Editorial

The scope and the research area represented in our MaNEP Network are steadily expanding. I warmly welcome scientists from CERN and from Bruker BioSpin AG as full members of MaNEP. I am also very pleased to welcome new associate members active in our fields of interest in Switzerland and abroad.
 
My warmest congratulations go to Antoine Georges for his recent election to the French Academy of Sciences. Read about his thoughts and new challenges brought about by this new recognition of excellence.

Network members have again been publishing outstanding science in high profile journals. Two recent studies are highlighted in the present issue. I thank the authors who wrote two contributions on chameleons and oxide interfaces.

The 6^th MaNEP Winter School organized in Saas Fee has been a great success, with over 80 participants enjoying stimulating lectures and discussions. Many thanks to all contributors, the organizing and programme committees.

Registration is open for the next MaNEP workshop organized by Enrico Giannini. The topic is crystal growth and it will take place in Geneva this June. Workshops sponsored by MaNEP are a unique opportunity to organize short notice meetings to discuss various topics of interest to the Network – your ideas and proposals are welcome any time. MaNEP is again offering a limited number of internships and exchange student positions for this summer – application deadline is June 30^th, 2015.

Outreach activities initiated during the MaNEP NCCR are being continued and we are pleased to invite you to visit the itinerant art and science exhibition SUPRA100 at the Galerie Eurêka in Chambéry (F) this autumn. The DPMC in Geneva has been given a new name since the last MaNEP Newsletter. It is now called DQMP – Department of Quantum Matter Physics – consolidating the successful restructuring made possible by the NCCR and the outstanding support of Geneva and the University.

Many of you started nourishing the MaNEP intranet with useful data. The role of the intranet is to facilitate the sharing of competences and facilities. I encourage all of you to make pertinent scientific information available to the network and take advantage of this platform.

The next MaNEP Forum meeting will be in Geneva during the M2S conference – I am looking forward to see many of you participating. Our next MaNEP workshop will take place in 2016 in Les Diablerets on July 6 to 8.

I thank all contributors and I wish you a great summer, hoping you will enjoy reading this newsletter.

Christoph Renner

(photo credit L.Windels/UNIGE; banner M. Milinkovitch/UNIGE)

Summer internships

To encourage master students to pursue their career in physics, MaNEP offers them in their 3rd or 4th year of studies in physics the unique opportunity to spend one month in one of MaNEP’s top level research groups, between July and September. Applications 2015 are open.

Read more

Antoine Georges elected to the French Academy of Sciences – Interview

What does this election represent to you?
I feel very honored, of course. The "Académie des Sciences" gathers truly remarkable scientists, and it is a bit intimidating to meet and work with these impressive colleagues… It is also an opportunity to broaden one’s vision on the role that science and technology plays in society. It is one …

Read more.

Photonic crystals cause active color change in chameleons

By Dirk van der Marel and Jérémie Teyssier
It is known for a long time that chameleons darken their skin through a process of melanin migration from the deep to the top layers of the dermis. When adult males are confronting a rival or a female, they rapidly switch between bright colors, changing from green to yellow, for example. It was believed that this variation was … (photo credit: M. Milinkovitch/UNIGE)

Read more.

Not so superficial: intriguing physics atop strontium titanate

By Nicholas Plumb and Milan Radović
Over the past decade, interfaces between oxide materials have been intensely studied, due to the powerful and often unexpected properties they can exhibit. New research using angle-resolved photoemission is revealing that another kind of “interface” – an oxide material’s surface – can be just as fascinating. Investigating a recently discovered ... (photo credit: M.Fischer/PSI)

Read more.