Dresden, on 11^th  July 2012; On 4^th July 2012 the UMSICHT scientific award 2012 was awarded to the scientist Jan Meiß for his dissertation „New Material Concepts for Organic Solar Cells“. The award was presented to him in Oberhausen by Prof. Dr. med. Dietrich Grönemeyer, Chairman of the Wissenschaftsforum Ruhr e.V., who acted as patron of the Friends of Fraunhofer UMSICHT association. The prize was awarded for the 3^rd time.

During his PhD studies at the Institut für Angewandte Photophysik (IAPP) at the Technische Universität Dresden Jan Meiß developed new concepts for organic solar cells in cooperation with Heliatek GmbH and Fraunhofer COMEDD. The 31-year-old scientist worked especially on transparent electrical contacts and the increase of their efficiency. He developed resource-saving, low-cost and easily processable alternatives to conventional conductive layers through the replacement of indium tin oxide by nanolayers of silver and aluminium. The special clou is the following: by using these layers he was in able to fabricate transparent solar cells which were about four times more efficient than conventional transparent organic solar cells.

„It was a great pleasure to receive the science award of the Friends of Fraunhofer UMSICHT association. I would like to thank all of the involved people in Dresden, who enabled these research results through this unique teamwork.“, explains Jan Meiß.

According to the judging panel, especially the degree of innovation, the scientific level and thematic focus of Jan Meiß´ dissertation gave him a lead over the other excellent papers.

Organic solar cells can easily be implemented into portable systems and thus can deliver on-site power for mobile devices like mobile phones or laptops at any time. They are lightweight because they are processed on plastic foils. Therefore, they even could be integrated into the face of a building or into car roofs. Organic materials are hydrocarbon-based dyes, some of which are well known e.g. as food colorants or car finish in everyday life. Because of the simple processing methods and the use of absundant, carbon-based organic materials, organic solar cells are much more cost-efficient compared to conventional solar cells.

The work of Jan Meiß was funded by the BMBF within the InnoProfile project "Organische p-i-n Bauelemente" ( FKZ 03IP602 ). TU Dresden and Fraunhofer COMEDD have established a cooperation model “Innovationscampus” for R&D of novel organic devices.

About „UMSICHT“ science award:

Innovative action and thinking as well as the cooperation of close to market research and industry are the concepts which the UMSICHT science award wants to push on. Awarded by the Friends of the Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental, Safety and Energy Technology UMSICHT this prize, which carries a value of 15,000 euros, provides not only an incentive for scientists, but also for journalists.

About Dr. Jan Meiß:

Personal objectives:

Energy and resource distribution, generation, and management are among the main current global challenges that we have to face. Well-coordinated joint efforts in technology screening, research and development will provide the necessary tools, and this is where I want to contribute in a positive and meaningful way.

Working experience:

Seit 12/2011: Scientist / project leader at Reiner Lemoine Institut gGmbH, dealing with integration of renewable energies into the existing energy supply and grid.

2007 - 2011: Scientist (2011: Postdoc) at Dresden University of Technology.

2006 - 2007: „Working Holiday” in New Zealand

2006: Trainee at OCAS (ArcelorMittal corporation) in Gent (Belgium). Research in co-operation with Gent University on the influence of hydrogen on different stainless steel alloys.

2006: Scientific staff member at Chemnitz University of Technology. Studies of metal phthalocyanines with Prof. M. Hietschold.

Education:

2007 – 2011: PhD studies at the Institute of Applied Photophysics (IAPP) in physics with Prof. Karl Leo at Dresden University of Technology. PhD thesis “New Material Concepts for Organic Solar Cells”, submitted in 5/2010; defense in 2/2011.

2004 - 2006: Studies in “Computational Science” at Chemnitz University of Technology. M.Sc. in 2006. Thesis on scanning tunneling spectroscopy of metal phthalocyanines on graphite (advisor: Prof. M. Hietschold).2004 - 2005: Studies in physics at Portland State University in Portland, OR. M.Sc. in Physics, December 2005. Thesis on electrodeposition of ZnO nanostructures and application in devices (advisor: Prof. R. Koenenkamp).

2001 - 2004: Studies in “Computational Science” at Chemnitz University of Technology. B.Sc., September 2004.

2000: Abitur („Gymnasium Ernestinum“ in Rinteln).

About IAPP and the project “Organische p-i-n Bauelemente”:

The Institut für Angewandte Photophysik (IAPP, http://www.iapp.de) of the Technische Universität Dresden, Germany, was established in 1908 and has been working in the field of organic optoelectronics based on small molecules since the 1990s. Since then it has made – among others – significant progress in the field of organic solar cells and organic light emitting diodes. This progress has been made possible by the development of molecular doping and the corresponding p-i-n concept for organic devices that both are the basis for several successful IAPP startups. Due to its results and success in research the IAPP has become one of the most distinguished institutes in the field of organic optoelectronics. Many international cooperations as well as a large number of publications, conference contributions and patents underline its strong position. In addition to organic solar cells and organic light emitting diodes current areas of research encompass organic transistors, development of new materials in the IAPP chemistry group, organic laser, various spectroscopic techniques as well as theoretical and numerical investigations of optoelectronic processes at the molecular scale.

The project “Organische p-i-n Bauelemente” (http://iapp.de/iapp/agruppen/innoprofile/) has been funded as part of the BMBF Initiative “InnoProfile” and had as focus the investigation and development of organic solar cells and organic light emitting diodes. At the TU Dresden It acts at catalyst for the development of innovative this innovative technology in close cooperation with regional SMEs. Its goal is the strengthening of the capacity for innovation of the economy in East German states.