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The International Astronomical Union has agreed on a new reference frame for directions in space. TU Wien played an important role in developing this new frame. In future, when spacecrafts are sent to other planets or when the rotation of planet Earth is studied, a new reference frame will be used. On 30 August, at the General Meeting of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) in Vienna, the new international celestial reference frame ICRF3 was adopted, allowing for more precise directional specifications in space.

Atomically thin crystals will play an ever greater role in future - but how can their crystallisation process be controlled? A new method is now opening up new possibilities. They are among the thinnest structures on earth: "two dimensional materials" are crystals which consist of only one or a few layers of atoms.

What effect does water have on ultra-clean surfaces' Using a novel method, researchers at TU Wien and Cornell University have succeeded in demonstrating that smallest impurities can have a surprising effect. In nature there is no such thing as a truly clean surface. Contact with normal air is sufficient to coat any material with a thin layer of molecules.

Authentication on certain websites via Facebook or Google accounts can be risky, but use of a browser extension from TU Wien eliminates the problem. We all knew this familiar scenario: to be able to use specific features of a website you need to log in, but creating an individual account for every single site is tedious.

In order to better understand important biological membranes, it is necessary to explore new methods. Researchers at TU Wien (Vienna) have succeeded in creating an artificial placental barrier on a chip, using a high-resolution 3D printing process. The placenta has an essential and highly complex task: it must ensure the exchange of important substances between the mother and her unborn child, whilst simultaneously blocking other substances from passing through.

Dyes that are also of great interest for organic electronics have recently been prepared and crystallised at TU Wien. All that is required is just water, albeit under highly unusual conditions. They not only impress due to their radiant and intense colour, they also have an important technological significance: organic dyes are a class of materials with extremely special properties.

A high-precision experiment led by TU Wien has set its sights on pinpointing the so-far hypothetical "symmetron fields" using the PF2 ultra-cold neutron source at the Institut Laue-Langevin in France. For the existence of symmetrons could provide an explanation for the mysterious dark energy. One thing is certain: there's something out there we don't yet know.

TU Wien has succeeded in shaping terahertz beams with extremely high precision. All that is needed for this is a simple plastic screen from a 3D printer. Terahertz radiation can be used for a wide variety of applications and is used today for airport security checks just as much as it is for material analysis in the lab.

A wave manipulation concept developed at TU Wien has now been tested for the first time in an experiment. The technique allows sound waves to be guided effortlessly through complex structures. We are constantly dealing with waves that are deflected in complex ways: this could be a light beam passing through a glass of milk and being dispersed in all directions, or electromagnetic waves from mobile phone masts being dispersed or absorbed, causing us to complain about poor reception in indoor areas.

A team at TU Wien now has the proof behind the speculations that water molecules can form complex bridge-like structures when they accumulate on mineral surfaces. Water is an extremely complex liquid. The way in which separate water molecules accumulate on various materials has a crucial impact on a great many processes, including corrosion and weathering, and is key in ensuring that catalysts function optimally.

Electrically charged particles from the sun strike moons and planets with great force. The consequences of these impacts can now be explained by scientists from TU Wien. The planets and moons of our solar system are continuously being bombarded by particles hurled away from the sun. On Earth this has hardly any effect, apart from the fascinating northern lights, because the dense atmosphere and the magnetic field of the Earth protect us from these solar wind particles.

A special formula for epoxy resins has been developed at TU Wien, which can be used for fibre-reinforced composites in aerospace, shipbuilding and automotive manufacturing, or even for underwater renovation. This is achieved merely by irradiating any part of the resin with light. Within seconds the new material can be completely transformed.

How can quantum information be transferred from one atom to another? A team of researchers from TU Wien and Harvard University has proposed using phonons - the quanta of sound. Quantum physics is on the brink of a technological breakthrough: new types of sensors, secure data transmission methods and maybe even computers could be made possible thanks to quantum technologies.

In chemistry, atoms can usually only affect their immediate neighborhood. At TU Vienna, a novel effect with astonishing long-range action has been discovered, which can make automotive catalytic converters more effective. Team (left to right): top: Yuri Suchorski, Sergey M. Kozlov, Ivan Bespalov, Martin Datler.

Experiments with ultra-cold atoms at the TU Wien have shown surprising results: coupled atom clouds synchronize within milliseconds. This effect cannot be explained by standard theories. When atoms are cooled down to almost zero temperature, their properties change completely. They can turn into a Bose-Einstein-Condensate, an ultra-cold state of matter, in which the particles lose their individuality and can only be described collectively - as one single quantum object.

What happens when T cells detect suspicious activity in the body? Researchers from the TU Wien and the Medical University of Vienna have revealed that immune receptors of T cells operate in unsuspected ways. Every T cell receptor of the living T cell (left) is marked with a special marker molecule. The bottom part of the cell can be imaged with a highly sensitive microscope.

TU Wien and Sandoz GmbH have successfully implemented a real-time computer simulation of the complex growth behaviour of penicillin producing organisms. This simulation now helps to keep the production process under control. For thousands of years, micro-organisms have been used to facilitate chemical reactions - in beer brewing, for example.

Combining two ultra-thin material layers yields new possibilities for quantum electronics. A research team with members from TU Wien presents strongly tunable quantum systems. Two novel materials, each composed of a single atomic layer and the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope - these are the ingredients to create a novel kind of a so-called "quantum dot".

How do you combine different elements in a crystal? At TU Wien, a method has now been developed for incorporating previously unattainably high proportions of foreign atoms into crystals. When you bake a cake, you can combine the ingredients in almost any proportions, and they will still always be able to mix together.

Scientists from TU Wien (Vienna, Austria) and the USA have provided proof for a new state of matter: an electron orbits a nucleus at a great distance, while many other atoms are bound inside the orbit. The electron (blue) orbits the nucleus (red) - and its orbit encloses many other atoms of the Bose-Einstein-condensate (green).