Meet the Jury: Prof. Dr. Karl Mandel

Karl Mandel, Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany and Fraunhofer ISC, Würzburg, Germany

Supraparticles are particles composed of nano (and molecular) building blocks. These entities often possess remarkable, novel properties that cannot be obtained from single nanoparticles or molecules, as a cooperative interplay of diverse building blocks can be obtained upon their assembly.
In the first part of this talk, I will demonstrate how we can bring different nanoparticles together to form a supraparticle via force assembly using spray-drying.
The potential of such structures for catalysis will be outlined shortly in a second part of the talk.
The third part of the talk is about information in materials. Our goal is to overcome the paradigm that materials are only passive items. We aim at turning them into objects that are able to communicate. The fundamental idea is to equip materials with little information providers. As will be argued in the talk, the assembled supraparticles offer the potential to act as interactive objects that are able to communicate, i.e., for instance to report their identity or the history of environmental influences using optical or magnetic systems. This will ultimately allow to bridge the analogue / materials world with the digital world.

About the speaker
Prof. Dr. Karl Mandel is a leading chemist and materials scientist specializing in inorganic chemistry and particle technology. He has been a professor at Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) since 2020. Mandel’s academic journey began with studies in Earth Science and Materials Science across Europe, including Munich, Salzburg, Ulm, and Oxford. He completed his PhD in chemistry in 2013 at Julius-Maximilians University Würzburg (JMU), followed by a rapid rise through the ranks at the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research in Würzburg, where he eventually led the Particle Technology Group.
Prof. Mandel’s research focuses on nanotechnology and advanced particle materials, receiving numerous awards such as the Hugo-Geiger-Preis and the Rektor-Max-Meyer-Preis. In 2017, he was awarded a prestigious €1.8 million BMBF NanoMatFutur grant to establish his own research group, focusing on innovative nanomaterials for applications in energy, healthcare, and environmental technologies.
In addition to his research, Prof. Mandel has excelled in academia, earning his habilitation in chemistry in 2020 and serving as an Emil-Fischer-Fellow at JMU. His work continues to impact the fields of nanotechnology and materials science, solidifying his reputation as a leading researcher and academic.