Kammrath & Weiss has been actively involved in the working group “In situ 2D und 3D Charakterisierung” at the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM) in Berlin since its foundation in November 2013. As a founding member, the company regularly contributes to the annual meetings with technical presentations and has already supported them several times as a venue.

Around 70 participants from science and industry accepted the invitation to Schwerte. In addition to numerous long-standing members – for example, from RWTH Aachen University, TU Dresden, TU Dortmund, and TU Bergakademie Freiberg – new interested parties also presented their research topics. Industrial companies from the fields of electron microscopy (e.g., TESCAN) or related analysis techniques (e.g., Chemnitzer Werkzeugmechanik GmbH) also contributed to the success of the event with their presentations. At times, up to 20 participants took advantage of the opportunity to follow the conference online via the Zoom platform provided by the DGM.

A total of 19 presentations were given, covering a wide range of topics – from thermal and mechanical experiments in the scanning electron microscope to new manufacturing techniques for micro-sample geometries, methods of digital image correlation, and in situ synchrotron experiments. The materials examined ranged from steels and magnesium alloys to ceramics and shape memory alloys.

A particular highlight was the contribution from the Electron Microscopy Museum Nuremberg e.V., which is currently under construction. Ms. Brigitte Bochtler, a member of the association's board, presented the current status of the exhibition and highlighted the opportunities the museum offers to inspire the public's enthusiasm for science in general and electron microscopy in particular. The educational program for schoolchildren in particular is already attracting a great deal of interest. The aim is to complete and open the museum by 2031 – the 100th anniversary of electron microscopy. In keeping with this, it was agreed that the 18^th meeting of the working group in 2031 would take place in Nuremberg in the museum, which will then be open.

The venue for the next meeting has already been decided: at the invitation of Prof. Daniel Kiener, the working group will meet at the Montanuniversität Leoben on 21 – 22 September 2026, immediately prior to the 60 ^th Materialography Conference.

We would like to express our sincere thanks to all speakers and participants for their enthusiastic contributions, to the DGM for realizing the hybrid event format, and to the entire Kammrath & Weiss team for the excellent organization and execution of the meeting.

PD Dr.-Ing. habil. Anja Weidner
Technische Universität Bergakademie Freiberg

Information on all expert committees can be found on the DGM website at dgm.de/en/network.

If you are interested in actively participating in one of the committees, please send us a short email to fachgremiendgm.de.