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For the second year running, MCQST welcomed young women from across Bavaria and beyond to Girls for Science at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics (MPQ). Through keynote talks, a panel discussion, speed-mentoring and behind-the-scenes lab tours, students in grades 9 to 12 gained first-hand insights into quantum science -  and met women building careers in research, industry, education and science communication. more

Conceptual artist Raquel Ribeiro, who collaborated with Jürgen Jaumann on several commissions and sculptures for the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics, passed away in June. Over many years, they created sculptures and site-specific artworks inspired by the institute's research, ranging from laser spectroscopy and quantum dynamics to quantum information and many-body systems.Their collaboration has shaped the visual identity of the institute. more

The Max Planck Society annually awards the Otto Hahn Medal to up to 30 early-career scientists for outstanding achievements in their doctoral research. This year, the honuor goes to Amelie Heinzerling, who conducted her PhD research in the Division of MPQ Director Ferenc Krausz. She was recognized for her pioneering contributions to ultrafast optics and attosecond science. The award ceremony took place during the Max Planck Society's Annual Meeting in Frankfurt am Main. more

MPQ PhotonLab has become a partner of the newly established European Quantum Academy (EQA), a project within the European Union’s Quantum Flagship initiative. The EQA aims to coordinate quantum education across Europe, foster the next generation of scientific, technological, and industrial talent, and strengthen Europe’s role as a global hub for quantum technologies. PhotonLab will contribute innovative learning concepts, train-the-trainer programs, and selected outreach activities. more

Last week, new film and photo material featuring the historic Attochamber was produced at the Nobel Prize Museum in Stockholm. Using this experimental setup, Ferenc Krausz and his team generated attosecond light pulses for the first time in 2001, laying the foundation for modern attosecond physics. For this groundbreaking achievement, Krausz was awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physics together with Anne L’Huillier and Pierre Agostini. more

Universidad Carlos III de Madrid has awarded an honorary doctorate to Ignacio Cirac, Director of the Theory Division at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics. The distinction recognises his pioneering contributions to quantum information theory, a field in which he has helped lay the foundations for quantum computing and quantum technologies. The honorary doctorate is the tenth such distinction of his career. more

The American National Academy of Sciences (NAS) has elected MPQ Director Ferenc Krausz as an international member. The honour recognises his pioneering contributions to attosecond physics and to fundamental research more broadly. NAS membership is widely regarded as one of the highest honours in science, with only a limited number of international members elected each year. more

At the 2026 Girls’ Day at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics (MPQ), 16 female students gained first-hand insights into research and everyday scientific work. Together with its student laboratory PhotonLab, the institute has been participating in the nationwide initiative for around 15 years, introducing girls and young women to fields in which they remain underrepresented.The participants took part in a diverse program, with hands-on activities at the heart of it. more

The International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) and IBM have awarded the newly established Richard Feynman Prize for Quantum Computing to MPQ Director Ignacio Cirac. The prize committee acknowledges his central role in establishing the theoretical foundations of quantum information processing, including the theory of entanglement, quantum simulation, and tensor-network methods. The award ceremony took place on 21 April at ICTP in Trieste.  more

A research team at MPQ has realised quantum gates using fermionic atoms with 99.75% accuracy and entangled states lasting over ten seconds – a record. The platform relies on atoms that obey the same quantum-mechanical rules as electrons in materials, enabling the direct study of fermionic systems. Published today in Nature, the results open up a new hybrid approach to materials research, quantum chemistry, and the study of complex quantum systems. more

Ferenc Krausz, Director at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics and Professor at the Ludwig Maximilian University Munich, has been awarded the Széchenyi Prize, the highest state distinction for scientific achievement in Hungary, and the Jedlik Ányos Prize, recognising his pioneering contributions to ultrafast and attosecond science. more

Team IXI, coached by PhotonLab at MPQ, took second place at the German Young Physicists’ Tournament (GYPT). Team member Nikita Petrov also won the first-ever Otmar Winkler Prize for the best discussion. The three students from Dachau, assigned to the MPQ regional round, may now be selected for the five-member national team to represent Germany at the International Young Physicists’ Tournament (IYPT) or the European AYPT. more