The following master research projects are currently open in the Bouwmeester group.

An international team of scientists, including Xander Tielens of Leiden Observatory, has used space telescope Hubble and the ALMA observatory to show that UV radiation from massive stars can prevent planets from forming. The researchers publish their findings on 1 March in the journal Science.

For the first time, astronomers have detected the presence of complex organic molecules, the building blocks of life, in a protoplanetary disc surrounding a young star. The discovery reaffirms that the conditions that spawned the Earth and Sun are not unique in the Universe. The results are published…

The nineteenth-century writer Nicolaas Beets and his son Dirk were thoroughly colonial, Nicholas without ever having been to the Dutch Indies, or any other colony for that matter. But they didn’t realise it. The new Scaliger Professor, Rick Honings, shows that writers’ archives are a treasure trove…

How do molecules originate and evolve in space? And how does that ultimately determine the chemical composition of planets and their atmospheres? The Dutch Astrochemistry Network (DANIII) receives 1.6 million euros from NWO to find out. A large group of Leiden astronomers and chemists is contributing:…

With a pioneering project like the quantum computer, it’s a good idea not to place all your bets on a single horse. In Leiden’s Quantum Optics research group, instead of working on a Majorana-based qubit, people are working on a qubit based on an ‘artificial atom’. If that becomes the basis of the quantum…

How can zebrafish research help to understand and fight human cancer?

How can zebrafish research help understanding human diseases?

Multinationals use loopholes in the tax treaties between different states. A possible solution would be to eliminate all these loopholes in one go by creating a central global treaty. Leiden researchers are investigating whether this kind of mega-treaty is feasible.

In recent decades, the Netherlands’ struggle with multiculturalism has caused an upsurge in public interest in the relationship between state and religion. In this, the Dutch address a subject relevant not just to them, but to all of Europe.

The master's specialisation in Visual Ethnography emphasises a strongly hands-on, empirical approach, which requires students to play an active role in mastering the audiovisual toolbox.

Packages of DNA strands containing silver, measuring just two or three nanometres in size. Leiden physicists Donny de Bruin and Dirk Bouwmeester create these packages, which can enter living cells on their own. They then activate the silver with light, causing the cells to break down. This could, in…

New: Een Podcast over Natuurkunde, a podcast about Leiden physics. In the first episode, Dirk van Delft tells about the Hendrik Antoon Lorentz biography that he wrote with Frits Berends.

On Thursday 16 November, Dirk Broekhuijsen will defend his doctoral thesis entitled ‘A multilateral tax treaty: designing an instrument to modernise international tax law’. The defence will take place at 15.00 hrs at the Academy Building of Leiden University. The supervisors are Professor F.A. Engelen…

An unprecedented space telescope, an astrolab that makes space ice and molecules that may lead to the origin of life… The Ice Age project has all the prerequisites to become a very fascinating research project – if it is not one already. Leiden astronomers Melissa McClure, Harold Linnartz and Will Rocha…

For the fifth year in succession, on the foundation day of the university, Leiden professors taught a lesson at primary schools as part of the ‘Meet the Professor’ programme.

This book by Dirk Jacob Jansen traces the career of Jacopo Strada (Mantua 1515-Vienna 1588), examining his role at court in Vienna, where he served as Imperial architect and antiquary. Strada’s career was unusually wide in scope and cosmopolitan in outlook even for a Renaissance artist.

On the evening of Tuesday January 31st, the physics institute organizes its triannual meeting for over seventy high school teachers. The program consists of lectures on developments in modern physics and the latest initiatives in the world of education.

Five innovative and excellent teachers have joined the Leiden University Teachers' Academy (LTA). Members of the Academy exchange experiences and share their knowledge and expertise within Leiden University. Frank Takes, assistant professor at the Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science (LIACS)…

Dirk Huyge (Director) & Wouter Claes (Vice-Director)

An overview of awards and prizes granted to our staff and students in 2021, as well as special appointments at Leiden University and other institutions.

The Heritage Sector at a Crossroads: The way of Intersectionality. This project investigates how heritage institutions can achieve inclusion and accessibility within their organization, collection, and exhibition spaces that meets the breadth of demands placed by today’s “critical visitors.” Fifteen…

Frederik Buylaert, Thijs Lambrecht, Dirk Heirbaut and Jim van der Meulen (University Ghent) are launching a new research project in September 2022, entitled "Lordship and Agrarian Capitalism in the Low Countries, c. 1350-1650". They are looking to hire three doctoral researchers. Deadline: 31 July 2…

Frederik Buylaert, Thijs Lambrecht, Dirk Heirbaut and Jim van der Meulen (University Ghent) are launching a new research project in September 2022, entitled "Lordship and Agrarian Capitalism in the Low Countries, c. 1350-1650". They are seeking to hire 2 postdocs. Deadline: 31 July 2022.

The project has been done in the Dirk Bouwmeester Lab under the supervision of Dr. Wolfgang Loeffler, Dr. Michiel de Dood and Frank Buters. The title of the presentation is:“A membrane-in-the-middle device for optomechanics.

British television channels transmitted in Europe are facing an unpleasant surprise: in the event of a hard Brexit their licences will have to be sorted out correctly, otherwise TV screens may be going black.

After a succesful first lecture, the Leiden physics institute LION is launching an online series of (Dutch language) lectures about physics, intended for a broad audience, named the Tatiana Afanassjewa lectures. Upcoming speakers are science historian Dirk van Delft, neutrino physicist Dorothea Samtleben…

Are AI models such as Midjourney violating artists' copyright? Dirk Visser, Professor of Intellectual Property Law, spoke about this topic on Dutch current affairs news programme 'NOS Radio 1 Journaal' .

The Dutch scientist prof. dr. Ewine F. van Dishoeck, Leiden Observatory, Leiden University and Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, will receive the 2018 James Craig Watson Medal from the american National Academy of Sciences (NAS).

Oud-studenten gingen op 30 augustus weer de collegezalen in om hun vaste plekje op de banken op te zoeken tijdens Leiden Revisited. Bezoekers konden genieten van inspirerende lezingen, maar ook van een gezellige borrel, buffet, en livemuziek.

Lecturers should take something of a back-seat role so that there is more opportunity for discussion among students. That is what cell biologist Roland Dirks believes. This inspiring lecturer has won the LUS Teaching Prize.

Leiden University researchers have discovered by chance a note from 1783 in Papiamento. They are working on a linguistic study on confiscated Dutch letters. The ‘Letters as loot’ project is headed by Professor Marijke van der Wal.

The first ILS Lunch Seminar of 2017 will take place on Monday 30 January. During this lunch seminar series all researchers from Leiden Law School can present their research. The idea is to hear in a simple and nice way what researchers from other research programs and institutes are working on. During…

‘One lecturer stood out in particular,’ said Dirk van Vugt, Chair of the Leiden University Student Platform (LUS), at the opening of the academic year. ‘Despite the hurdles of remote teaching, she managed to inspire her students with the aid of knowledge clips, challenges and topical lectures about…

After the kick-off on 28 November, the next ILS Lunch Seminar will take place on Monday 19 December. During this lunch seminar series all researchers from Leiden Law School can present their research. The idea is to hear in a simple and nice way what researchers from other research programs and institutes…

On November 19th, Dirk-Jan Kok, PhD-candidate at CML, will set course for Martinique on tallship the Morgenster. With 18 other motivated individuals, they will form the think tank that aims to come up with creative solutions to the problems that the industry faces in transitioning to circular economic…

Not one, but two Olympic rowing medals with a Leiden-Delft touch. Master student Life, Science and Technology Stef Broenink won silver in the double pair. He and partner Melvin Twellaar were in front for a long time, but were overtaken by the French at the last minute.

What better place to look back at 444 years of Leiden University than at the faculty where we actually study our history? To celebrate this special year, a physical timeline about 444 years of Humanities has been crafted in the Lipsius building.

Quantum computers deserve their own quantum internet. This is a network that dispatches information not in the form of bits - ones and zeros - but rather as qubits, just like in the quantum computer itself. In the view of Dirk Bouwmeester, a professor in Leiden’s Quantum Matter & Optics research group,…

Analytical tools for environmental design and management in a systems perspective. The combined use of analytical tools.

At the heart of this study is a thorough inquiry of categorisations of social identity used in the VOC’s record-keeping bureaucracy. How were service, occupational and caste groups classified and shaped by the VOC?

One way for governments to conduct foreign policy and promote national interests is through direct outreach and communication with the population of a foreign country. This is called public diplomacy. Historians such as Helmer Helmers and William T. Rossiter have shown that printed media were already…

Former PhD, Bachelor and Master students of the Van Exter Lab

How do tax treaties have to be explained and implemented, and what role does the supranational regulatory process play in this? Which objectives are meant to be used in establishing tax regulations and to what extent are such legislative practices undertaken in a goal-oriented manner?.

Simone Lemmers has been awarded a Leverhume trust funded PhD Position at the University of Durham, UK in the field of Biological Anthropology supervised by Dr. Jo Setchell (Antropology, Durham University) and Dr Wendy Dirks (Newcastle University) starting October 2013.

This February Metje Postma will stop teaching and retire. But she is not done with the discipline yet: she will finish her PhD and there are still five films on the shelf that she plans to complete.

Everything around us is in motion. Students, the University, technology, society, the labour market and the world. These developments provide an impetus to experiment with new forms of education. This article samples a small selection of the many dozens of innovative educational projects. What is striking…

Many students find their job search really stressful – what will they end up doing after they graduate? What are their career options, their employment opportunities?