Glass fibers as measuring instruments

The innoFSPEC research center of the Astrophysical Institute Potsdam (AIP) and the University of Potsdam is the winner of the nationwide innovation competition "365 Landmarks in the Land of Ideas". innoFSPEC has established a new, interdisciplinary research approach with fiber optic spectroscopy and sensor technology. Findings from astrophysics and physical chemistry promote the development of innovative measurement methods using optical fibers and open up new approaches for other scientific fields such as medical technology and environmental research.

Marion Hanisch from Deutsche Bank in Potsdam today honored the research project as a "Selected Site 2011" as part of the nationwide Girls' Day and Future Day at the AIP, where 30 school students experimented with light and fibers in the laboratories of Potsdam's Astrophysical Institute. This makes innoFSPEC one of 365 prize winners awarded each year by the "Germany - Land of Ideas" initiative, together with Deutsche Bank, under the patronage of the German President.

On the occasion of the award ceremony, Marion Hanisch emphasized: "The young research center innoFSPEC is an outstanding example of Germany as a location for innovation and how good ideas can be successfully implemented thanks to interdisciplinary cooperation."

Martin Roth, initiator of innoFSPEC and professor at the University of Potsdam commented: "We are proud to be a 'Selected Landmark' in the Land of Ideas. But the award is also an incentive for new efforts in cutting-edge research in our laboratories in Golm and Babelsberg."

Out of 2,600 submitted applications, innoFSPEC convinced the independent jury and represents Germany as the "Land of Ideas" with its sustainable idea.