Department of Chemistry

24.09.2026 | Jola Pospech has been appointed Professor of Organic Chemistry at Saarland University

Light opens up new ways of producing chemical molecules efficiently and in a resource-conserving manner. The underlying processes are not yet fully understood – a major hurdle to industrial application. Chemist Jola Pospech is investigating how these possibilities offered by light-driven catalysis can be specifically harnessed for the synthesis of active compounds. To this end, she aims to understand the underlying mechanisms in detail. Jola Pospech has now been appointed Professor of Organic Chemistry.

The interaction between light and catalysts plays a vital role in nature, for example in photosynthesis. However, light is also increasingly becoming a driver of chemical processes in the laboratory. Unlike in traditional, heat-driven synthesis, light can be used to achieve reactions and reactivity that are either impossible or very difficult to achieve by thermal means. The chemical industry’s interest in this is correspondingly high: Many companies have established their own research and development departments to harness these new principles for the production of molecules. However, there is still a long way to go before reliable and efficient application on an industrial scale can be achieved. A key reason for this is that the underlying reaction mechanisms are not yet fully understood, and side reactions and degradation reactions remain difficult to predict.

This is precisely where Jola Pospech’s research comes in. At Saarland University, the chemist aims to investigate how photocatalysts interact with light and the molecules involved – and how these processes can be tracked and understood step by step until the desired molecule is formed. On this basis, new strategies are also to be developed to optimise photocatalytic reactions in a targeted and efficient manner.

To gain a comprehensive understanding of these complex processes, Jola Pospech relies on close collaboration across the boundaries of individual disciplines. Methods from spectroscopy and theoretical chemistry play just as important a role as digitalisation and automation. Her research approach thus opens up numerous points of connection within Saarland University and strengthens interdisciplinary exchange in the natural sciences and engineering.

Jola Pospech’s research priorities therefore enrich the academic environment at Saarland University in a number of ways. There are particularly close links to the Research Training Group ‘Regulation of Covalent Bonds in Molecules and Materials’, in which several research groups from the Faculty of Science and Technology are involved and which will continue to be funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) until 2030. Jola Pospech will take up her post at Saarland University on 1 October 2026.

Brief CV of Jola Pospech

Jola Pospech has been a research group leader at the Leibniz Institute for Catalysis (LIKAT) in Rostock since 2022, where she initially established a junior research group in the field of catalytic functionalisation of organic molecules between 2017 and 2022. A native of Schleswig-Holstein, she studied chemistry at the Georg-August University of Göttingen and, following periods abroad at Stockholm University (Sweden) and ETH Zurich (Switzerland), obtained her PhD at the University of Rostock as part of her research work at LIKAT. She then spent two years conducting research at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (USA), working, amongst other things, on the development of light-driven total syntheses of active compounds and natural products.

22./23.09.2026| Successful T4EU Matchmaking Event “Chemistry and Related Sciences in the T4EU Alliance” at Saarland University

On September 22 and 23, 2026, the discipline-specific matchmaking event “Chemistry and Related Sciences in the T4EU Alliance” took place in the Chemistry Lecture Hall Building C4.3 on the Saarbrücken campus. The event was initiated and organized by the Department of Chemistry at Saarland University as part of the European university alliance Transform4Europe (T4EU). Prof. Guido Kickelbick and Dr. Elias Gießelmann were responsible for organizing and conducting the event.

The goal of the meeting was to provide researchers from chemistry departments within the T4EU Alliance with a platform for academic exchange, the initiation of new collaborations, and the discussion of common future topics in research and teaching. Participants took the opportunity to strengthen existing contacts, build new networks, and explore prospects for future joint projects. The varied program included three presentation sessions on university and department presentations, current scientific research activities, and innovative approaches to teaching and the further development of degree programs. The program was complemented by a poster session in which selected fields of research were presented and discussed.
The departments of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Chemistry at Saarland University were represented by several research group leaders, postdocs, and doctoral students. The event impressively underscored the importance of international scientific exchange within the T4EU Alliance and laid the foundation for future collaborations in research, teaching, and academic mobility.

12.06.2026 | Looking Back: The Chemistry Program at Open Campus 2026

The Department of Chemistry at Saarland University presented a diverse and interactive program for prospective students, high school students, and the general public at the 2026 Open Campus. During the event, the academic advisor, Dr. Ch. Völzing, provided information about the chemistry program in Saarbrücken and was available for one-on-one consultations. In addition, the Chemistry Student Council offered authentic insights into everyday student life and the campus. A special highlight was the NanoBioLab’s nitrogen show. Furthermore, professors, postdocs, and doctoral students presented current research projects and provided insights into the diverse fields of work within chemistry as a core science. The numerous hands-on activities were also very well received: In the hands-on chemistry lab, visitors could conduct experiments themselves—ranging from simple experiments with common household materials for children ages five and up to exciting experiments in organic chemistry for older teens and adults. The NanoBioLab student lab also offered practical insights into experimental work and modern research.

Open Campus 2026 was a complete success for the Department of Chemistry. Thank you to everyone who participated.

31.03.2026 | Susanne Harling and Andreas Adolf are retiring

Two influential figures in the field of inorganic chemistry are retiring after many years of dedicated service. Susanne Harling most recently oversaw CHN analysis for the Department of Chemistry and, through her reliable and competent work, played a key role in shaping day-to-day research activities. Andreas Adolf was considered a central pillar of the Experimental Chemistry lecture series and was an indispensable part of the popular Christmas lecture for many years. During a ceremony, Professors Kickelbick and Seschkewitz honored the extraordinary, long-standing dedication of both colleagues. Particular emphasis was placed on their great dedication to teaching and research, their open and approachable manner, and the high regard in which they were held within the inorganic chemistry research groups. The Department of Chemistry extends its heartfelt thanks for their outstanding collaboration and wishes Ms. Harling and Mr. Adolf all the best for this new chapter in their lives.

06.02.2026 | Chemists from Saarland University create iconic aromatic molecule with silicon

Congratulations to Ankur from the Scheschkewitz group on his fantastic work on the stable all-silicon analog of the iconic cyclopentadienide published today in Science (https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aed1802). After almost half a century of pursuit by chemists worldwide, silicon aromaticity takes a big leap forward. According to experimental and computational evidence, the five-membered ring of the pentasilacyclopentadienide walks the edge between resonance and equilibrium. Kudos to those undergraduate students who always “claimed” that both are the same. In a mind-boggling twist of fate, the group of Takeaki Iwamoto (Sendai, Japan) obtained precisely the same compound as we at Saarland University, only by a different route, now published in the same issue as our results (https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aed0168)