Fuel cells are regarded as the technology of the future for both cars and household heating systems. As a result, they have a key role to play in the switch to renewable energies. But are fuel cells always more...

An unique experiment is currently underway in Seelisberg: A construction physicist from Lucerne had Empa researchers install six cubic meters of special concrete in the garage of his vacation home. The concrete stores...

Empa, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, is part of the «European Nanomedicine Characterization Laboratory», a European project funded by the EU framework program «Horizon 2020». Its...

«Sharc25», a European research project launched in May, is setting out to develop extremely efficient thin-film solar cells for the next generation of more cost-effective solar modules. Eleven research partners from...

Medical technology is an important (and research-intensive) growth market for the Swiss economy. So it's no surprise that this research area plays a central role at Empa; ten of the 30 research laboratories focus, among...

At the inauguration of its pilot production plant near Zurich, Swiss start-up Flisom who develops innovative technologies for manufacturing flexible low-cost, high-performance thin film solar cells based on CIGS...

Empa, ETH Zürich and the road sweeper manufacturer Bucher Municipal have jointly developed a pioneering hybrid-electric powertrain for road sweepers in a CTI project. The concept is based on a gas-driven engine, which...

Who in their wildest dreams would ever have thought that Empa would play a role in a spy novel? What sounds like sheer fantasy is now reality! Now we give away one copy of the hard cover edition in English, signed by the...

A team of Empa scientists has, together with industrial partners, developed a novel chest strap device for the long-term monitoring of patients with heart and circulatory problems. What is special about the new system is...

Thanks to a collaboration with the Balgrist University Hospital and University of Pittsburgh, Empa is beginning to decode the mechanics of the lower vertebrae. Researchers would like be able to reveal how wear and tear...

Some say that back pain is the price we pay for walking upright. Others claim that the problem only really started when humankind sat down to reflect and contemplate. Thanks to a collaboration with the University of...

Seit 2013 ist die Empa Partner des Klimaschutzprogramms «ONE TWO WE» der Gemeinschaftsgastro-nomie SV Group und der Umweltorganisation WWF Schweiz. Dank verschiedener Massnahmen ist der CO2-Ausstoss des...

4th generation halogenated coolants and foaming agents have only been in use for a few years. They have replaced persistent greenhouse gases such as R134a, which were used in (car) air conditioning units, refrigerators...

Flexible optoelectronic devices that can be produced roll-to-roll – much like newspapers are printed – are a highly promising path to cheaper devices such as solar cells and LED lighting panels. Scientists from...

Our energy supplies are in a state of fundamental flux, the primary challenges being to reduce our CO2 emissions and to move from fossil and nuclear energy sources to renewables. The automobile industry is, of course,...

Numerous metallic elements are regarded as "critical": on one hand, they play an ever more important role in so-called future technologies and on the other, there is a high risk of supply bottlenecks. Small and...

Urs Elber, Managing Director of Empa's Research Focus Area «Energy», explains how the energy supply will change in the years to come and how Empa supports this transformation.

«Empa ambassadors» – this is the unofficial title for two of Empa's researchers. Karl-Heinz Ernst and Oliver Gröning were recently appointed as «Distinguished Senior Researchers». That is why both researchers will each...

Abandon de l’énergie nucléaire, réduction des émissions de CO2 ; pour que la stratégie énergétique de la Confédération puisse être mise en œuvre, l’assainissement énergétique du parc immobilier en Suisse doit être...

Empa and the University Hospital Zurich have joined forces to develop a sensor that gages the blood sugar through skin contact. And best of all: No blood samples are necessary, not even to calibrate the sensor....