Fascinating research,or what are they actually doing there?
In these pages, we would like to present the Paul Scherrer Institute to an interested public in a generally comprehensible way. Here you can learn more about the research topics we are working on and the unique large research facilities we are using to find answers to a variety of scientific questions.
Water and quantum magnets share critical physics
At high pressure, liquid water and water vapour merge together – the phase boundary disappears. Researchers have now discovered a similar behaviour in a quantum magnet.
Compact and high-performance, like a Swiss Army knife
The X-ray free-electron laser SwissFEL really is as high-performance and versatile as planned.
Safely stored for a million years
Switzerland plans to construct a deep repository for its radioactive waste. There are three potential locations, and data obtained by PSI researchers can aid in selection of the best one.
Aerosol formation in clouds
How chemical reactions in clouds can influence the global climate.
Particulates are more dangerous than previously thought
A precise look into the finest particles in the air shows how compounds harmful to human health are formed.
Forschung zu Covid-19 am Paul Scherrer Institut
Während viele Bereiche des Lebens eingeschränkt sind, bleiben wichtige Forschungsanlagen am PSI in Betrieb.
Switzerland's energy transition
Can Switzerland, as planned, reduce its CO2 emissions to zero by 2050? What is needed to achieve this? What could it cost?
"Numbers help us improve"
Peter Allenspach is head of the Logistics Division at PSI. Through his work, he always has his eye on the numbers that describe the Institute.
Watching receptor proteins changing shape
In our bodies, G protein-coupled receptors mediate countless processes. PSI researcher Ramon Guixà talks about how he brings those receptor molecules to life on the computer screen.
Green fuels for aviation
In a new initiative, PSI and Empa want to jointly develop a process for producing kerosene from renewable resources.
Infografic «Dimensions at PSI»
From the smallest particles to space missions: The range of dimensions that can be found at PSI invites you on a journey through the orders of magnitude.
The Swiss research infrastructure for particle physics CHRISP
Researchers are looking for deviations in the current standard model of physics and want to find out how our universe is constructed.
Infografic «The PSI campus»
It's no coincidence that 5232 is the title of the PSI magazine: It is the unique postal code of the Institute. On the site of the PSI campus, the size of 48 football fields, there are still more numbers to discover, from daily coffee consumption to hundreds of thousands of metres of fibre-optic cables.
"Ultimately, we aim to understand how diseases start in single cells"
Imaging and sequencing techniques combined with machine learning offer researchers countless opportunities to look inside cells with greater precision than ever before. G.V. Shivashankar, lab head at PSI, describes how such information can be used to find answers to pressing questions.
Infographic «People at PSI»
PSI has around 2,100 employees, including 800 researchers. In addition, guest researchers and visitors are regularly on site. Our infographic shows the people at PSI.
