SGK/SSCr: Schweizerische Gesellschaft für Kristallographie
In 2024, the Swiss Society for Crystallography (SSCr) consolidated their new initiatives aiming at improving education and access to hands-on experiences for young members and students of, mainly, Swiss institutions.
Our topical workshop aims at specific (and evolving) needs of the Swiss student community. After the inaugural workshop in 2023, it will from now on be organized every year in conjunction with the Annual Meeting, and, if possible, at the same venue. The 2024 workshop was held on September 11th at Switzerland Innovation Park (Basel), prior to our annual meeting at the same place. The topic was “Pair Distribution Function (PDF), Principles and Applications”. The main focus of the workshop was to provide an accessible and practical introduction to the principles and wide-ranging applications of the PDF technique. We received 40 registrations. The primary audience included postgraduate students, but the event also attracted senior scientists and professors, which led to valuable exchanges between newcomers and experienced researchers. The third edition in 2025 is already planned. It will be about computational methods in crystallography and will be held in Lausanne.
The Annual Meeting of the SSCr took place at the Switzerland Innovation Park (Basel) on September 12th, organized by Alessandro Prescimone (University of Basel) under the title “Polymorphism”. More than 80 participants, mainly from Switzerland, but also from the neighbouring countries as well as UK, Morocco and the Netherlands attended the meeting. The three invited speakers Dr. Birger Dittrich from Novartis AG, Basel, Dr. Peter Wood from CCDC, Cambridge, U.K., and Prof. Simon Parsons from the University of Edinburgh all gave fascinating talks, whose topics covered various aspects around the main them of polymorphism. Additional six speakers gave great insights into the fields of applied, biological and chemical crystallography. An exhibition by seven renowned companies and a tour of the electron diffraction facility of the company Eldico (corporate SSCr member) gave the participants the opportunity to discover the latest commercial developments in crystallography and adjacent areas. The presidency changed hands from Pascal Schouwink to Simon Grabowsky during the General Assembly of the Annual Meeting in Basel. The next Annual Meeting will take place in Lausanne in September 2025 under the title “Materials Discovery”.
There were two major crystallographic conferences in 2024 with a large participation of Swiss researchers: the European Crystallographic Meeting (ECM) in August 2024 in Padova, Italy, and the European Powder Diffraction Conference (EPDIC), which was organized at the same venue in succession of the ECM. During EPDIC in Padova, the SSCr placed a bid to host the next EPDIC in Switzerland in 2026, which was accepted. The conference will take place in Crans Montana, VS, in June 2026. The organizing committee has a large overlap with the board of SSCr, chaired by Dr. Pascal Schouwink (EPFL).
The SSCr was involved significantly in the Erice Crystallography School 2024, as co-director (Dubravka Sisak-Jung, board member of SSCr) and contributor as well as sponsor.
Two issues of the Society’s Newsletter: No. 111 and No. 112.
Topical Workshop on Pair Distribution Function (PDF), Principles and Applications (Switzerland Innovation Park, Basel, September 11th, 2024).
Annual Meeting of the Swiss Society for Crystallography (University of Basel, Switzerland Innovation Park, Basel, September 12th, 2024).
“Tips and Tricks for the Crystal Growth of Inorganic Materials”, Workshop organized by the SSCr’s Section of Crystal Growth and Technology. (Paul-Scherrer Institute, August 2024).
The Howard Flack Crystallographic Lecture series 2024 had to be cancelled on short notice.
The Swiss Society for Crystallography SSCr is an adhering body of the International Union of Crystallography, IUCr, represented in the General Assembly by its IUCr delegates Pascal Schouwink and Simon Grabowsky. A number of Swiss crystallographers are active members in IUCr Commissions.
The Swiss Society for Crystallography SSCr is part of the European Crystallographic Association, represented in its Council by Simon Grabowsky as delegate.
The Section for Crystal Growth and Crystal Technology (SCT) of the Swiss Society for Crystallography SSCr is member of the International Organisation for Crystal Growth (IOCG) and the European Crystallographic Association (ECA), represented by Enrico Giannini as delegate.
Two travel grants were awarded to young SSCr members in 2024 (500 CHF support for poster or workshops, 750 CHF support for oral).
Annelies Landuyt (ETH Zurich), 2024 MRS Spring Meeting, Seattle, U.S.A.
Jocelyn Pradegan (University of Fribourg), 45th International Conference on Coordination Chemistry (ICCC 45), Fort Collins, CO, USA.
Two issues of the Society’s Newsletter: No. 111 and No. 112.
Homepage at www.swiss-crystallography.ch.