The world today is unimaginable without synthetic materials. In many cases, the development of new materials forms an important basis for technological progress with immense social benefits. However, material innovations are complex and require concerted multidisciplinary approaches. At the DWI – Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials, scientists from various disciplines therefore conduct research and jointly develop materials with programmable properties and (inter)active functions.
The DWI research takes place on very different length scales: From the nanometer scale, which is relevant for the study of molecular building blocks and their chemical synthesis, to the macroscopic scale, which is concerned with the composition of larger functional systems and their understand and application. Inspiration for research can be found in living systems and biological materials that have a wide range of active and adaptive functions. For example, the wealth of information encoded in biomacromolecules and the resulting biomaterials substantially surpasses that of conventional artificial materials.
By bringing together diverse and rapidly developing disciplines, the DWI has a unique scientific and technological basis to shape this new field of materials science decisively. In accordance with the goals of the Leibniz Association, the DWI aims to gain fundamental knowledge as well as to further develop and use this knowledge in application-oriented research. For this reason, the institute maintains an extensive network that has grown over decades with cooperation partners, other research institutions and various companies. DWI materials and technologies are particularly important in medicine and in connection with sustainability.
Five research programs cover DWI’s main areas:
- Aqua Materials
Materials formed from or for aqueous systems; chemistry in water - Synthiofluidics
New chemical syntheses and processes for producing building blocks for interactive materials - Macromolecular Films and Fibers
Functional Surfaces and Interfaces - Transport, Reaction and Exchange Systems
Material systems for controlled transport, reaction, and exchange - Bioactive and Bioinstructive Materials
Materials designed for active interaction and integration with the biological environment
