Neuraminidases are enzymes that cleave glycosidic linkages of sialic acid. These enzymes are involved in influenza infections as well as in many cellular processes in mammals and micro-organisms.

Grotius Dialogue

Telling sensationalised stories, exaggerating benefits and understating the risks: creating ‘hype’ about something doesn't sound like something a responsible scientist would indulge in. Or could we also use hype in a ‘good way'? What could we achieve by opening up quantum futures for wider discussions,…

The vegetative growth period for leafy vegetables like lettuce is essential for yield and quality.

On November 21, theoretical physicist Juan Maldacena gives the Ehrenfest Colloquium. Maldacena is known worldwide as the inventor of AdS/CFT correspondence, which might be key to a theory of quantum gravity. Maldacena is winner of the prestigious Dirac Prize and the Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental…

On the 17th of December, Jin Wang successfully defended a doctoral thesis. Leiden University Centre for Linguistics congratulates Jin on this achievement!

Rare-earth materials are prime candidates for storing quantum information, because the undesirable interaction with their environment is extremely weak. Consequently however, this lack of interaction implies a very small response to light, making it hard to read and write data. Leiden physicists have…

In this thesis, classes of strongly interacting quantum field theories, have been studied.

The worldwide race to the quantum computer is in full swing. This computer can bring about a breakthrough in discovering medicines and new materials. Leiden researchers, together with the TU Delft, are taking part in the race. There is now a dossier online about their work.

In a recent Physics World podcast, PhD candidate Felix Frohnert from Leiden University explains how his team uncovered hidden connections in scientific literature by using machine learning routines. With this information, it’s possible to predict promising new research ideas in quantum physics. Listen…

On 9 September, in the presence of King Willem Alexander, Secretary of State Sander Dekker presented the Spinoza Prize to four researchers, including two researchers from Leiden: archaeologist Corinne Hofman and physicist Dirk Bouwmeester. In the Nieuwe Kerk in The Hague, they unveiled their plans for…

Koen Bastiaans and his colleagues discovered a new quantum liquid unlike anything ever seen. They did it by using a technique that can be compared to listening to the sound of raindrops falling on a roof. Publication in Science 29 October.

Advanced sensing techniques require graphene with high quality and well-controlled surface chemistry.

Are you in a position of talent coach, coordinator, mentor, dean, or teacher and looking for university programmes that provide an extra challenge for the students of your school? The Leiden University Honours Academy provides such a programme, where vwo-students from the final three years of high school…

Are Weyl particles the ideal conductors? Do cells without a cell wall play a role in chronic Tuberculosis infections? Carlo Beenakker and Dennis Claessen want to answer these questions. They both received a KLEIN grant from the NWO. With these grants, NWO wants to stimulate innovative, fundamental r…

To mark the university’s 450th anniversary, the Leiden Discoveries science route has been updated and was relaunched on the Night of Discoveries. New signs in town and a revamped website tell Leiden residents and visitors the stories of the city’s spectacular discoveries.

Heterogeneous catalyzed processes are highly significant to the chemical industry. Dissociative chemisorption (DC) of molecules on surfaces is always considered as a step with a high degree of rate control for heterogeneous catalysis.

The Joan van der Waals colloquium is an ongoing bi-weekly lecture series.

Promotor: Prof.dr. E. R. Eliel, Co-Promotor: M.J.A. de Dood

In unconventional high temperature superconductors, supercurrent vortices are known to spoil the Landau levels. In this thesis the emergence of Landau levels is studied in different types of superconductors: Weyl superconductors, and the Fu-Kane heterostructure.

Exploring the mechanism of targeted nanoparticle-mediated drug delivery using the zebrafish model

This thesis focuses on the role of chemokine receptors CXCR3 and CCR2 in the inflammatory process and infection control using the zebrafish model.

Promotor: B. van de Water

Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most prevalent cancer in males.

Promotor: Prof.dr. J. den Hertog

Solar energy is used by photosynthetic organisms to drive energy required cellular processes. Is absorbed by two groups of pigments, located in the LHCs.

To argue that people can control the relative contributions of goal-driven and stimulus-driven processes to decision-making and action selection.

Promotores: Prof.dr. G.W. Canters, Prof.dr. T.J. Aartsma

Working for a top faculty? Discover the vacancies at the Faculty of Science and apply immediately.

Materials with strongly correlated electrons show some of the most mysterious and exotic phases of quantum matter, such as unconventional superconductivity, quantum criticality and strange metal phase.

To be eligible for Astronomy and Science Communication and Society at Leiden University, you must meet the following admission requirements.

To be eligible for Astronomy at Leiden University, you must meet the following admission requirements. PLEASE NOTE: The specialisation High-Tech Innovation starts in September 2026.

To be eligible for Astronomy Research at Leiden University, you must meet the following admission requirements.

To be eligible forAstronomy and Data Science at Leiden University, you must meet the following admission requirements.

To be eligible for Astronomy and Cosmology at Leiden University, you must meet the following admission requirements.

To be eligible for Astronomy and Instrumentation at Leiden University, you must meet the following admission requirements.

To be eligible for Astronomy and Business Studies at Leiden University, you must meet the following admission requirements.

Leiden alumnus and writer Tomas Lieske has published a novel which is set in the house of Paul Ehrenfest. Ehrenfest was a famous physicist who organized round table events every Wednesday evening at his home in Leiden in the early twentieth century. The big names from modern physics frequented these…

Leading computer scientists from a variety of fields share their expertise and insights. Dive into the minds of these researchers and learn about real-world applications, the future of AI and related technologies and cutting-edge research. From chatbots to cybersecurity, from quantum to children's stories,…

This year, two Leiden physicists have earned a prestigious ERC Starting Grant. With a budget of 1.5 million euros, this is one of the largest individual grants for scientists.

This dissertation is an experimental study of laser-generated, atmospheric pressure, transient toroidal helium plasmas.

Four scientists from Leiden University have each been awarded a Starting Grant by the European Research Council (ERC). This grant, worth up to two million euros, gives researchers the opportunity to head up a research team for five years.

String theory has come under fire in recent years. Promises have been made that have not been lived up to. Leiden theoretical physicists have now for the first time used string theory to describe a physical phenomenon. Their discovery has been reported this week in 'Science'.

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

Physicists at Leiden University are developing smart chips that can be programmed with light. These chips are more energy-efficient than traditional chips because they do not require a constant power supply. For this research, they will receive funding in the coming years from the Dutch Research Council…