Essay

From the Past to the Future

G. Wegner

Synthetic polymers were portrayed a

mere curiosity by the leading organic

chemists. They were considered an

interesting but rather exotic play-

ground by physical chemists and

physics was barely interested in

materials which showed such a com-

plex and parameter dependent beha-

vior as were polymers available in the

years 1950–1970. And yet, polymers

had become a major field of growth

for the chemical industry worldwide

and increasing amounts of polymers –

frequently called ‘‘plastics’’ in a sim-

plifying and generalizing context –

were thrown into a seemingly unsa-

turable market. The reason was that

synthetic polymers had developed

into the growth engine for mass

production of advanced technology

products in rapidly growing markets

of the automotive, aero space, electro-

nics and packaging industries, just to

mention a few of the important areas.

In consequence, industry was in need

to find scientifically trained experts

and contacts to research groups who

could assist in understanding the

materials properties in response to

the ever growing complex requests of

the markets. This was particularly

true in Germany where the chemical

industry had become a major supplier

of polymer materials for the world

market in the late 1970s.

The landscape of academic research

in the field of polymers was rich but

extremely scattered into small and

highly specialized individual groups

at the time. It was felt by the scientific

community that the critical mass was

lacking to bring the field of polymer

science to a similar level of compe-

tence, international competitiveness

Macromol. Rapid Commun. 2009, 30, 649–652

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and excellence as was seen for other

fields in Germany. This was the

background for deliberations started

by the Max Planck Society around

1978 which eventually led to the

foundation of the Max Planck Insti-

tute for Polymer Research on June 1st,

1983 by the Senate of the MPG.

The mission of the new Institute

was to carry out research in all fields of

polymer science with the aim to

explore and establish fundamental

insights into the properties of polymer

materials and their performance in the

context of the relevance of polymers

for the development of advanced tec-

hnologies. Moreover polymers were

understood to become a platform to

study complex behavior of matter in

very general terms. The latter req-

uested a strong contribution of theo-

retical physics and gave the stimulus

to develop the new Institute soon into

an internationally leading center for

‘‘soft-matter’’ research. This included

certain aspects conventionally covered

by biophysics and molecular biology,

where typical research questionnaire

centered around the nature and con-

eim

sequences of ‘‘molecular recognition’’

among alike and dislike macromole-

cules, biocompatibility of materials in

medicine and similar issues.

Professor Erhard W. Fischer and

Professor Gerhard Wegner were

appointed as the founding directors

representing physics and chemistry

of polymer materials. The campus of

the Johannes Gutenberg University

of Mainz was selected as the site of

the new institute in the light of an

expected close cooperation with both

the departments of chemistry and

physics.

In fact, Mainz had won a competi-

tion of several cities for the install-

ment of the new Institute, among

them Hamburg, Braunschweig, Bayr-

euth and Darmstadt. The option was

taken for Mainz in the light of the

excellent offer of the Johannes-Guten-

berg University for a building lot in

close neighborhood to the Mainz

Campus and for the reason that there

existed a strong research activity in

both polymer chemistry and physics.

A fertile ground for cooperations was

prospected. Moreover, Mainz was in

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650

geographical neighborhood to the

major industrial research and devel-

opment centers with which coopera-

tions were foreseen.

Scientific work at the institute

started in autumn of 1984 in tempor-

ary laboratories. At the same time,

Professor Hans Wolfgang Spiess was

appointed as a further director at the

institute to develop the field of poly-

mer spectroscopy. The fourth depart-

ment covering the area of synthetic

macromolecular chemistry was estab-

lished by Professor Klaus Mullen at the

end of 1989. In 1993, Professor Wolf-

gang Knoll joined the institute as a

director for surface science of polymer

materials. In 1995 the originally

intended number of six departments

was completed with the appointment

of Professor Kurt Kremer as the director

of the institute’s Theory Department.

Professor Erhard W. Fischer retired

from his official duties in 1997 and

holds an emeritus status at the

institute. In 2002 Professor Hans-

Jurgen Butt succeeded him as director

of the institute’s Polymer Physics

Department.

Additionally, two external mem-

bers of the Max Planck Society,

Professor Kurt Binder, theoretical

physicist at the University of Mainz,

and Professor George Fytas, chemist

and director at F.O.R.T.H. and the

University of Heraklion, Crete, Greece

were appointed by the President of

the Society.

When Professor Gerhard Wegner

retired in February 2008, his position

was endowed to Professor Katharina

Landfester. She was firmly installed in

September 2008. Her department was

renamed as ‘‘Physical Chemistry of

Polymers’’.

The institute is located at the edge

of the campus of the University of

Mainz on its own premises since 1988,

when the first part of the present set

of buildings was completed. Exten-

sions to adopt to the growing number

of staff, instrumentation, and scien-

tist activities became available at the

end of 1990 and in early 1998. A

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further building to accommodate

the strong Theory group and give

more space to NMR-facilities and

academic support forces was finished

late 2007. The available laboratory

space including mechanical, electrical,

and electronic workshops amounts

to roughly 6,000 m2. There is also a

conference center with a lecture

hall that seats an audience of more

than 400 people, lecture and seminar

rooms, a library, and a small cafeteria.

Science at the institute was to be

organized in research projects in

which scientists of different groups

and of different expertise interact

with each other, with students, and

with visiting scholars. From the very

beginning the mission statements

included that the Institute should

develop and perform as a platform

to give young scientists the chance to

become independent in fields relevant

to the overall scientific goals of the

Institute. Besides training of doctoral

students in cooperation with the

local university but also other inter-

national universities postdoctoral

research associates were attracted to

the Institute and installed as project

leaders for a limited number of years.

They were given the chance to build

their own research groups with the

understanding that they would con-

tribute to the well-defined portfolio of

the Institute for the time of their

membership to the Institute. This

policy has been academically most

successful in raising highly qualified

academics which have spread poly-

mer science research and teaching at

the professorial level not only across

German universities but also inter-

nationally.

The scientific objectives of the

institute as a whole are directed to

synthesis of macromolecular systems

and their exact structural character-

ization as to the development and

application of new methods to reveal

and understand the relationships

between microscopic and macro-

scopic properties and functions of

polymer materials. Besides the analy-

eim

sis of already technically relevant

polymers, new materials with uncon-

ventional properties are made and

investigated for their functional prop-

erties. A number of new experimental

and theoretical methods have been

developed since the institute came to

life which serve towards a better

understanding of structure property

relationships and have helped to gain

a quantitative theoretical description

of polymer systems. Work at the

institute thus contributes signifi-

cantly to the advancement of poly-

mer-based technologies.

Major research topics include

� S

ynthetic macromolecular chem-

istry (new synthetic methods,

polymers with unconventional

structures, systems of selective

functionality, e.g. electronic or

ionic conductivity, polyelectro-

lytes, hybrid polymers containing

organic, inorganic or biological

components)

� S

tructure and dynamics of macro-

molecular systems with special

emphasis on polymer theory

� T

hermodynamics, phase transi-

tions, and critical phenomena

(including the physics of polymer

blends, block copolymers, and glass

transition phenomena)

� S

urface and interface science of

polymers

� S

upramolecular architectures of

macromolecules (stiff macromole-

cules, liquid crystalline polymers,

model membranes, ultrathin films,

polymers at surfaces)

� N

anoscopic structures, their self-

assembly and function

� S

pecial physical properties (electri-

cal and electrooptic phenomena,

nonlinear optics, deformation beha-

vior of glassy polymers, surface

properties)

� M

ethodological developments

(solid-state NMR spectroscopy, EPR

spectroscopy, mass spectrometry,

dielectric spectroscopy, nonlinear

optics, surface plasmon optics, scan-

ning probe microscopy, i.e. STM,

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From the Past to the Future

AFM, and SNOM, scattering meth-

ods including, neutron and X-ray

reflectometry, light-scattering and

chromatography methods for the

characterization of polymer solu-

tions, computer-based simulations)

The institute has maintained a

large activity in research projects

supported by sources other than the

Max Planck Society including direct

interactions with interested national

and global industry ever since it was

founded.

The institute is considered as a

national and international center of

scientific and academic training ever

since it was founded. It rapidly grew

to be a leading place in Europe for the

training of graduate students in all

polymer related fields except polymer

engineering and processing.

Along these lines, the institute is

home to the ‘‘International Max

Planck Research School for Polymer

Material Science’’ (IMPRS-PMS) and it

hosts the European fellowship pro-

gram Early Stage Research Training

(EST) ‘‘Analytical Methods in the

Development of Science and Technol-

ogy of Polymers’’. In 2008 it won a

national competition for excellence

in graduate research training and

was awarded with special support

together with the departments of

chemistry and physics of the local

university (‘‘MAINZ’’). All these means

allow the Institute to attract and

select the very best students for its

graduate research and training activ-

ities across Europe. In consequence

the Institute hosted constantly ca. 150

graduate research students per year in

its premises.

More than 660 doctoral theses have

been completed since 1984 based on

research work carried out in the

institute, frequently in close coopera-

tion with the departments of Chem-

istry and Physics of the University of

Mainz and (external) members of

university institutes. Former gradu-

ates from the institute are found

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throughout German and European

industry in leading positions.

Similarly, the very active program

in postdoctoral training of interna-

tional scientists has led to a situation

that many of the former research

associates hold now chaired academic

positions internationally, including

the United States and Canada, Japan,

and Europe. Over the last two decades

the institute has typically hosted fifty

to sixty post-doctoral research associ-

ates per year.

Among the former research staff

scientists (‘‘project leaders’’), approxi-

mately forty gained the habilitation

or similar qualifications while work-

ing with the institute and hold now

professorships at German or European

universities, in the USA, Canada or in

Asia.

The strong connection with the

University of Mainz is not only

reflected in the considerable number

of graduated students who are work-

ing with the institute but are regis-

tered with the University’s Biology,

Chemistry and Physics Departments,

but is also manifested by cooperative

research projects.

Noteworthy is the joined activity

in the DFG supported center of

excellence (Sonderforschungsbereich)

‘‘From Single Molecules to Nanoscopic

Structured Materials’’ (SFB 625). An

additional center of excellence is

concerned with ‘‘Structured Colloidal

Media’’ (Transregio SFB) including

further academic institutions in Ger-

many in addition to the University of

Mainz.

The important role of nanosciences

and nanotechnology is marked by

an integrated EU project entitled

‘‘NAIMO’’. Structural and dynamical

properties are also central to the

renewed German-French special

research grant ‘‘LEA’’ between the

Institute Charles Sadron, Strasbourg,

and our institute (‘‘Macromolecules in

Nanoscopically Structured Media’’).

The short history of the institute is

rich of scientific developments which

nucleated from here or were at least

eim

significantly influenced by contribu-

tions from this place. Most note-

worthy is the foundation of modern

interest in surface science of poly-

meric materials which started here in

the mid-eighties when the institute

organized a national research project

on ‘‘Ultrathin Layers of Polymers -

‘UDS’ as Novel Materials in Optics,

Electronics, and Biomedicine.’’ Simi-

larly, modern interest in the phenom-

ena related to the glassy state of

polymers and organic materials

started here with the foundation of

a now terminated ‘Center of Excel-

lence (SFB)’. The contributions to the

methodology of NMR spectroscopy

which are key to today’s knowledge

on the dynamical properties of poly-

mers need to be mentioned as well.

Contributions to the synthetic meth-

odology, notably in the area of poly-

conjugated and all-aromatic macro-

molecules were basic to further

significant work concerning uncon-

ventional electrical and optical

including nonlinear optical properties

of polymers. More recently strong

computer simulation efforts in con-

junction with analytic theory comple-

ment the experimental activities lead-

ing to new joint developments.

Cooperation with industry has

always played an important role

and was significantly supported over

the years by the materials research

programs of the Federal Ministry of

Education and Research. In addition,

numerous direct interactions with

larger and smaller industries have

always been common and character-

istic for the institute’s research strat-

egy. The latter was based from the

very beginning of the institute on the

fact that the production, processing,

application, and technology of poly-

meric materials are rich sources of

most intriguing phenomena worth to

excite scientific as well as academic

interest.

For the future we expect the

institute to gain further strength from

its established interaction between

theory, method development in

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G. Wegner

652

characterization and feed back to the

design of innovative synthetic

approaches, all combined towards

even more complex macromolecular

structures and assemblies of both

synthetic and biological origin. The

original mission statement of the

institute namely to be an internation-

ally highly visible and nationally

leading center of modern research

on polymeric materials and thereby

be also a training center for experts in

this important field of industry and

advanced technology may for good

reasons continue to serve as a guiding

principle to the future.

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� 2009 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinh

The institute is particularly grateful

to J. Wiley-VCH-Publishers for dedica-

tion of a special issue of ‘‘Macromo-

lecular Rapid Communications’’ to the

occasion of the 25th anniversary of the

foundation of the Max Planck Insti-

tute for Polymer Research. The scien-

tific mission of the institute is ref-

lected in the 16 contributions to this

special issue. Each of the pertinent

research directions is addressed in the

reviews, feature articles and commu-

nications. The authors were invited as

to reflect the contribution of former

research associates to the develop-

ment of these general topics. They

eim

moved on to further highly visible

academic positions with universities

since then. As was pointed out earlier,

the very large number of former

associates to the institute who have

gained widespread acceptance with

their academic positions was much

too large to include a contribution

from everyone. Instead the board of

the directors had to choose just a few

in the attempt to mirror the breadth

of the topics and the impact on the

international scientific community.

DOI: 10.1002/marc.200900167