit Shi-Xia Liu

Die Videoreihe der UniBE Foundation beleuchtet in einem kurzen Videoformat Forscher:innen und ihre Visionen.
https://unibefoundation.ch/videos/science-speed-dating-mit-shia-xia-liu

UniBE Foundation / YouTube

UniBE Foundation Blog

KI ohne Hitzekoller – Wie topologische Materialien den Stromverbrauch senken

Der UniBE Foundation Blog berichtet über innovativen Projekten und die Arbeit von Forscher:innen an der Universität Bern

2024/07/03 UniBE Foundation

Publication Highlight – CrystEngComm 2024

Hexadecanuclear isobutyrate nanoclusters with a {Co^II₁₄Co^III₂} core

A new hexadecanuclear nanocluster with a mixed-valence {Co₁₆} core has been prepared and fully characterized. Predominantly intracluster ferromagnetic exchange interactions were measured.

CrystEngComm, 2024, 26(32), 4264-4271 and 4251

Publication Highlight – JPhysChemC 2023

Self-Assembly of N-Rich Triimidazoles on Ag(111)

Hydrogen-bonded assemblies of N-doped heterocyclic triimidazole molecules on a Ag(111) substrate were investigated using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and low-energy electron diffraction (LEED) techniques. The LEED data are consistent with simulations based on a distinct overlayer on the Ag(111) lattice. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations support the experimental results.

J. Phys. Chem. C, 2023, 127(47), 23000-23009

Publication Highlight – ACIE 2021

On-Surface Synthesis of Nitrogen-Doped Kagome Graphene

We report the on-surface reaction on Ag(111) for the synthesis of two-dimensional N-doped graphene sheets possessing a honeycomb Kagome lattice. STM, AFM and DFT methods are applied to scrutinize the structural and electronic properties. We demonstrate the semiconducting character of the lattice and the emergence of Kagome flat bands near the Fermi level.

Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 2021, 60(15), 8370-8375

Research Highlight @DCBPunibern – MoM_2020-11

Molecule of the Month
November 2020

Nitrogen-Doped Porous Nanoribbons

Group of PD Dr. Shi-Xia Liu

QuMat

News

News & Events

molQ Meeting (date to be confirmed)

Discharge and Electron Correlation of Radical Molecules in a Supramolecular Assembly on Superconducting Pb(111)

molQ Meeting

SpinQueST Conference

spinQueST Conference

Innovative quantum technology with great potential

CHIMIA – Community News

Neues Forschungszentrum – Unis in Bern und Basel setzen auf molekulare Quantensysteme

New WSS research center for molecular quantum systems

Individual Assembly of Radical Molecules on Superconductors

molQ Kickoff Meeting

Spin Excitations of High-Spin Iron(II) in Metal-Organic Chains on Metal and Superconductor

molQ meets WSS Board on Jungfraujoch

Molecule of the Month December 2024

New endowed lectureship in molecular quantum materials

Science Speed Dating mit Shi-Xia Liu

KI ohne Hitzekoller – Wie topologische Materialien den Stromverbrauch senken

Hexadecanuclear isobutyrate nanoclusters with a {CoII14CoIII2} core

Self-Assembly of N-Rich Triimidazoles on Ag(111)

On-Surface Synthesis of Nitrogen-Doped Kagome Graphene

Molecule of the Month November 2020

molQ Meeting
(date to be confirmed)

Neues Forschungszentrum –
Unis in Bern und Basel setzen auf molekulare Quantensysteme

Molecule of the Month
December 2024

Science Speed Dating
mit Shi-Xia Liu

Hexadecanuclear isobutyrate nanoclusters with a {Co^II₁₄Co^III₂} core

Molecule of the Month
November 2020