News in research and teaching

Starting in the winter semester 2026/2027, WOGE Saar will begin renting out the new student residences it built on the campus of Saarland University. These and other planned student halls of residence aim to provide an attractive option for first-year students, who generally begin studying in the winter semester and often have difficulty finding affordable accommodation at the start of their studies. Available units will be available for short-term rental during the summer semester [...]

„Von Bauernregeln zu Künstlicher Intelligenz – Die Mathematik der Wettervorhersage“ lautet der Titel eines Gastvortrags von Professor Sebastian Lerch an der Universität des Saarlandes. Er findet am Samstag, 7. Februar, von 11 bis 12 Uhr im Großen Hörsaal der Physik statt (Gebäude C6 3). Zu dem allgemeinverständlichen Vortrag, der das diesjährige Probestudium Physik abschließt, lädt die Fachrichtung Physik alle Interessierten ein. Eine Anmeldung ist nicht erforderlich. [...]

Künstliche Intelligenz (KI) verändert die Bildungslandschaft grundlegend – von der Erstellung von Kursmaterialien über neue Prüfungsformate bis hin zur Kompetenzentwicklung für die Zukunft. Der „Tag der Lehre 2026“ widmet sich dieser Thematik und bietet Raum für kreative Ansätze, kritische Reflexion und praxisnahe Beispiele aus der Hochschullehre. Er findet am 23. Januar von 9 bis 12:30 Uhr im Innovation Center (Geb. A2 1) an der Universität des Saarlandes statt. Medienvertreter sind willkommen. [...]

What do the European Commission's latest plans mean for data protection? Will the planned changes make the law easier to implement, or will it lose its teeth? This year, the Institute for Legal Informatics at Saarland University will once again provide a platform for discussing current topics with the public lecture series 'Data Protection Law in Practice'. Eleven German state data protection commissioners, all recognized experts in the field, will speak on data protection during the series. [...]

The global skin care company Beiersdorf and the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) on the Saarbrücken university campus have entered into a long-term, exclusive partnership. In this collaboration they aim to investigate the role of the skin microbiome in maintaining healthy skin. The goal is to identify natural products produced by microorganisms on the skin that have a positive effect on skin balance. [...]

Vom 21. bis 25. September 2026 findet die zweite Summer School des Käte Hamburger Kollegs für kulturelle Praktiken der Reparation (CURE) in der Villa Vigoni – Deutsch-italienisches Zentrum für den europäischen Dialog am Comer See statt. Sie beschäftigt sich mit dem Thema „Beyond Division / Über die Spaltung hinaus“ und fragt nach kulturellen Praktiken, in denen Spaltungsprozesse bearbeitet, aufgelöst oder verhindert werden können. [...]

Mattias Kettner has been appointed as the new Professor of Forensic Medicine at Saarland University. His research centres on reconstructing violent crimes using forensic techniques. This includes, among other things, bloodstain pattern analysis at crime scenes and employing imaging technologies to capture and digitally reconstruct crime scenes for use in criminal proceedings. [...]

Im Wintersemester veranstaltet die Universität des Saarlandes wieder öffentliche Vorträge, zu denen alle Interessierten eingeladen sind. Hier kündigen wir die Vorträge der jeweils folgenden Kalenderwoche an. Die aktuellen Termine sind auch im Veranstaltungskalender auf der Startseite der Universität zu finden. [...]

Till Patrik Holterhus has been appointed Professor of Public, European and International Law at Saarland University. He will also serve as co-director of the Europa-Institut and hold a joint appointment within the Cluster for European Research. Previously, Holterhus was a professor at Leuphana University Lüneburg, where he headed the Center for European and International Law. [...]

Der Deutsche Wetterdienst hat für das Saarland für die Nacht von Sonntag auf Montag sowie Montagvormittag eine Unwetterwarnung herausgegeben. Aufgrund der erwarteten extremen Glätte könnte es für Studierende sowie Uni-Beschäftigte schwierig sein, den Campus in Saarbrücken und Homburg zu erreichen. Universitätspräsident Ludger Santen stellt es den Professorinnen und Professoren frei, Veranstaltungen abzusagen oder online abzuhalten. [...]

Industrielle Abwässer enthalten häufig Öle und Fette, die unsere Flüsse und Meere belasten können. Für Unternehmen gelten deshalb strenge Vorgaben, bevor das Wasser wieder in die Umwelt gelangen darf. Ein neues gemeinsames Vorhaben der inomat GmbH, der Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft des Saarlandes (htw saar) und der Universität des Saarlandes will moderne Filtermembranen entwickeln, die diese Verunreinigungen zuverlässig und ressourcenschonend abtrennen. [...]

A party night with a difference is coming soon to Saarland University's Saarbrücken campus. On 16 January 2026, the professors will take to the decks to play their favourite tracks in personally curated sets. The General Students’ Committee (AStA) and Saarland University are organizing the ‘Night of the Profs’ in the university auditorium (building A3 3). From 9 pm, students will be able to see their professors in action behind the mixing desk. [...]

When red blood cells are centrifuged in a density-gradient medium, they form a striking banded pattern. The cells arrange themselves into vivid red stripes containing high concentrations of red blood cells with paler bands containing far fewer red blood cells in between. The lowest density red cells are found in the uppermost red band while those with the highest density are located in the lowest band. Until now, scientists believed this was caused by uneven water loss as cells age. [...]

On 16 and 17 January, a symposium at the Medical Campus in Homburg will be exploring how AI-based technologies are reshaping healthcare. The symposium ‘Artificial Intelligence in Medicine’ is hosted by the Health.AI network, Saarland University, Saarland University Medical Center and the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI). It is aimed at clinicians, healthcare professionals, and researchers, as well as anyone with an interest in the topic. [...]

During the winter semester, Saarland University is once again hosting public lectures. The lectures for the upcoming week will be announced here. The planned lecture dates can also be found in the event calendar on the university's homepage. [...]

The Supervisory Board of Saarland University Medical Center (UKS) in Homburg has appointed Professor Michael Zemlin as Acting Medical Director and Chair of the Board. He succeeds Prof. Jennifer Diedler, who stepped down from her role at the end of the year at her own request, effective 1 January 2026. [...]

During the winter semester, Saarland University is once again hosting public lectures. The lectures for the upcoming week will be announced here. The planned lecture dates can also be found in the event calendar on the university's homepage. [...]

Wie schützen Unternehmen ihr Know-how? Wo liegen Risiken, fremde Schutzrechte zu verletzen? Das Zertifikat „Patent- und Innovationsschutz“ der Universität des Saarlandes ist ein Weiterbildungsangebot für Fach- und Führungskräfte. Jetzt hat Jörg Thomaier die fachliche Leitung übernommen, der als Head of Intellectual Property bei der Bayer Group tätig war und eine umfangreiche industrielle Erfahrung einbringt. Noch bis zum 15. Januar kann man sich für das zweisemestrige Online-Programm bewerben. [...]

On Monday, 19 January, one of the leading experts in the development of quantum computers will explain how Nobel Prize winners in Physics John Clarke, Michel H. Devoret and John M. Martinis paved the way for the supercomputers of the future –even though their original work was conceived as fundamental research. All interested members of the public are warmly invited to attend Frank Wilhelm-Mauch's general-interest lecture, which will start at 6 p.m. on the Saarbrücken campus (E2 5, Hall 1). [...]

How can the German-French language barrier be reduced across healthcare settings in the border region – from hospitals and clinics to medical practices, pharmacies, care facilities and emergency departments? This question will be addressed at the Cross-border Health Day that will take place at the Saarbrücken Regional Adult Education Centre (vhs) on 3 February, from 8.30 a.m. to 2 p.m. [...]

Am 27. Dezember kann der Professor für Physiologie Dr. Hans-Peter Richter, der der Universität des Saarlandes seit über 40 Jahren verbunden ist, in Homburg seinen 80. Geburtstag begehen. [...]

Are AI browsers, like those offered by Perplexity and OpenAI, changing the internet? And will Germany finally become a supercomputing nation with its new high-performance computer Jupiter? Quality journalism is key to keeping up with the rapid development of new technologies. The media should convey the enormous social relevance of many topics in computer science to the general public. The best articles from 2025 will therefore be honoured with the Journalism Prize for Computer Science. [...]

'Yearning for Autocrats' is the title of a series of talks hosted by the Käte Hamburger Centre CURE and the Saarland State Theatre in cooperation with the public broadcaster SR kultur. The talks will be held across three Sunday matinées on 11 and 25 January and 8 February in the Alte Feuerwache. Admission is free, but advance registration at the theatre box office is required. [...]

Alexander Baumeister, Professor of Business Administration at Saarland University, has been accepted into the Academy of Excellence in Higher Education. Membership is granted to university teaching staff who stand out from many applicants in a competitive selection process and who represent exceptional teaching styles and innovative approaches. The academy is a nationwide network of outstanding teachers from various departments, types of universities and status groups. [...]

How can living and bio-based materials contribute to resource efficient construction and healthy living? How can these materials enable new technical solutions for innovative sensors and durable structures? These questions are the focus of the 14th Regional Forum Saar, which will take place on 13 January at 4.30 p.m. in the auditorium of Saarland University. [...]

Two new halls of residence on the Saarbrücken campus are set to provide modern accommodation for an extra 300 to 400 students. Both buildings will be built on land provided by the university close to the student halls already under construction. Saarland's Minister of Science Jakob von Weizsäcker, University President Ludger Santen, Secretary of State for Building and Housing, Saarbrücken Mayor Uwe Conradt and investor Edwin Kohl presented the plans today. [...]

Die Fachrichtung Physik der Universität des Saarlandes veranstaltet auch in diesem Wintersemester das Probestudium Physik. Dabei können Schülerinnen und Schüler der gymnasialen Oberstufe an drei Vorlesungen und einem physikalischen Praktikum teilnehmen. Das diesjährige Thema lautet: „Von Zufall, Wärme und warum die Zeit nicht rückwärts läuft“. Start ist am 10. Januar 2026. [...]

The European Research Council has awarded Jonas-Frederic Sauer, Professor of Physiology at Saarland University, an ERC Consolidator Grant for his basic research on the brain. This research prize is endowed with around €2 million. [...]

It sounds a bit like the search for an alternative philosopher's stone. Over the next few years, a team led by Dominik Munz, Professor of Coordination Chemistry at Saarland University, will be looking for ways to turn cheap coal into valuable materials such as diamonds, which play an important role in industry. Munz received an ERC Consolidator Grant from the European Union for this project, meaning two million euros will be allocated to the research group over a period of five years.

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During the winter semester, Saarland University is once again hosting public lectures. The lectures for the upcoming week will be announced here. The planned lecture dates can also be found in the event calendar on the university's homepage. [...]

Physicists identify a fundamental mechanism

We all know that when held up to a mirror a right hand looks like a left hand – and that a right hand and a left hand differ in that they cannot be superposed on each other. This absence of left–right (mirror) symmetry is known as chirality and is ubiquitous in nature: from the coiling of snail shells to the double helix of DNA. Despite its importance, chirality has largely been missing from theoretical descriptions of interacting active matter.
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In a new research project led by the Central Institute of Mental Health (CIMH) in Mannheim, scientists are investigating how insights into learning processes in animal brains can be used to make artificial intelligence (AI) systems more flexible and efficient. Jonas-Frederic Sauer, Professor of Physiology at Saarland University, is involved in the project and conducts research at the Center for Integrative Physiology and Molecular Medicine (CIPMM) on the Homburg campus. [...]

With 47 ideas submitted, the Business Idea Competition jointly organized by Saarland University (Triathlon) and htw saar (FITT) has set a new record. The number of applications was more than three times higher than in the previous year, with applications featuring concepts ranging from consumer products and technical inventions to life science projects. [...]

Verletzungen wie Kreuzbandrisse oder Meniskusschäden gehören zu den größten Risiken im Jugendfußball. Sie führen oft zu monatelangen Pausen und können die sportliche Entwicklung nachhaltig beeinträchtigen und Karrieren bereits zu einem frühen Zeitpunkt beenden. Ein internationales Forschungsteam hat nun herausgefunden, dass ein spezielles Aufwärm- und Trainingsprogramm namens „FUNBALL“ diese Gefahr deutlich verringern kann. Die Studie wurde im Fachmagazin Sports Medicine - Open veröffentlicht. [...]

Am 6. Dezember kann der emeritierte Professor für Angewandte Linguistik und Sprachlehrerforschung an der Universität des Saarlandes, Dr. Albert Raasch, in seiner schleswig-holsteinischen Heimat seinen 95. Geburtstag begehen. [...]

Wie lassen sich künftige Pandemien früher erkennen? Welche Daten helfen wirklich bei präzisen Prognosen? Und wie kann menschliches Verhalten in Vorhersagemodelle integriert werden? Mit dem Forschungsprojekt DREAM EP möchte die Technische Universität Dresden gemeinsam mit einem Konsortium führender Wissenschaftler diese und weitere Fragen beantworten. Mit dabei ist Thorsten Lehr, Professor für Klinische Pharmazie der Universität des Saarlandes. Das Projekt wird mit 1,8 Millionen Euro gefördert. [...]

On 16 and 17 January, a symposium at the Medical Campus in Homburg will be exploring how AI-based technologies are reshaping healthcare. The symposium ‘Artificial Intelligence in Medicine’ is hosted by the Health.AI network, Saarland University, Saarland University Medical Center and the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI). It is aimed at clinicians, healthcare professionals, and researchers, as well as anyone with an interest in the topic. [...]

Since 2020, Rita Bernhardt, Professor of Biochemistry, has been working with research partners on a new explanatory model for the development of Parkinson's disease. In her most recent publication, she and geneticist Julia Schulze-Hentrich demonstrate that the disease cannot be explained solely by genetic or environmental factors, as previously assumed. Instead, Parkinson's disease emerges from a complex interplay of influences that also brings metabolic signalling pathways into focus. [...]

A team of researchers from Saarbrücken and Leipzig has examined around 1,700 languages to identify structures that might occur universally. Of 191 grammatical patterns – known as linguistic universals – one third were found to be present in the languages studied. The team, led by Annemarie Verkerk of Saarland University and Russell Gray from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, has published its findings in Nature Human Behaviour. [...]

Im Wintersemester veranstaltet die Universität des Saarlandes wieder öffentliche Vorträge, zu denen alle Interessierten eingeladen sind. Hier kündigen wir die Vorträge der jeweils folgenden Kalenderwoche an. Die aktuellen Termine sind auch im Veranstaltungskalender auf der Startseite der Universität zu finden. [...]

Researchers from Saarland University and the Max Planck Institute for Software Systems have, for the first time, shown that the reactions of humans and large language models (LLMs) to complex or misleading program code significantly align, by comparing brain activity of study participants with model uncertainty. Building on this, the team developed a data-driven method to automatically detect such confusing areas in code — a promising step toward better AI assistants for software development. [...]

When the hospital germ Pseudomonas aeruginosa infects the body, it uses the sugar-binding protein LecA to attach itself to human cells, invade them, and form so-called biofilms. LecA thus plays a central role in the development and progression of infections with this particularly critical pathogen. Researchers at the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) have now discovered that the approved Parkinson's drug tolcapone is able to specifically inhibit the activity of LecA [...]

With some 5,000 grades of steel available today, the steel manufacturing process hinges on fine nuances. To create new properties or to ensure consistent material quality, steels are analysed using a range of imaging techniques. Over many years, Professor Frank Mücklich and his research team have built extensive expertise in this field. Using their data from microscopy-based analyses, they have trained an AI to detect the smallest of changes in steel. [...]

On 27 and 28 November, experts from Italy, France, Sweden, Great Britain and Germany will meet at the Saarbrücken campus for a conference to discuss the status and prospects of digital historical word research. The topic is a central focus of research and of the teaching curriculum at Saarland University’s Chair of Romance Philology. [...]

Human languages are complex, rich and varied. From an information-theoretic perspective, however, they could convey the same information in a much more compact form. So why don't we speak 'digitally', encoding information in strings of ones and zeros like a computer? Michael Hahn, a linguist from Saarbrücken, has explored this question together with a research colleague from the US. They have developed a model that explains why we speak the way we do. [...]

For the past eight years, medical researchers at RWTH Aachen University, Saarland University and their respective university hospitals have been investigating the connection between kidney disease and cardiovascular disease. Cardiovascular conditions often develop as a consequence of kidney disease, which means that the risk of dying from a cardiovascular illness is significantly higher among kidney patients than among people with healthy kidneys. [...]

Saarland entrepreneur Dieter Scheid is being honoured as an Honorary Member of Saarland University in recognition of his many years of service as Chair of the Society of Sponsors of the Institute for Empirical Economic Research at Saarland University. Dieter Scheid is the first individual to receive this honour. [...]

Die Universität des Saarlandes bietet am 5. Mai Unternehmen die Gelegenheit, sich den Studierenden und Nachwuchsforschern aller Fachrichtungen zu präsentieren und frühzeitig Kontakte zu potenziellen Fachkräften zu knüpfen. Ab sofort können sich interessierte Unternehmen für die Campus-Messe „next“ anmelden. [...]

AI assistants have rapidly become part of everyday life – whether through our interactions with large language models like ChatGPT or in medical applications that help interpret complex datasets. Yet, despite their widespread use, AI systems still make surprisingly simple mistakes that persist even after extensive training. They also lack the ability to think logically or to truly 'understand' nested input. For Michael Hahn the problem lies in the architecture itself. [...]

The Innovation Center on the Saarland University Saarbrücken campus has been honoured with a special mention in the Saarland architecture award 'Orte der Arbeit' (Places of Work). The jury praised the building's exceptional architectural design and functionality, which provides a central location for cooperation between business, science and the start-up scene. The jury described the building as 'a place for innovation and entrepreneurial spirit'. [...]