Snapshot – 22222
Milestone reached: 22,222 visitors at the MPQ student lab PhotonLab.
For 13 years, students have been visiting the PhotonLab to explore the fundamentals of quantum physics. Through guided tours of the institute, hands-on experiments, and lectures, they learn how light and matter interact and discover the role of quantum particles as the building blocks of matter. The fascinating phenomena of quantum physics inspire some visitors to consider becoming physicists themselves. Recently, the student lab reached a special milestone: the team led by Silke Stähler-Schöpf welcomed its 22222nd guest.
How thick is a single hair? Can music be played using light? And how does a quantum computer work? These and many other questions can be explored at the student lab of the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics. “We offer a wide range of activities. When students come here, everyone finds something they enjoy,” says Silke Stähler-Schöpf, head of the student lab. “Even visitors who initially have no interest in physics can become passionate when it comes to aligning a laser beam to make a speaker play music.”
The lab was established in the summer of 2011 by Nobel laureate Ferenc Krausz, as part of the MAP Excellence Initiative (Munich-Centre for Advanced Photonics). Since then, it has been managed by Silke Stähler-Schöpf. Initially, she ran it alone, but today she is supported by a team including Sonja Ertlová and Moritz Dorband. In its first year, the lab welcomed 225 visitors; in its second year, 895—almost four times as many. Usually, there are more than 2,000 visitors per year. "But this year, we even surpassed 3,000," says Stähler-Schöpf. That makes reaching 22,222 an easy task, of course.
However, the number of on-site visitors cannot grow indefinitely. For this reason, Stähler-Schöpf and her team have also developed digital formats, including interactive books, quantum-themed audio plays, YouTube videos, experiments in a virtual 3D environment, and live lab tours. This enables students from grade nine onwards to engage with complex quantum optics topics across various media, making them tangible and relatable.
When experimenting, visitors tend to approach tasks in very different ways. Some dive right in, while others proceed more cautiously. “But in the end,” explains Silke Stähler-Schöpf, “everyone reaches the goal.” The PhotonLab even inspires students to pursue physics further. One mother, years after her son completed an internship at the lab, emailed Stähler-Schöpf to say: “The knot has finally untied. Now he knows why he’s studying and where he wants to go after school.” Positive feedback also comes from abroad: “Your experiments are fantastic, simply excellent! The students really enjoyed them, and it’s wonderful to spark their interest in physics in this way.”
That certainly sounds like a reason to celebrate. “Oh, we’re just happy that the effort we put in every day resonates with so many people,” says Stähler-Schöpf. So, there’s no celebratory schnapps for the 22222nd snapshot. Instead, she and her team are untangling the latest mess of cables in the lab. After all, they still want to test their latest ideas before the next visitors arrive.
