News and Media

Tritium fuels nuclear fusion and counts among the most valuable resources for this energy source. To prevent losses in future fusion power plants, the Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS and the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP) jointly develop advanced barrier coatings. Their project, “TritiumStopp”, aims to create high-performance permeation barriers that withstand extreme conditions.

The Fraunhofer Application Center for Optical Metrology AZOM stands for optical measurement solutions tailored to industrial needs. On June 18, 2025, more than 100 guests from industry, science, government, and academia gathered in Zwickau to mark the center’s tenth anniversary. Established as a joint initiative by Fraunhofer IWS and West Saxon University of Applied Sciences Zwickau (WHZ), AZOM today stands for hands-on research, strategic cooperation, and customized solutions for businesses – particularly small and medium-sized enterprises. The center combines optical precision with industrial applicability, thereby contributing to the region’s innovation capacity.

Fraunhofer IWS has been conducting research into innovative solutions for solvent-free, dry electrode production since 2011. The focus topics of this research are sustainable and cost-efficient material and process developments. Especially in regard to the development of next-generation batteries, for example lithium-sulfur and solid-state batteries, the institute belongs now to the world‘s leading research and development (R&D) organizations. Practical innovations geared towards industrial benefits are created using a holistic approach which covers the entire value chain from material development and electrode production through to cell manufacturing.

Electric mobility is making great strides in Germany and across Europe. Building further momentum will require an extensive build-out of production capacity for battery cells in this country. Production methods will also have to use little energy and be much less expensive. A team of researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS in Dresden has developed DRYtraec, a revolutionary method that permits cost-effective, eco-friendly manufacturing of battery electrodes. For this pioneering technology, the research scientists were presented with the Joseph von Fraunhofer Prize for 2025 at the Fraunhofer annual assembly.