Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 3 Let us face our challenges head on! “What does the future hold?” The Editorial for this magazine opened with the same question precisely one year ago. At the time, nobody knew or could even have imagined how 2020 was set to change under the fallout of COVID-19. Given everything we have come to realize as this year draws to a close, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft has emerged extremely well from the year of the pandemic. I would like to thank all our employees, researchers, institute directors for the discipline and judgment they have shown. Even in this difficult time, together we have successfully generated fresh momentum with our innovation push and coronavirus program. The contribution to the development of EUV litho- graphy made by Dr. Sergiy Yulin and his team from the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engi- neering IOF has made sure we are able to close the year with an extremely positive result. Together with fellow researchers from ZEISS and TRUMPF, Dr. Yulin won the German Future Prize on November 25 (see page 62). Fraunhofer IOF has won this award, presented by the Federal President, for the third time, and Fraunhofer as a whole nine times. For the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, it is not the only positive to come out of 2020, a “year in which we have talked about science more than ever before,” as Frank-Walter Steinmeier puts in a nutshell. As unexpectedly as this year has developed, the Fraunhofer- Gesellschaft has resolutely stuck to its goals. The first quan- tum computer, which Fraunhofer wanted to bring to Germany together with IBM, is about to go into operation. Reaching Germany by ship in November, it will be available in the town of Ehningen in Baden-Württemberg from January 2021 – for Prof. Reimund Neugebauer © Fraunhofer / Bernhard Huber the Fraunhofer Quantum Computing Competence Network, but also dedicated to the German economy as a whole. The first projects are about to get underway. This Fraunhofer magazine takes a look at what computing of the future can and will do. One thing is already clear: The association between quantum and artificial intelligence will be nothing short of a future key technology for safeguarding Germany's competitive ability in international high-tech markets. Quantum computing is set to become one of the strong pillars for building the future – alongside trusted computing, set to achieve digital security, and neuromorphic computing, which models itself on the marvel of the human brain. Science has played no small part in our fresh optimism as we step into 2021. The record time in which corona vaccines have been developed and pushed to the approval stage is impressive testimony to the true value of research. The challenges are not about to get easier. But if this last year has taught us one thing, it's this: We have the strength to face them head on. Yours sincerely, Reimund Neugebauer President of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 5 44 New mission as a medicine mRNA is helping in the fight against coronavirus – and has even greater potential. 36 New series about founders and spin-offs: “Without Fraunhofer? Our spin-off would simply not exist!” How mySHOEFITTER makes sure shoes never pinch again. 64 Logistics at record speed LoadRunner learns how to deliver parcels from the intelligence of a swarm of birds. 56 Too valuable for the compost heap Thousands of tons of food rot away, and they hold valuable raw materials. 44 47 48 50 53 54 New mission as a medicine mRNA is not only the magic word in the battle against coronavirus – in future, it will be able to fight cancer as well mRNA - a new class of vaccines How messenger RNA works inside the body The history of immunization Humans will be turned into animals, feared the anti- vaxxers early on. Many Nazis too refused the needle Ready for mass production How Fraunhofer researchers are contributing to the corona vaccine “There are many horses in the race” Vaccine expert Dr. Ulbert in an interview Quick curbing of paper mountains Assistants in hospitals, courtrooms and businesses: Deep learning algorithms 56 58 60 62 64 Waste as a source of raw materials German Sustainability Award: Raw materials from food waste Can we prolong youthfulness? What 130 genes can reveal about the biological age of human beings Two ways to an assured recovery Germany holds the world record for hip operations. Fraunhofer helps prevent complications German Future Prize for Fraunhofer Away in a new dimension: EUV lithography has reached the smartphone – and has even greater potential! Logistics at record speed Record numbers of parcels sent at Christmas 2020 – a glance at the future Coronavirus is keeping peo- ple off the shopping streets, online retailing is exploding with Christmas business. In the five weeks before Christmas, Deutsche Post DHL delivered 1.6 billion packages, more than it did in the whole of 2019: 100 percent in November, 100 percent ahead of the usual high season. Customers and companies can feel it: the challenges for the logistics of tomorrow are on the rise. Fraunhofer connects AI to swarm intelligence for its LoadRunner solution (see p. 64). back to page 1

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 7 One in two young people in Germany wear a brace – often for many years. © F1 online / Stocksy Healthy teeth despite a f ixed brace Brace wearers face an increased risk of caries. Wires and fasteners make it difficult to clean the teeth. A combination of a special peptide and fluoride helps to protect the enamel. This is shown in a study by the Philipps University of Marburg and the Fraunhofer Institute for Microstructure of Materials and Systems IMWS. The research results were recognized with the Oral-B Award for Pediatric Dentistry and Prevention 2020. The enamel may demineralize, especially at the edges of the surfaces where the braces are attached to the tooth. Such damage, which occurs with fixed braces in almost half of all cases, can lead to the formation of caries. Damage to the enamel can cause bacteria to settle, multiply and penetrate further into the tooth. If the damage is still at an early stage (initial lesion), a novel treatment method can stop the process and even help the tooth to repair itself: The peptide P11-4 is applied to the tooth as a liquid, fills the lesion and ensures that calcium ions and other minerals are deposited in the tooth structure. “By using P11-4 in combination with a fluoride varnish, we were able to observe a significantly improved reminer- alization of the enamel compared to the use of fluorides alone,” says Prof. Anahita Jablonski-Momeni from the Philipps University of Marburg, summarizing the results of the study. Peptide P11-4 On the International Space Station, the lives of the astronauts depend on the onboard technology working. © NASA Images

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 9 Reliable protection against plasticizers Harmful plasticizers are found not only in plastic toys or packaging, but also in blood bags and intravenous tubes. A new process being developed at the Fraunhofer Institute for Surface Engineering and Thin Films IST prevents these dangerous substances getting into the body. Barrier effect 95% Banned from children's toys, allowed in blood bags: the PVC additive DEHP. © iStockphoto Plasticizers are added to plastics to make them more flexible. Because they are not permanently bound to the polymer, these plasticizers can easily release themselves again. Blood bags and medical tubes often contain the PVC additive DEHP (diethylhexylphthal- ate). The EU has classified DEHP, which belongs to the phthalates class of substances, as toxic. The substance is banned from cosmetics and children's toys because of its toxic effects on the reproductive organs. Dr. Thomas Neubert and his colleagues at Fraunhofer IST in Braunschweig use atmospheric pressure plasma processes to modify the DEHP’s molecular structure on the plastic surface and to crosslink the molecules in a way that prevents the harmful substance from passing through the crosslinked lattice. The PVC itself is not modified, its mechani- cal properties are preserved. The researchers’ tests showed that plasticizer migration from soft PVC could be reduced by 95 percent. To test the long-term stability of the barriers, the treated soft PVC films were stored in air for four months. The result: The molecular meshwork produced does not dissolve, and the 95 percent barrier effect is preserved. The tests were conducted with PVC films that are used to manufacture blood bags. These results can also be extrapolated to other phthalate plasticizers.

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 11 Computers with super powers? Many hopes are resting on quantum computers being able to better solve simulation and optimization problems in the future. They will demonstrate their superiority in the computer center of the future in combination with other technologies.

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 13 N E X T Creating something new from the ground up: It's still impossible to simulate larger molecules well. Quantum- based computer strategies could change this, and create new potentials in the development of medicines, chemicals and materials.

N E X T Computers for the future: In future hybrid computer architectures, quantum processes could solve complex, physical equations more quickly, optimizing in turn climate models and weather predictions. More precise modeling techniques will ultimately improve planning procedures, in the energy sector too. “A new world from one square meter” For many of us, the coronavirus has made the world small. This hasn't hindered the work of the photographer working on the cover story for this Fraunhofer magazine. “Sometimes, I take just a few steps through my apartment or photo studio,” he says. “If I have just one square meter, I can create a new world.” Oliver Hilterhaus, born in 1963 in Mülheim an der Ruhr, where he runs a small gallery, discovered his passion as a photographer of miniature worlds ten years ago. For this Fraunhofer magazine, he built a skyline from staples, fashioned high-tech medical equipment from screws and nuts and used pieces of a jigsaw puzzle to recreate the arctic. The lonesomeness of the bear cub on the ice floe is his personal favorite motif. He now has a collection of some 2000 figures, “figurines” as he fondly calls them. And through his constantly shifting perspective, he has gained a new perception of the world – of the bigger world that is. He does find, though, that many big things have a very irrational effect on him today. www.oliverhilterhaus.de

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 17 N E X T Artificial synapses and neurons: Researchers have looked deep into the human brain to help in the development of neuromorphic chips. Based on neural networks, the circuitry of these chips is highly energy efficient and fast.

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 19 Hybrid computing solutions of the future Problem/ question Models & data Trusted computing O p ti m i z e d algorith m s Decision- making unit Solution Neuromorphic computing: imitates the structure of neural networks: in their hardware, processing units replicate neurons, between which a physical interconnec- tion network ensures rapid data exchange. Quantum computing: works in accordance with quantum-me- chanical laws. Uses qubits as the smallest information unit, and follows the principles of superposition and entanglement. circuits of neuromorphic chips. “Neuromorphic hardware is a new approach to design,” explains Dr. Loreto Mateu who is coordinating neuromorphic activities across several projects at Fraunhofer IIS. Neural networks are being used as algorithms for integrated circuits in order to imitate neuro- biological architectures. And here's the most exciting thing: “Data are processed in parallel in distributed memories, not centrally like in conventional central processing units (CPUs). So there's less transfer between memory and CPU, such that the job can be done much faster and more efficiently by neuromorphic chips than by current processors.” In Erlangen, Munich and Dresden, but at other locations too, researchers at Fraunhofer IIS, the Fraunhofer Research Institution for Microsystems and Solid State Technologies EMFT and the Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems IPMS are developing new neuromorphic systems for semicon- ductor chips that are set to allow neuromorphic computing on mobile, battery operated devices directly. “This will do away with the time-consuming transfer of data between processor and memory, and that in itself will minimize the power consumption for complex computing and transfer procedures, and reduce the latency times as well,” explains Dr. Mateu. So the technology could prove to be an asset for AI applications in particular. Such applications currently need huge amounts of energy because machine learning involves parallelizing tasks in a complex matrix multiplication opera- tion, and fast reaction times are required as well. General purpose computing: conventional CPUs that are able to manage general computations, albeit it with efficiency compromises, part and parcel of high-per- formance computing. Emerging technologies: other computer technologies to be developed further in the future. Domain-specific computing: processors that can efficiently solve a specific class or domain of problem. Problem in, solution out, but one thing is for sure: the technology used in Next Generation Computing depends on the nature of the problem to be solved. © Infographic: 2issue

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 21 Shrewd end devices save energy Edge AI is designed to get artificial intelligence to where it's needed: in the end device. This calls for chips, algorithms and tools — researchers at Fraunhofer IIS are working on this future technology in the ANDANTE and TEMPO projects. By Dr. Janine van Ackeren © iStockphoto Thinking is hard work. And it's no different for com- puters. If they are to make decisions using artificial intelligence, they actually need far more power than people and animals. A specialist AI processor, then, needs 7000 times more energy than a bee's brain to recognize a flower in a picture, for example. This high energy consumption is especially problematic if the artificial intelligence is to be moved to the end devices – so to sensors which, installed in a bridge, are supposed to detect whether the tension of the structure changes, or in portable devices that can be switched on and off by voice commands. We also call this Edge AI. This kind of artificial intelligence especially offers a host of advantages: it will work even in places where no Internet connection is available. It is much faster than conventional AI, which sends the data to a cloud and analyzes it there. And it protects privacy, data sovereignty, security and safety, because the data is never surrendered, or disclosed only to the extent absolutely necessary. Until now though, its weakness is the huge energy consumption of the components. So how can we reduce the energy consumed by artificial intelligence to a level that opens the door to Edge AI applications? At Fraunhofer IIS, Dr. Marco Breiling and Dr. Loreto Mateu and their teams are now facing this challenge in two projects: in the TEMPO and ANDANTE projects, in which, alongside numerous other partners, the Fraunhofer Research Institution for Microsystems and Solid State Technologies EMFT and the Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems IPMS are involved. “We are developing the energy-saving chips, hardware-aware algorithms and the associated tools that Edge AI needs. With these tools, we are already keeping an eye on the limits of the hardware for developing the algorithms and are considering them in the optimization process,” says Dr. Marco Breiling, Chief Scientist for Communication Sys- tems Research. In the TEMPO project, the research team is building on the Radar and Lidar application examples. In ANDANTE, its focus is on speech activity detection. The chief attraction in both projects is the mix of digital and analog technologies that combines the advantages of both. “Multiplications and additions are no problem for analog computing – so for these applications we can bypass a complex digital circuit that would consume a lot of energy,” reveals Dr. Loreto Mateu, Group Manager for Smart Sensing and Electron- ics Research, who is responsible for the development of analog components. For the control, on the other hand, digital circuits are required, and these come from Breiling's team. Analog and digital circuits developed specifically for certain AI applications are what make Edge AI possible.

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 23 transparent design and disclosed specifications. The aim is to maintain an overview of exactly what is implemented and how, and hence of functionality monitoring. The use of open-source platforms, which offer more transparency and allow user-specific modification and precise examination of the design, plays a key role here. An ecosystem with open-source RISC-V processors will allow companies to build their own hardware, even in small quantities. The project also investigates analysis methods for chips in order to uncover any unwanted functions, such as hardware Trojans for example. It also seeks to optimize energy efficiency – both locally in components and assem- blies, using new semiconductor materials and so on, and also with the distributed computing strategy in the system through predictive maintenance or AI. Pillar of the future number three: Quantum computing The third pillar of future computer architecture is quantum computing. It is this technology more than any other that has become the benchmark for high hopes in recent years. Many states are promoting the research with billions of euros, large companies and start-ups are competing for the qubits. Quantum computers are expected to take just seconds to solve problems for which computers today need years. Quantum-based computers are much faster than their normal counterparts because their information units are elementary particles, like electrons or photos, with quantum entanglement: Qubits. We can think of qubits as rotating particles that decide on a rotational direction or polarization only when measured. Until such time as they are measured, they remain in a mixed state, called a superposition. As a result of this effect, the individual quantum states can not only have a value of 0 or 1, like conventional bits, they can also have any combination of the two. In this superposition, the particles can be entangled with one another and used like this for logical computing operations. This way, complex tasks are computed in parallel rather than in linear fashion. Adding one qubit doubles the system’s performance. “But quantum computers are not expected to be able to solve every problem,” warns Anita Schöbel, Head of Fraunhofer ITWM. “Success hinges on having an algorithm which is able to use the effects of quantum mechanics. An exponential improvement of quantum computing in contrast to classic computing is possible in some applications, but for most applications this is still under research. We are in the process of investigating what kind of problems we can better solve in future with quantum computers and which using alternative architectures.” To find the answers, Fraunhofer has recently collaborated with IBM to bring a quantum computer, the IBM Q System One, to Germany – the first of its kind in Europe. The fragile freight arrived in Germany by ship in November. The quantum computer is currently being installed and is scheduled to go into operation in Ehningen in Baden-Württemberg in January 2021. “The aim is to test the first applications directly. That way, we will be expanding not only our in-house expertise, but those of the German economy as a whole. We now need access to the quantum computer, to enable us to build and operate the next generation,” Prof. Oliver Ambacher is convinced. He is head of the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics IAF in Freiburg and one of the spokes- persons for the Fraunhofer Competence Center Quantum Computing. The Center was established as a central point of contact for anyone wanting to research on and with the quantum computer together with Fraunhofer Institutes. Facts LATENCY Fast processing SECURITY Data security and protection MOBILITY Flexible ENERGY Energy- saving “We now need access to the quantum computer so we can build and operate the next generation.” Prof. Oliver Ambacher, Fraunhofer IAF

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 25 can solve it most efficiently (see figure on page 19). And it will still need conventional high-performance computing, to control quantum processors for example.” In all likelihood, the new technologies will in future be used in a complementary capacity as accelerators and to solve specific problems in existing computers. So neuromorphic hardware will be used to design energy-efficient neural networks for artificial intelligence applications. Quantum processors will get their chance later for simulation and opti- mization processes. “But ultimately, users are not interested in how their problem can be solved. All they want to know is that it will be solved to the best of the computer's ability,” emphases the Fraunhofer scientists, and she promises: “That's the true aim of our research.” “But ultimately, users will be less interested in how precisely their problem can be solved. All they want to know is that it will be solved to the best of the computer's ability.” Prof. Anita Schöbel, Fraunhofer ITWM quantum memories and scalable quantum processors. The application fields under examination include the modeling of batteries and fuel cells, stability analyses of critical infrastruc- ture networks, as well as applications and algorithms for manufacturing, development, logistics, energy and finance. In Rhineland-Palatinate, researchers at Fraunhofer ITWM are aiming, in the research project “EnerQuant: Fundamental Modeling in Energy Economics With Quantum Algorithms,” to use the advantages of quantum computing to solve a major optimization problem from energy economics. The designated fundamental model can be used to answer ques- tions such as: Which power plants are needed with which capacities to generate energy or which energy tariffs are appearing on the stock exchange? The aim is an adequately accurate stochastic modeling of the German energy market. This is being made increasingly complex by the expansion and associated growing supply of renewable energies and therefore calls for new approaches. And the research team hopes that, in the future, quantum computing will be able to solve this problem of combinatorial optimization with greater speed and precision. Fraunhofer ITWM and its partners are therefore developing algorithms for quantum computers and quantum simulators. The first step is to define a simple fundamental model that can be translated into a quantum-mechanical problem and mapped on a quantum simulator. Then, the model and the quantum simulator will be developed step-by-step until such time as the German energy market can be precisely modeled. A comparison of the results on conventional high-performance computing systems acts as a benchmark. At the end of the project, the results from EnerQuant will be available for use in industry, especially in the capital and energy sectors. Problem solved High-performance computing, neuromorphic chips, quantum processors, all in one trusted infrastructure – how will we solve problems in the future? Prof. Anita Schöbel is convinced that current universal computers are not about to become obsolete anytime soon, instead they will be optimized by the new technologies: ”The computer center of the future will be a heterogeneous one. For every special application, a decision unit assigns the application to the hardware which

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 27 Dr. Robert Bauer ... has been the Chairman of the Executive Board of SICK AG since October 1, 2006. He is also responsible for the Products & Technology department. Dr. Bauer joined the company in 1994 as Head of Research & Development for Automation Technol- ogy. In 1998, he assumed overall respon- sibility for research and development. He was appointed to the Executive Board on January 1, 2000. ... born in Munich in 1960, Dr. Bauer studied electrical engineering with core modules on electrophysics/optics at the Technical University of Munich from 1979 to 1985. In 1990, Robert Bauer earned his doctorate in the field of semiconductor- based integrated optics. SICK is currently producing sensor solutions for dust measurement technology in Dresden. The project group for the quantum sensor is also located there. The proximity is important for drawing on existing knowledge about industrial applications and incorporating that knowledge into the development work. In combination with digital sensor solutions, additional information about evaluating sensor data is provided. This makes it possible to classify extremely small, extremely low density particles under realtime conditions. Entry into existing markets With this technology and the improvements it brings to measurement processes, SICK will initially enter markets with which it is already familiar. This is primarily about providing users with data to add value to processes and improve the handling of resources. The quantum sensor will be able to measure particles that are a fifth of a micron in size. undetectable online. Quantum sensors are able to record such contamination and hence prevent yield problems. In addition, continuous realtime measurement of even the tiniest particles in powder production, in the cement industry for example, is also possible. The grain size is crucial to the end product. If the grain size is wrong, concrete will not achieve the strength it needs at a later time. So until now, samples have been taken on a regular basis and analyzed in the lab. This can take hours. If the result is unsatisfactory, the product may even need to be disposed of. Quantum sensors are able to run an analysis in realtime. So there’s no waste of resources. And the data can be retrieved from anywhere in the world at any time As well as the semiconductor and cement industries, public buildings are also promising areas of application: As an example, quantum sensors will be used in subways to check compliance with the particulate thresh- old values and control the ventilation systems to optimum effect. And many other applications are conceivable too. The sensor records information about particle size, distribu- tion, concentration, speed and direction. In the semicon- ductor industry, these sensors can identify contamination produced by the machines themselves which has so far been The competition will help achieve the all-important imple- mentation in the market. If only one company creates a mar- ket, it will be very limited. Competition is good for business, even today. “Quantum sensors can help prevent a waste of resources.”

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 29 Autonomous and safe The dream of a traveling in perfect comfort in the car is an old one — and has never been as close to reality as it is today. Yet risks remain. An onboard electrical system failure could have fatal consequences. Fraunhofer IZM and IISB guarantee safety with a unique electronic module. By Olga Putsykina, Britta Widmann Danger on the road – and we can’t stop the car! A nightmare scenario. With autonomous driving, an electric short circuit can cause the brakes and the steering system to fail. Autonomous electric vehicles draw power from two sources: a high-voltage battery and a conventional 12-volt battery. So safety-critical systems, such as steering and brakes, are connected to two sources of power at all times. To safeguard against a complete failure of the batteries caused by a short circuit, research teams at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration IZM and at the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Systems and Device Technology IISB have developed a disconnect device. This electronic module isolates the fault in the onboard electrical system and ensures that the electric vehicle reacts reliably in case of need. Partial shutdown only In today’s onboard electrical system architecture of highly and fully automated vehicles, isolating the affected area by means of an overload safety device is common practice. This arrangement, however, leads to a complete deactivation if a fault occurs. For highly and fully automated driving, such a procedure is possible only if all components and the onboard electrical system are designed redundant, meaning they exist in duplicate. This costs money, space and weight. The disconnect element developed by Fraunhofer researchers, however, fully guarantees safety during the journey even without a second onboard electrical system by deactivating the faulty components in the system and maintaining a supply of power to safety-relevant components. Recovery on the hard shoulder Phillip Arnold, research associate at Fraunhofer IZM, explains: “In conventional systems, any undervoltage while on the road can trigger a sudden and uncontrolled failure of the entire onboard electronics – including the braking and steering systems. This presents an unacceptable risk, particularly when traveling at high speeds. But with our new module, part of the onboard electrical system contin- ues to function as before, so that a fully automated vehicle would still have enough time to get its passengers to safety, onto the emergency lane of the freeway, for example, or a parking lot.” In the field of power electronics, engineers use so-called MOSFETs – Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field-Effect Transis- tors – to switch or block large electric currents or voltages. Equipped with 16 of these MOSFET switches, the newly developed disconnect device is capable of switching up to 180 amperes of current. If this threshold value is exceeded – in the event of a short circuit, for example – the electrical switch opens and thereby shuts off the power. And given that the MOSFET switches are capable of handling up to 300 amperes and therefore operate well below their maximum permissible load, they have a significantly longer lifespan than conventional solutions. Sixty times faster than conventional fuse systems In tests where researchers intentionally triggered short circuits, results showed that the module is capable of reliably isolating a current of up to 700 amperes without there being any propagation of the initial short circuit. There are also clear advantages over conventional systems in terms of switching speeds. While a conventional fuse takes some 20 milliseconds to trip, the disconnect device detects a fault within 10 microseconds and only requires a further 300 microseconds before tripping. This makes it more than 60 times faster than current fuse systems. The finished module has already been successfully tested in an electrically powered BMW i3 demonstrator vehicle and is designed in such a way that it can, in principle, be used in any electric vehicle. By protecting against a complete failure following sudden problems with the onboard electrical system, this new development marks a groundbreaking step towards safe and reliable autonomous driving. Until now, onboard electrical systems and components have had to exist in duplicate. A small electronic module can save a lot of time, space and weight. Small: the electronic module. Great: the degree of safety. © Volker Mai

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 31 bels, fabric masks reduce speech intelligibility by up to 15 percent.” Medical single-use masks do much better: These masks reduce speech intelligibility by just five percent. FFP2 masks sit somewhere between at about ten percent. The “heavyweights” in terms of speech intelligibility are the half and full masks like the ones worn by firemen for example, who have to search for people in a building full of smoke caused by a blaze. This design makes the spoken word 26 percent less intelligible. Test series with a talking dummy The team decided to carry out the tests using an artificial speaker. A dummy with an artificial mouth gave out a defined signal, perceived by the human ear as an unintelligible whooshing. Yet this noise is well-defined: it expresses spectrum and volume of the human voice in a precise, and most importantly, reproducible way. Once the artificial mouth had released this noise into the acoustic anechoic chamber at Fraunhofer IBP, it was covered with a number of different masks. The signal was recorded by measuring microphones at defined distances. “We also had the face speak in sentences, so that the effect was also perceptible for non-acousticians who are less able to understand the readings,” explains Benjamin Müller, the engineer who carried out the tests. The research team analyzed the signals that arrived at the microphone in two different ways. First, it used an evaluation algorithm to compare the individual frequencies of the “voice,” uttered by the face with and without a mask – in a range of 63 to 8000 Hertz. Conclusions were then drawn on which tones penetrate the mask well, which not as well, and how the mask changes the timbre. The results show that masks dull the speech and “light” tones are more adversely affected – including, and especially, the frequencies that are important to speech intelligibility. The team also found how masks impact the volume of the overall signal, meaning the speech level actually perceived. “Masks absorb between 5 and 15 decibels of sound. That is equivalent, on average, to a doubling of the perceived distance to the person speaking,” says Müller summing up. In a second analysis, the scientists calculated the “Speech Transmission Index” (STI), a measurement of speech intelli- gibility. This index can have values of between “zero” and “one”, “one” being optimum speech intelligibility. It works on a number of different variables: the volume of the surround- ing area, the volume at which a person speaks and the room acoustics, such as reverberation for example. To replicate speech intelligibility with a mask in the form of the STI, the researchers varied not only the mask types, but also the rooms, for all their tests. They performed their investigations, just like in the first analysis, in an anechoic chamber, the walls of which absorb all sound through their special coverings. This approach allowed the scientists to precisely measure and understand which noises come from the acoustic source itself – without distorting echoes. As valuable as this might be, the HiPIE lab has even better news: the room is not, as its name suggests, decorated with bright-colored cushions, peace graffiti and flowers. The name HiPIE actually stands for “High Performance Indoor Environ- ment” and means: Any acoustic environment can be staged here – and within seconds, we can switch from the acoustics of a classroom to those of a church. Hundreds of speakers embedded in the walls make this possible. For their tests, the researchers created an acoustic office environment, once with typical background noise and once with the loud background noise that might occur in open-plan offices. They took the final measurements in the institute’s organ laboratory – a lab for musical acoustics. The acoustics here are like those of a large meeting room which is known to echo. Better understanding thanks to transparent masks? But what shall we do with all the knowledge we have about speech intelligibility with various kinds of masks? “Our findings are intended mainly to produce masks that improve speech intelligibility,” says Zaglauer. And Müller adds: “These masks will make it easier to maintain the social distances that are important to controlling the coronavirus pandemic. It stands to reason, if you can't understand someone, you move closer.” The scientists have therefore already held the first talks with potential industrial partners. Areas of focus include development of the system and the material. Fraunhofer IBP is able to examine non-woven fabrics, which have an equivalent immunological effect, for their impact on speech intelligibility and compare them with one another. To complement the measurements, the research team is aiming to address the issue of speech intelligibility using test subjects and surveys as well. Although the readings from artificial mouth and ears are second to none in terms of accuracy and comparability, they are unable to cover every single scenario and replicate the multimodal perception of a human being. Does speech become more intelligible if a person wears a transparent mask and we can see both their lip movements and their facial expressions? The masks that will need to be worn in future could help answer that question – and spare us the unintelligible “Excuse me?" in many settings. “Masks absorb between 5 and 15 decibels. That corre– sponds, on average, to a doubling of the perceived distance.” Benjamin Müller, Fraunhofer IBP

The battery of the future made in Europe For the change to a climate- friendly society to succeed, batteries have to store more energy, last for longer, and be safer and more environmentally acceptable. The European Commission has launched the “Battery- 2030plus” initiative to coordinate these research endeavors. “Battery2030plus” is being led by Prof. Kristina Edström, University of Uppsala in Sweden. The Fraunhofer R&D Center for Electromobility Bavaria of the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research ISC is playing a key role. One main focus of the initiative is the computer-aided modeling and material development. The BIG-MAP (“Battery Interface Genome – Materials Acceleration Platform”) project aims to achieve a better understanding of the complex reactions inside batteries and develop a completely new cell chemistry. An AI technology works out the combination of electrode materials and electrolytes that best allows the battery to store as much energy as possible or can be charged faster in various settings. Fraunhofer ISC is heading the “Modular robot” project. Taking digital experiments as a basis, one aim is for autonomous robot systems to synthesize protective coatings in order to significantly accelerate the development of longer-lasting and more powerful batteries. Sweden Europe Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 33 Hunting down pancreatic tumors Insidious, aggressive and fairly invincible: Pancreatic cancer is one of the most deadly forms of the disease. The clinical picture is heterogeneous, the molecular biology of the carcinoma is largely unexplored. Working on the European project NExT, scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute for Biomedical Engineering IBMT have set themselves the task of identifying the specific biomarkers of pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PNETs). It will then be possible to detect the disease at an early stage. Fraunhofer IBMT is heading the research consortium of six European partners. An international team of biologists, oncologists, pathologists, endocrinologists and engineers is setting up a tissue bank with genetically characterized PNET spec- imens and analyzing in detail their molecular properties and metastatic patterns. And Fraunhofer IBMT is developing a microfluid chip system with a special microhole structure for sorting and characterizing cancer cells. Circulating tumor cells are considered attractive biomark- ers for fluid biopsies. This is because they identify blood-transmitted metastasis at an early stage. So not only could the cancer be diagnosed earlier, this technology also has the potential to increase the success of surgical intervention and improve survival rates.

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 35 Sore throat, runny nose, fever – a common cold or a SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus infection? Research teams at the Fraunhofer Project Hub for Microelectronics and Optical Systems for Biomedicine MEOS are currently working on a measuring system that aims to precisely distinguish between the two diseases in the future. The innovative ion mobility spectrometer (IMS) recognizes whether people are infected with COVID-19 or a different respiratory tract disease. “The breath carries information that we use for the analysis,” says Dr. Jessy Schönfelder, a scientist at Fraunhofer MEOS. A faintly sweet and fruity acetone odor, for example, can indicate diabetes. The Fraunhofer Institutes for Cell Therapy and Immunology IZI, for Photonic Microsystems IPMS and for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF are collaborating on an interdisciplinary project at the Project Hub in Erfurt. What diseases smell like The odors that are characteristic of diseases are caused by certain volatile organic compounds (VOCs). They are emitted by diseased tissue or by the pathogen itself, even before the first symptoms become manifest. A lot of diseases cause a change in the composition of the volatile organic trace gases in exhaled air that can be used as biomarkers. It is often a combination of several trace gases in a significantly elevated or significantly reduced concentration that is characteristic of a specific disease. “This is known as the VOC fingerprint or VOC pattern,” explains Schönfelder. There are specific marker combinations for many more diseases than was once thought. Each one of them has to be painstakingly deciphered. The chemist and her team are developing an ion mobility spectrometer with which to identify these VOC patterns. By no means an easy job given that each person exhales around 200 VOCs. The work of the research team at Fraunhofer MEOS aims to use this new technology to detect a broad range of biomarkers. It is hoped, for example, that this method of breath gas analysis might provide the first indications of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s – with earlier warnings than conventional methods, such as blood testing, and with also more convenience. It merely requires that the patients breathe into a tube. “There’s huge potential for sensor systems in breath gas analysis. IMS technology is noninvasive, sensitive and selective. And it is quick, inexpensive and also compact and portable, so there’s no reason why it shouldn’t be used in medical practices and hospitals. The finished product will be about the size of a shoe box,” says Schönfelder. Chips with alternating voltage At the heart of this novel IMS system is a miniaturized high-field asymmetric ion mobility spectrometry (FAIMS) chip. The microelectromechanical system (MEMS) comprises an ion filter and a detector. The device also features a UV lamp. In the first instance, the VOCs – borne in a carrier gas – are pumped into the spectrometer, where they are ionized by means of UV light. In other words, they are transformed into charged molecules. The researchers feed these to the FAIMS chip, which was developed by Fraunhofer IPMS. They then apply an alternating voltage to the filter electrodes. By adjusting the voltage at the filter, you can control which VOCs get through to the detector. “This generates a VOC fingerprint, which enables us to identify the disease we’re looking for,” says Schönfelder explaining the process. At present, the research team is working to enhance the electronic control system and to improve sample extraction and sample processing. Meanwhile, reference measurements with cell cultures have now been successfully conducted, and further investigations with clinical human samples are in the pipeline. In a project recently completed at Fraunhofer IZI, scientists using a similar technology were able to distinguish seven different bacterial strains. Airline passenger screening Specially developed AI algorithms are expected to simplify the evaluation of VOC fingerprints. “Each measurement generates half a million readings. So we want to use machine learning to analyze this huge volume of data,” says the researcher. The algorithm is trained using samples from healthy test subjects and cancer patients. The results of such measurements are available within just a few minutes. The measurement system is also featured in the Fraunhofer cluster project M3Infekt, which is developing a modular, multimodal and mobile monitoring system to enable rapid intervention in the event of a sudden deterioration in the condition of COVID-19 patients. “We are focusing our research on the early detection of cancer. However, at the moment, we are still working on distinguishing between Covid-19 and a common cold. In principle, this is indeed possible,” explains Dr. Jessy Schönfelder. “And we can well imagine that our ion mobility spectrometer might one day be used to screen airline passengers to determine whether they are infected with the coronavirus,” she says. Dr. Jessy Schönfelder involved in analysis work at Fraunhofer MEOS. © Fraunhofer MEOS A lot of diseases cause a change in the composition of the volatile organic trace gases. A VOC fingerprint emerges.

–––––––– Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 37 the longest and the distance to the very back of the heel. Piebrock and his colleague Frederik Dürr realized that going it alone was not an option. “That's where Fraunhofer stepped in,” recalls Piebrock. “Shortly before, I had met Professor Harald Mathis from the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Infor- mation Technology FIT at an event of the Bundesverband für mittelständische Wirtschaft (BVMW), an association for small and medium-sized businesses. We then became friends. He encouraged me to take the algorithm to the next level with the support of Fraunhofer.” Or to put it more succinctly, to redevelop the algorithm, as things have turned out. “Many people can take approximate measurements, it's the last tricky five percent, though, on which it all hinges. Because there's just four to six millimeters in half a shoe size, the app has to work to an accuracy of at least three millimeters,” says Piebrock explaining the challenge they face. Thanks to the cooperation with Fraunhofer FIT, founders Piebrock, Dürr and, Claudia Ebbers, their new colleague, have successfully cleared this hurdle: In the first large test studies, 95 of 100 measurements are now delivering the correct result. One of a kind, as Piebrock proudly points out. An excellent idea, plus reliable implementation: a solid basis for a spin-off that aims to bring the development to the market. But where was the money coming from? “We needed an investor, financially, we could not have managed by ourselves. That would have been the end of our develop- ment,” says Piebrock. But Fraunhofer stepped in and lent the founders a helping hand. Piebrock and partners approached Jörg Wamser from the Fraunhofer Technology Transfer Fund, FTTF for short, who supports only Fraunhofer technologies. “Our idea blew him away,” recalls Piebrock, the company's managing director. In short: FTTF financed the newly founded spin-off mySHOEFITTER GmbH with a six figure sum in return for a small share of the company. “We think it's truly awesome,” said the founders, delighted. “Without Fraunhofer, the technology could not have been developed and the spin-off would simply not exist.” The Fraunhofer team remains closely involved And the collaboration continues. Working with the three founders and managing directors Piebrock, Dürr and Ebbers, the Fraunhofer team is taking a close look at how artificial intelligence can be integrated into the algorithms. The app could then find similarities between customers’ foot shapes and suggest a suitable model to other customers from the non-returned purchases. And the data, anonymized of course, could help manufacturers adapt their shoe model to the actual foot size and shape of customers – ultimately conserving resources. Despite the ongoing development, the mySHOEFITTER app has already reached pilot customer status. So that means: the founders are holding their first discussions with customers who are “testing the app down to the wire with us,” Piebrock explains. The aim is to find two or three shoe manufacturers with their own online shop, with whom the currently avail- able demo app can be refined based on the needs of both companies and customers – in terms of the app's usability for example. And from whom, sometime soon, shoppers would have to order only one model of the shoe they want – the one that fits. The mySHOEFITTER team: Frederik Dürr, Claudia Ebbers and Markus Piebrock (f.l.t.r.) © Lars Berg “We think it's truly awesome,” say the founders. “Without Fraunhofer, the technology could not have been developed and the spin- off would simply not exist.” Markus Piebrock

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 39 A life of research into packaging – but Dr. Amberg- Schwab was inspired beat by beat more than just professionally: © Photo Studio Schwab Remlingen / Knud Dobberke / Composing Vierthaler & Braun During this time, she herself laid the foundation for her own professional career. “As a child, I had biology kit and my friend had a chemistry set. We did our experiments on my parent's balcony. But we left a bad stain or two on the tiles,” says the face in the screen, laughing as if she were still a girl. A science course seemed the obvious choice, “but I didn't want to study either biology or chemistry by itself. So I enrolled on a course to become a high school teacher and studied both subjects”. She soon realized, however, that she would rather be researching than standing in a school classroom. So she followed her thesis with a doctorate in silicate materials – and took up a position at Fraunhofer ISC even before taking her final examination. At Fraunhofer, she finds chemistry sets of a different dimension As she joins the institute, she finds a much bigger size of chemistry set than the ones in her Hessian home town of Gelnhausen. She is fascinated by ORMOCER® and its special properties: “When I started at Fraunhofer in 1989, various abrasion-resistant or corrosion-resistant coatings for metals, polycarbonate and glass were already in existence. But there were no barrier coatings. So I got to thinking: This is a new field, I'm going to take a look!” Another laugh spills out of the PC, betraying her passion for experiments. Just a few months after her first day at the ISC, the newly qualified scientist goes about synthesizing the first barrier coatings: “We were able to create effective barriers very quickly. Better than anything we might need to package food products.” In 2011, she presented a low-cost barrier film as a flexible encapsulating method for solar cells. Together with Fraun- hofer IVV, which had developed the roll-to-roll application system for the ISC coating, she wins the Fraunhofer award for outstanding scientific achievements for this work. At the same time, the chemist continues to puzzle over bar- rier coatings for packaging. “By then, packaging waste had already become a huge problem, plastic waste especially.

Smart devices — a complex ecobalance The ecobalance of smart- phones, tablets, printers and and so on is like a thousand piece jigsaw puzzle. Researchers at Fraunhofer IZM assemble this puzzle with aplomb. By Dr. Katja Engel The carbon footprint has been a key part of any purchase decision not only since the “Fri- days for Future” movement. A survey conducted by statista in 2016 revealed that 61 percent of those consumers surveyed from the age of 45 believe sustainability is an important criterion, in the younger age group (18 –24 year olds), the figure was still 48 percent. Leading companies like Apple, therefore, advertise with good ecobalances and publish their key indicators in comprehensive “Environmental Responsibility Reports”. And the demand for reliable state- ments on lifecycle analyses is growing in politics too. This is essential to having meaningful legal regulations that stipulate which requirements have to be placed on longevity, material selection or repairability. So Karsten Schischke, Group Manager for Environmental Evaluation and Eco-Design at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration IZM in Berlin has a lot on his hands. of a thousand pieces of information in exactly the right way in order to obtain the fullest possible picture. So the scientists painstakingly track every step in the production chain. They scrutinize the entire lifecycle: from the raw material source to production, transport, use by the customer through to possible recycling. The energy efficiency of a device in use or the material from which it consists is just a tiny piece of the balance puzzle. The more pieces of this puzzle the researches understand, the more precisely they can track down the potentials for improvement. They use the collated data and ask specific questions: How can the delivery chain be improved? Which production technology, methods and systems are used? Is there a more sustainable energy mix available? Can only a few metals be recycled? Are the components flown in or can they be sent overland? “The ecobalance of electronic devices is a very tricky matter. These devices often consist of up to 1000 components, are produced in widely ramified delivery chains and comprise a wide variety of materials,” he explains. Working with his team, he has to assemble the puzzle Not all the questions are purely technical or logistical ones. Psychological aspects also play a role. As Schischke explains: “The more exclusive a product, the more people embrace it. This might be a top-quality tablet with a casing made of a fine wood, whose owner treats Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 41 In Germany, smartphones are used only for eighteen months to two years on average. Less than 50 percent of devices are recycled or used again for other purposes. © BSR regularly with olive oil. This tablet will be used for a long time, for sure.” Natural raw materials and repairability equal a good ecobalance, but it's not that easy. The results of analyses conducted by Fraunhofer researchers came as somewhat of a surprise to the manufacturer of the “Fairphone”, which proactively advertised with its product's sustainability. The Fairphone is deliberately designed to be easy for even laymen to repair. The idea is to prolong its useful life, improving sustainability in the process. And to make sure any repair goes without a hitch, the connectors are provided with strong contacts made of gold. Yet even these extremely robust components tip the ecobalance the wrong way due to the high material usage. The balance is restored only if Fairphone users do actually lend a hand and replace faulty parts, for example. Schischke and his team found that such a repair benefits the environment if the life span is prolonged even by just a few months. The Fairphone manufacturers improved the situation with the next model and found an alternative solution for the connec- tions. A good example of how, using ecobalance as a basis, products can be modified by spotting the problems in the design or product's life.

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 43 The ROXY reactor is self-supporting. Solar panels supply the energy it needs. © Airbus group – also came in handy.” While all of the theoretical deliberations were made in the international team, the Fraunhofer researchers covered the experimental side entirely. The process is called ROXY, short for Regolith to OXYgen and Metals Conversion: voltage is applied between the highly porous cathode and the anode, a saline solution is contained in the space between. If we now add simulated moon dust – known as Regolith – the metal detaches itself from the oxygen: The metal accumulates on the cathode, the oxygen is collected on the anode. All this at just short of a thousand degrees Celsius. “After two years of development time, the breakthrough came during a series of lab tests at Fraunhofer IFAM: we made oxygen from a sample of simulated moon dust,” enthused Quadbeck. Jean-Marc Nasr, Head of Airbus Space Systems, also stressed the significance of this success: “This breakthrough is a giant leap forwards – it brings us closer to the ‘holy grail’ of being able to live on the moon.” Apart from the ROXY reactor – no consumable materials from earth will be needed at all. Moon dust is available in abundance, solar panels supply the energy needed. And if being able to produce oxygen on the moon were not enough, the ROXY reactor is expected to deliver another “raw material” as well. The metals produced as a result can be used as fuel for the rockets that fly to the asteroids. And the process opens doors on earth too: as an exam- ple, it could drastically reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases occurring during metal production. While the methods currently in use emit considerable quantities of environmen- tally harmful perfluorocarbons (PFCs), the ROXY reactor works practically emission-free. In this way, space technologies could improve life on earth in the long run – not only by alleviating bottlenecks in the production of raw materials. “Closer to the dream of being able to live on the moon.” Jean-Marc Nasr, Head of Airbus Space Systems

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 45 mRNA is causing a great furore as a vaccine against the coronavirus. In actual fact, this messenger molecule can do so much more. It is seen as a new hope for treating inflammatory diseases and cancer. By Christine Broll When Dr. Holger Cynis began to concentrate on mRNA four years ago, only a small number of specialists had any interest in this field of research. Now, the abbreviation appears in every news program: mRNA stands for messenger RNA. Scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology IZI wanted to research whether it’s possible to induce a patient’s body to produce the medication it needs by itself. As much like science function this may sound, it had a sound scientific basis even back then: Holger Cynis wanted to use mRNA to carry the blueprint for a medicine into the human body. The idea is that the person’s cells then produce the substance required. “Drugs containing therapeutic proteins and antibodies as their active agent could be produced in patients themselves using mRNA technology,” explains Cynis. These may include in particular therapeutic agents for anemia, inflammatory diseases – and cancer. Currently, these active agents are produced in giant bioreactors from cell cultures. So drugs such as these are very expensive and out of reach for many people in poorer countries. Cynis believes mRNA technology is an important alternative here. “mRNA is much easier to produce than therapeutic proteins, and so the cost of treatment would drop tremendously,” says Holger Cynis describing his motivation. “We cannot keep this highly effective drug away from people in emerging and third world countries any longer.” The art of packaging Holger Cynis took a small step in this direction with the project he started in 2016. The manager of the Working Group for Molecular Biotechnology at the Halle Branch Lab of Fraunhofer IZI collaborated on the project with Christian Reinsch and Steffen Panzner, the founders of Lipocalyx, the biotech start-up also situated in the Technology Park in Halle. Lipocalyx has developed special polymers in which the mRNA is transported to its site of action. These polymers look so promising that in January 2020, Lipocalyx was taken over by mRNA specialist BioNTech. The polymers developed by Lipocalyx coat the mRNA to protect them from damage and decomposition as they travel through the bloodstream. The polymer arrives at the target cell and attaches itself to the membrane. It is then absorbed and afterwards, releases the mRNA into the cell. Because the designers adopted this mechanism for the influenza virus, they call their transport polymer Viromer too. “The packag- ing for the mRNA is an extremely important key technology for the success of the therapy as a whole,” stresses Holger Cynis. The trial by fire on the living organism took place once the viromers had demonstrated their ability to effectively carry mRNA into cells in the test tube. The research team treated mice that had suffered an inflammation. They did this using mRNA containing the blueprint for two anti-inflamma- tory active agents, including one for the biologically active part of Etanercept, a drug used to treat rheumatic diseases. “The viromers delivered the mRNA primarily to macrophages, a special kind of white blood cell, also referred to as scavenger cells,” reports Holger Cynis. These macrophages then produced the anti-inflammatory active agents. “We cannot keep this highly effective drug away from people in the third world any longer.” Dr. Holger Cynis, Fraunhofer IZI

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 47 mRNA — a new class of vaccines and drugs Messenger RNA has made a breakthrough with the first vaccines against SARS-CoV-2. These molecules occur naturally in all the body’s cells. They transport the information stored in the DNA to the cell’s protein factories, the ribosomes. The role of mRNA in natural cell metabolism The DNA contains the genetic information required to build proteins. For a cell to be able to produce a protein, it must first read the applicable gene that’s stored in the DNA. For this to happen, the DNA unfolds. At this point, a mRNA forms as a copy of the DNA (1). The mRNA then leaves the cell nucleus and migrates to the ribosomes (2). Following the blueprint stored in the mRNA, the building blocks for the pro- tein are strung together (3). Proteins consist of 21 different amino acid building blocks. The sequence of these building blocks determines the protein’s structure and function. The finished protein then leaves the cell (4). Cell nucleus DNA 2 The mRNA leaves the cell nucleus. 1 An mRNA forms on the DNA. Cell membrane 4 The finished protein leaves the cell. Ribosome Protein 3 Protein synthesis on the ribosome 1 mRNA in transport coating 2 The transport coating attaches itself to the cell membrane and delivers mRNA to the cell. Cell nucleus with DNA 3 5 The finished protein leaves the cell. Free mRNA within the cell Ribosome Protein 4 Protein synthesis on the ribosome Cell membrane How mRNA acts as a medical agent mRNA used in drugs carries the information for a special protein. It is produced in the lab and packaged in a transport coating (1). In the simplest case, the coating is made of special lipids. When the lipid coating meets the cell mem- brane, the two things fuse together and the coating releases the mRNA to the cell (2). The mRNA now migrates to the ribosomes (3) and sets the synthesis of the target protein in motion (4). The finished protein is able to leave the cell and develop its medical effect in the body (5). If the mRNA is packaged in complex coatings, like viromers for example, getting it inside the cell is a more intricate task. The viromers, together with the mRNA, are absorbed by the cell and surrounded by a membrane vesicle (endosome). Next, the mRNA is released from this membrane vesicle. © Infographic: 2issue

1933-1945 Many Nazi leaders like Rudolf Heß and Heinrich Himmler are advocates of natural medicine and are skeptical about immunization. The rule on the compulsory immunization against smallpox, in existence since 1874, is relaxed. It is not abolished altogether though. In light of the war, there is to be an assurance that the armed forces are immunized. The “Third Reich” withdraws from the production of vaccines and transfers the responsibility to private companies. The pharmaceutical industry skillfully uses newly emerging and increasingly professional advertising to persuade people to get immunized – one reason why the voluntary immunization programs are more successful than state compulsory vaccination. 1960s Vaccines against measles, mumps and rubella become available. While the Federal Republic of Germany believes in people’s willingness, the Democratic Republic makes makes immunization compulsory. During the Cold War, the idea was to demonstrate the supremacy of the socialist health care system. Adolescents get a total of 20 state-imposed vaccines under the “The best prevention is socialism” slogan. The infection rates drop rapidly. End of the 1970s The German Democratic Republic is unable to keep pace with immunization. There’s no point in developing multiple vaccines, because that would delude the drug giants in the west. The vaccine fails with increasing frequency – partly because the equipment in the production facilities is outdated. Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 49 1986 The first genetically engineered vaccine, recombinant HBsAg to immunize against Hepatitis B, arrives on the USA market. 2020 Novel mRNA vaccines bring new hope in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. They contain the messenger ribonucleic acid, the mRNA, that carries the blueprint for the viral antigen. The human body uses this instruction to produce the antigen that induces a protective immune reaction. 1955 A vaccine against polio is approved for the first time in the USA. An oral polio vaccine that protects against all three virus types is then approved in 1963. This vaccine quickly becomes a worldwide standard and is dispensed on a sugar cube. Many people can still remember the catchy Federal German advertising slogan for the vaccine: “Schluck- impfung ist süß, Kinderlähmung grausam” (Oral vaccination is sweet, polio is cruel). 1967 The process of immunization is made international, the WHO gains influence. It has launched worldwide immuniza- tion programs since 1967. The most successful so far is the smallpox program. The epidemic has been considered eradicated since 1980. 1972 The Act for establishing a federal institute for serums and vaccines makes the Paul-Ehrlich Institute (PEI) an independent federal authority. It validates the safety and efficacy of new vaccines. The Standing Committee on Vaccination (STIKO) starts work in the same year. It prepares recommendations for administer- ing vaccinations in Germany. 2019 The Ebola vaccine is the first vector technology-based vaccine to be approved in the EU. A virus that is harmless to humans is used to deliver the informa- tion required for antibodies to be created in the body. © Infographic: 2issue; images: Adobe Stock, Public Domain / Library of Congress, SPL, dpa, Bayer AG / Bayer Archives Leverkusen, Federal Foundation for Reappraisal of the SED Dictatorship / Harald Schmitt

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 51 “Because this process is very similar to a real infection, it triggers an especially good immune response.” Dr. Sebastian Ulbert, Fraunhofer IZI Annika Brehmer, Biotech- nologist at Fraunhofer IPK, working with mRNA molecules. © Fraunhofer IPK / Larissa Klassen A nyone who wanted the flu jab this season will have some idea of how things might have looked had the coro- navirus vaccine arrived: The crowds in clinics and pharmacies were huge, the waiting lists were long. Even though the German federal government had obtained over 26 million doses of the flu jab in this pandemic year – almost twice as many as last season. Flu as well as coronavirus: Many wanted to avert this risk. The race for a coronavirus vaccine is in full swing. In Novem- ber, BioNTech, headquartered in Mainz and the US drug giant Pfizer published provisional results that said their mRNA vaccine appears to be 90 percent effective against COVID-19. A short time later, the US biotech firm Moderna also reported encouraging study data: Its mRVA vaccine shows an efficacy of 94.5 percent. This was the first company to apply for approval of a coronavirus vaccine in the EU. All manufacturers face the same challenge: producing hundreds of millions of vaccine doses in the shortest possible time. This is the only way to stop the virus. The novel mRNA vaccines have an advantage here. They can be produced much easier, faster and cost-effectively than conventional preparations. Experts also promise better efficacy and tolerability. The EU has secured 300 million vaccine doses from BioNTech and Pfizer, and 160 million from Moderna should the mRNA-based vaccine be granted approval. And to make as many of these available as quickly as possible, the Fraun- hofer Institute for Production Systems and Design Technology IPK in Berlin is laying the foundations for mass production. Viruses from a chicken egg The process for manufacturing conventional vaccines, which contain viral proteins, inactivated or weakened pathogens, is a complex one. Viruses for vaccine production are grown primarily using chicken eggs. Living pathogens, referred to as seed viruses, are injected into a fertilized egg and incubated for several weeks. The virus reproduces in the egg white. The manufacturing process can take up to one year, depending on the vaccine. For complex combination preparations, the time is even longer. “The pharmaceutical sector has to meet high safety and quality standards. But because the quality of natural products such as chicken eggs fluctuates, only eggs from special farms can be used. The effort involved in obtaining a sufficiently high quantity of eggs under strictly controlled conditions is huge. Besides that, the subsequent regeneration of the viruses and the formulation of the vaccine add extra costs to the process,” explains Annika Brehmer, biotechnologist at Fraunhofer IPK. Faster, simpler, more cost- efficient — three advantages of the mRNA vaccine

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 53 “There are many horses in the race” The whole world is pinning its hopes on a coronavirus vaccine. Will we then have overcome the pandemic? Dr. Sebastian Ulbert, Virologist and Manager of the Working Group for Vaccine Technologies at the Fraunhofer Institute for Immunology IZI in Leipzig, provides some answers. Interview by Dr. Sonja Endres Normally, it takes several years to develop vaccines. Why so fast this time? Because, fortunately, we didn’t have to start from scratch. The researchers were able to build on existing knowledge and the groundwork done on the known coronavirus strains, especially SARS-CoV-1 and MERS. The antigen, which triggers a protective immune reaction in the body, had already been identified. Which vaccines are in the running? So far, there have been eleven candidates in phase three of the clinical studies. This is the final and decisive phase ahead of approval. They are based on four different technologies. Two of these are old, and two are new. technological platforms, approved as possible. We can draw comparisons: Which provides the best protection? How is this measured? The vaccine candidates are tested on thousands of test subjects, ideally in a major outbreak setting. Then we check: How many were in the placebo group, and how many in the group that actually received the vaccine? If, for example, 100 people in the placebo group contract the virus, but none in the vaccinated group, this means the vaccine is one hundred percent effective. The WHO defines the point at which the vaccine is considered effective as 50 percent. BioNTech has reported a 95 percent efficiency for its mRNA vaccine. “Given the shortness of time, we cannot expect one preparation to meet every need.” What are the fundamental differences? The conventional process involves weakened or inactivate pathogens that trigger an immune response in the body. This is how hepatitis, polio or flu vaccines, for example, work. The Chinese are adopting this approach for SARS-CoV-2 as well. Their inactivated vaccine is among those in phase three. The so-called protein vaccines, containing only the surface protein of the pathogen that triggers the strongest and presumably protective immune reaction, are also well established. In the case of SARS-CoV-2, this is the spike pro- tein which lends the virus its characteristic spikes. By contrast, vector vaccines, which use a virus that is harmless to humans to get the information required to build antibodies into the body, are relatively new. In 2019, the Ebola vaccine was the first vaccine that works on the basis of this technology to be approved in the EU. mRNA vaccines are completely new. They contain the messenger ribonucleic acid, the mRNA, that carries the blueprint for the spike protein. The human body uses this instruction to produce the antigen that achieves an effective immune response. Which candidate do you think is the most promising? In the initial studies, all vaccines produced immune reactions and, in my opinion, have a good chance. The ideal situation would be to have as many vaccines, based on various Can this not also be determined by the antibody values in the blood? Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. The immune system is complex and antibodies are merely one of a host of indicators. Especially in the case of respiratory viruses like SARS-CoV-2, the T-cells, which are able to recognize and kill foreign structures, also play a key role. But they are not so easily verified. The actual degree of protection can be learned only through clinical studies, which continue to run once the vaccines have been approved. Which questions still need to be answered by the studies? For example: How many booster doses of the vaccine are required and when are they administered? Does the vaccine provide protection even before the virus is transmitted? Does efficacy differ between age groups? Vaccines given to the over-sixties, for example, are less effective because the immune system no longer works as efficiently. Given the shortness of time, we cannot expect one preparation to meet every need. Gradually, we will learn and make improvements. The good thing is: There are many horses in the race, and this improves our chances. Even if the vaccines protect only part of the population, or at least prevent those infected from getting worse, we have achieved success. Dr. Sebastian Ulbert would himself have the vaccine. If a vaccine attains EU approval, he says reas- suringly, there will be no adverse reactions to worry about. © Fraunhofer IZI

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 55 report at least partially generated or checked by the software,” explains Dr. Rafet Sifa, Head of the Cognitive Business Optimization Unit. “In the beginning, we fed and trained ALI with thousands of business reports and data from several financial service providers. So at the end, we were able to define the relevant key indicators,” reports Sifa. The tool even recognizes inconsisten- cies or discrepancies in the key indicators and, in such cases, initiates a recheck of the figures. “This does not, in any way, make the accountant's job unnecessary,” says Sifa reassuringly. “ALI is simply a very diligent and swift assistant.” Furious customers? Better respond quickly! Codes and figures, data and factors – another step detects the emotion. Deep learning models that decipher feelings from texts are being increasingly used to analyze and channel emails received from companies to ensure appropriate customer support. These models not only analyze text or work out the customers' areas of interest. Spelling and sentence structure are also meaningful. The way someone writes says something about their emotions. “If many words appear capitalized throughout or a sentence ends with five exclamation marks, the customer is very probably upset. The software is able to flag such messages as urgent,” explains Sven Giesselbach. And direct them straight to the Complaints Department. Scanning with deep learning Many OCR programs find paper documents that are scanned for text analysis problem- atic – pages may have yellowed, torn or creased. The document processing platform recognAIze is an expert in reliably recognizing text under difficult conditions. This is where deep learning algorithms come into their own and help faithfully digitize even trou- blesome documents. Indeed, the software can converts photos of documents taken by cellphones with a distorted perspective. The platform is already in service and can also be operated on the company's webserver. ------------------------ www.recognaize.de Bureaucracy devours time. Especially so in the health care system. In Germany, registered practitioners and psychotherapists spend over 54 million working hours per year on paperwork, a study by the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians found in 2017. © iStockphoto

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 57 One million banana skins, 62 tons of coffee grounds. 2,200 tons of food. These are the volumes of waste for Berlin – just for the city alone, every single day. Until now, discarded food has simply ended up in the garbage, and at best composted. The initiators of the German Sustainability Award Research got to thinking that there must be better solutions, and started to look among the current competi- tion for innovative solutions for the “urban bioeconomy”. Their vision: a city in which organic material flows are intelligently directed and biological resources are put to the best possible use. Wanted: smart ideas. To develop these ideas, 80 brilliant minds from academia, business and local government met online. One of these bright people was Dr. Boje Müller, Plant Biotechnologist at the Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology IME in Münster. “During the two-day Makeathon, five of us designed the concept for the waste-to-resource unit,” reports Müller “The idea is to hygienically reprocess food waste and recover valuable resources from the result. Currently, we are developing the idea further and looking among industry and local govern- ment for interested parties to put the idea into practice.” The waste-to-resource unit is designed to process food waste at the very place where it occurs, in canteens or similar facilities. This cuts transport costs for disposal. The planned unit consists of a standard shipping container, which accommodates all the technology, from the prepara- tion of the waste material through to the finished product. At the heart of the unit is a bioreactor, in which algae are cultivated. Vitamins can be isolated from fats and oils The project team already has a clear idea of how processing will be done. A ball mill crushes the food waste into a fine pulp, very similar to a hand blender in the kitchen at home. The fats and oils are then separated by binding them to special adsorbents. The solution to this task is being devised by Boje Müller at Fraunhofer IME, since his work too involves the reprocessing of plants. More specifically, he isolates natural rubber from the roots of the Russian dandelion. “From the separated fats and oils, we are able to isolate various raw materials, like vitamins, for example,” explains Boje Müller, who is collaborating on this project with the University of Münster. In the ball mill, the edible pulp is mixed with enzymes, which split the carbohydrates and proteins into their building blocks. All we have to do now is remove the fibers through a filter, and there we have the nutrient solution for the algae. Prof. Daniel Pleissner from the Institute for Sustainable and Environmental Chemistry of the Leuphana University Lüne- burg chose a special algae for this project. It bears the name Galdieria sulfuraria, belongs to the group of red algae and can even grow in the dark – if fed with a nutrient solution. Furthermore, this algae is extremely robust and capable of producing phycocyanin, an agent considered to have anti-inflammatory and hypoallergenic properties. Dr. Sergiy Smetana from the German Institute of Food Technologies in Quakenbrück is responsible for processing the algae. The cell cycles are managed by Dr. Natalie Laibach from the University of Bonn and Wolf Raber from inter 3 GmbH. The waste-to-resource unit could be an interesting business model for young entrepreneurs. They would make the container available to a canteen, look after the maintenance and sell the reusable materials recovered. “We have already asked food companies like Nestlé and Oetker whether they might be interested in processing the substances produced in the biorefinery,” reports Boje Müller. The motley team received a source of motivation in September when the expert panel of the German Sustain- ability Award selected the project from the top 3 contenders in the final round. It was then down to good marketing to win as many points as possible at the online voting stage. The other finalists were contenders to be taken seriously. In the “loopsai” project, an intelligent software solution for identifying highly complex material flows is being developed with a view to networking these flows into a closed circuit. The “Urban Pergola” project group aims to turn cities into an urban jungle using pre-grassed plant nets. The nets can be affixed between buildings and thus reduce the heating up of facades and streets. Sustainable future The German Sustainability Award recognizes ground- breaking contributions to a sustainable future and shows, using the best examples, how ecological and social progress can be made at a faster pace. The award is given by the German Sustainability Award Foundation (Stiftung Deutscher Nachhaltigkeitspreis e.V.) in close cooperation with the German Federal Government. In 2020, over 800 entrants competed in the categories of design, architec- ture, packaging, companies, local government, start-ups and research. This makes the German Sustainability Award the most extensive award of its kind in Europe. On the German Sustainability Day, held for the most part online on December 4, it was the “Ioopsai” project that edged out the competition. Although the waste-to-resource unit wasn't among the winners, Boje Müller remains optimistic: “As finalists, we receive development advice and professional media training. And this will allow us to successfully further develop our idea.”

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 59 In collaboration with Hamburg-based Cerascreen GmbH, Gul's team has developed a test that determines biological age – using a sample of saliva a person takes at home and sends off for analysis. This is an easy way to tell whether their biological age matches the data on their identity card. Lifestyle and environmental factors have a major impact on epigenetic changes. “The genetic information coded in DNA is pretty much constant throughout a person’s life,” explains Sheraz Gul. But the older we get, the more frequently small molecules, methyl groups made up of one carbon atom and three hydrogen atoms, bind to our DNA. The researchers on aging call this process epigenetic change. The methyl groups have a direct influence on whether specific genes are decoded. The degree of methylation correlates with age and is influenced by diet and a host of environmental factors. Epigeneticists like Sheraz Gul work with colossal amounts of data. His investigations have involved analyzing more than 800,000 methylation sites in the human genome. “We developed algorithms for analyzing this huge amount of data and have identified 130 genes, the methylation process of which is closely linked to aging,” says Sheraz Gul. This genes are examined by the Cerascreen Genetic Age Test. The test arrived on the market at the end of 2018. The samples sent in are sequenced at the University of Kiel, and the data are analyzed using the algorithm developed by Fraunhofer. Gul's Working Group is currently developing an online tool that customers can use to find out which genes undergo abnormal methylation. Can we halt the aging process? Ever since we have known that the aging process involves epigenetic changes, the question has been: Can we halt or reverse this process? Is it possible to stop DNA undergoing methylation? Sheraz Gul answers this question with a resounding yes. One possibility is to fast. Studies have revealed that reducing calories extends longevity and makes us less vulnerable to a number of diseases, including cancer. The 130 genes whose methylation processes correlate with age are currently the subject of research work at ITMP. Gul analyzes which proteins are coded by these genes. He then looks for substances that influence these proteins and, as a result, could impact the aging process. Certain substances that change the epigenetic profile are already known. Res- veratrol, for example, which occurs in grape skins and hence also in red wine. The team is now developing test systems for identifying new substances that have the potential to be anti-aging remedies. The Gen-Radar o t o h p k c o t S i © Gen-Radar Genetic age 100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 9 Years 1 Year Difference compared to a calendar age of 8 years Gen-Radar Genetic age 100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 78 Years 2 Years Difference compared to a calendar age of 76 years Biological age can be depicted in a Gen-Radar. The analysis of the Cerascreen genetic test involves depicting the methylation process of 30 genes. Each red dot represents a gene. The position of the red dot shows the percentage by which its gene is methylated. The further out the dot, the greater the degree of methylation. In an eight year old child, the dots are much closer to the center than in someone who is 76 years of age. © Fraunhofer FIT

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 61 309 Implants 100,000 Population in Germany antibiotic can be tailored to allergies or to the patient's unique requirements. “Once the implant is in, the antibiotic begins releasing into the surrounding tissue, and kills off any bacteria,” explains Prof. Britt Wildemann. In the project, she led the studies on efficacy and biocompatibility at Charité – Universitäts- medizin Berlin. The silver, by contrast, is released much more slowly. It remains active for several days and weeks and aids the healing process. Tests show that the hybrid coating concept is a resounding success. Wildemann says: “The preclinical studies have demonstrated that the hybrid implant coating encourages the implant to grow into the flesh and significantly reduces the rate of infection.” Several companies have already indicated their interest. Service providers could handle the pre-treatment and coating phase, or implant manufacturers might take on the process as a whole. A second approach to the same goal Equally promising as the work at IFAM is the CERAMIC Bonepreserver research project of Fraunhofer IKTS. Its all in the name: ceramic instead of metal. Patients who receive implants made of metals such as cobalt-chromium-mo- lybdenum often develop irritations or allergies, also known among medics as metallosis. Ceramic is a much more tolerable material. The project partner was medical technology manufacturer Mathys Orthopädie GmbH. The project focus is the hip region. The researchers made the acetabulum, and its counterpart, the so-called femoral head. During the surgery, the acetabulum is implanted in the hip bone, and the femoral head is anchored in the femur. The surfaces that touch are completely smooth, whereas the other sections are roughened. This improves bone cell adherence. Fraunhofer IKTS has many years of experience in ceramic materials and a great deal of expertise in the forming process used in medical engineering. For the resurfacing prosthesis, the researchers use a finely ground ATZ (Alumina Toughened Zirconia) dispersion ceramic. This cre- ates the basis for the ultrapure suspension, from which the femoral head and the acetabulum are in turn formed by the slip casting method. Fraunhofer IKTS has developed this method from the process known from traditional porcelain manufacture. The particles need to be evenly distributed in the suspension to ensure the quality of the final product. “We work with a grain size of between 310 and 320 nanometers. The suspension needs to be entirely free of any pores or impurities,” says Project Manager Martina Johannes. Ceramic too is stable Concerns that the ceramic material could break more easily than an implant made from metal have proved unfounded. “Our bending, pressure and load tests have revealed that the ceramic prostheses are at least as stable and robust as a product made from metal,” says Johannes. The project is now complete. But it will take some time until the technology receives final approval for use in the medical world. Meanwhile, the IKTS has the next medical project firmly in its sight. The Finger-KIT project concerns the “Remobilization of finger joints through AI-based reconstruction and generation of patient-specific ceramic implants”. Fraunhofer Institutes IAPT, IKTS, ITEM, IWM and MEVIS are collaborating on the project. Its aim is to estab- lish a continuous and automatable process chain, from the design and production of implants through to certification-compliant testing.

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 63 The three winners (f.l.t.r.): Dr. Sergiy Yulin, Fraunhofer IOF, Dr. Peter Kürz, ZEISS, and Dr. Michael Kösters, TRUMPF. © All photos: German Future Prize / Ansgar Pudenz Research to the extreme” was the title this magazine gave to its portrait of Fraunhofer researcher Dr. Sergiy Yulin in October. Television viewers were able to experience pure joy on ZDF on November 25. In front of live cameras, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier awarded the 250,000 euro German Future Prize to the scientist from the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF in Jena and his fellow researchers Dr. Peter Kürz from ZEISS and Dr. Michael Kösters from TRUMPF. This is the ninth time (see below) Fraunhofer researchers have won this prize awarded by the Federal President – start- ing in 2000, when Karlheinz Brandenburg, Bernhard Grill and Harald Popp received the German Future Prize for their “MP3 compression of audio signals in hi-fi quality”. The 24th award ceremony again honored a technology that has what it takes to change – and improve – people’s everyday lives. The award-winning process for chip production will make micro- chips smaller, more powerful, energy-efficient and cheaper in production. Fraunhofer President Prof. Reimund Neugebauer clearly described the potential in his congratulatory speech: “They used EUV lithography to develop a technology that will cause a digitalization boost worldwide and they have thus laid the foundation for further innovations.” The first smart- phones with EUV-lithographically manufactured microchips have been on the market since 2019. The research result is minute in size, the effort gigantic. Optical lithography, key technology in microchip production for over four decades, is fast approaching its limits. With EUV litho graphy, Fraunhofer, ZEISS and TRUMPF are once again throwing the door wide open to the future – to new potentials for digitalization, artificial intelligence, autonomous driving and Industrie 4.0. A single chip, no bigger than a finger nail, can now accommodate more than ten billion transistors. To make this possible, researchers have pushed the boundaries of current technology. The breakthrough that is set to make EUV lithography ready for series production broke a number of records. The world’s most powerful pulsed industrial laser, developed by TRUMPF AG, ignites – to generate the extreme ultraviolet light – some 50,000 tin droplets per second in a plasma source at a temperature of 220,000 degrees Celsius: that is 40 times hotter than the surface of the sun. Highly precise collector mirrors and projection optics, produced at ZEISS AG on lithographic photomasks, direct the radiation. The nuclear precision and the high reflectance achieved by the mirrors are the result of the coating technology of Fraunhofer researcher Yulin. He explains, “In our coating system, we apply 100 nano layers, which must all be exactly the same thickness, to a mirror substrate.” Let us make a comparison to get some idea of the precision involved: if we were to widen this mirror to the size of Germany, the great- est unevenness would be 0.1 millimeter. Besides Fraunhofer IOF in Jena, Fraunhofer IWS in Dresden and Fraunhofer ILT in Aachen have also been conducting research into coatings and EUV radiation sources for many years. The perfect coating composition for mirror optics is Sergiy Yulin’s life work. His route into EUV lithography and hence to winning the German Future Prize started in 1988 during his studies in his home country, the Ukraine. He even wrote his thesis on the subject. “30 years of research are not so unusual for a technology of this complexity,“ he says dismissively. And adds: “What has always fascinated me about the work with extremely short wavelengths is its huge application potential. It simply has to be exploited.” Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said on the evening of the award ceremony: “They are outstanding people, the ones whose ideas created projects and whose projects created products.” “They are outstanding people, the ones whose ideas created projects and whose projects created products.” Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier “30 years of research are not so unusual for a technology of this complexity,“ says Dr. Sergiy Yulin, Fraunhofer IOF. “Organic electronics – more light and energy from ultra-thin molecular coatings” Karl Leo (spokesperson), Jan Blochwitz-Nimoth, Martin Pfeiffer, Technical University/Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems IPMS, Dresden, Novaled AG, Dresden, Heliatek GmbH, Dresden 1 1 0 2 “Binaural hearing aids – spatial hearing for everyone” Birger Kollmeier (spokes- person), Volker Hohmann, Torsten Niederdränk, Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg/Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology IDMT, Ilmenau, Siemens AG, Munich 2 1 0 2 3 1 0 2 “Ultrashort pulse lasers for industrial mass pro- duction – manufacturing with light flashes” Jens König (spokesperson, Bosch), Stefan Nolte, Dirk Sutter, Robert Bosch GmbH with Schwieberdingen Development Center, Friedrich-Schiller University Jena, Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF, Jena, TRUMPF Laser GmbH + Co. KG, Schramberg 4 1 0 2 “Food ingredients from lupines – contributing to a balanced diet and providing a richer source of protein” Stephanie Mittermaier (spokesperson), Peter Eisner and Katrin Petersen (Prolupin GmbH, Grimmen) and Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV, Freising “EUV lithography – new light for the digital age” Dr. Peter Kürz (spokesper- son), Dr. Michael Kösters, Dr. Sergiy Yulin, Carl Zeiss SMT GmbH, Oberkochen, TRUMPF Lasersystems for Semiconductors Manufacturing GmbH, Ditzingen, Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF, Jena 0 2 0 2

Fraunhofer magazine 4.20 - 65 Fascination Swarm intelligence. © Daniel Biber

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