Three Clusters of Excellence at Leibniz University Hannover granted funding

The Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics and the Institute for Gravitational Physics at LUH are involved in two Clusters of Excellence.

Leibniz University Hannover (LUH) was granted funding for three Clusters of Excellence as part of the federal and state governments’ Excellence Strategy. All three clusters for which LUH submitted applications will receive several million euros in funding for seven years starting in January 2026. The Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute) and the Institute for Gravitational Physics at LUH are involved in the Clusters of Excellence QuantumFrontiers and PhoenixD.

The PhoenixD Cluster of Excellence will now begin its second funding period. It aims to develop optical precision instruments in a rapid and cost-effective manner in order to enable cutting-edge use in medical diagnostics, food production, telecommunication and quantum communication. To realise this goal, researchers from the six fields of mechanical engineering, physics, electrical engineering, computer science, mathematics and chemistry are working together and investigating the manipulation and detection of laser light.

The QuantumFrontiers Cluster of Excellence will now enter its second funding period. Its central aim is to carry out measurements at the quantum frontier with a level of precision never achieved before – and to both advance basic research and explore potential applications of quantum technologies. QuantumFrontiers is developing the next generation of atom interferometers, optical clocks and gravitational-wave detectors. Thanks to high-precision earth observation, it is possible to draw conclusions about changes to the water cycle and other environmental and climate-related processes.