How do colours form? How do displays (and some animals and plants) glow? And can colours be “measured”?

In this workshop, we draw inspiration from nature (such as fireflies and glowing mushrooms) and work with luminescent materials that emit light. Once stimulated, these materials glow in various colours that we can mix and use further. We conduct various experiments, sometimes as chemists, sometimes as a light jockey (LJ). We are constantly driven by questions like: How does nature generate light? And with which materials and physicochemical processes can we create light ourselves using nanotechnology? We have access to tiny “nanocrystals,” the latest generation of luminescent materials developed at the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences at ETH Zurich. Like a light jockey, we will mix spectacular colours. And with the eye of a spectrometer, we will measure colours – for example, the wavelength of your favorite colour.

How do colours form? How do displays (and some animals and plants) glow? And can colours be “measured”?

In this workshop, we draw inspiration from nature (such as fireflies and glowing mushrooms) and work with luminescent materials that emit light. Once stimulated, these materials glow in various colours that we can mix and use further. We conduct various experiments, sometimes as chemists, sometimes as a light jockey (LJ). We are constantly driven by questions like: How does nature generate light? And with which materials and physicochemical processes can we create light ourselves using nanotechnology? We have access to tiny “nanocrystals,” the latest generation of luminescent materials developed at the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences at ETH Zurich. Like a light jockey, we will mix spectacular colours. And with the eye of a spectrometer, we will measure colours – for example, the wavelength of your favorite colour.