Young children meet the big kids: On October 3, 2025, the Department Physics and Astronomy opened its doors to 70 young guests and their parents.
"Door-Opener Day with Die Maus" is a nationwide event organized by WDR, which this year had the theme “PlayTime.” On this day, companies and institutions open their doors to young Die Maus fans to offer an exciting glimpse into their working world. The Department Physics and Astronomy participated as an organizer for the eighth time to spark children’s and teenagers’ interest in physics and to let them experience the diversity of the subject in a playful way.
From "Ice Magic" to "Bubble Rocket"
Through our colorful, hands-on program, visitors got a glimpse into our labs and learned about many of the questions that occupy us as physicists. The children and teens were divided into six groups, each with a slightly different program tailored to their age. The stations were adapted for three age groups: 4 to 7 years, 8 to 10 years, and 11 to 16 years. The young visitors were able to participate in various exciting workshops. In “Ice Magic with Liquid Nitrogen,” they experienced how liquid nitrogen freezes flowers and how it can be used to conjure up delicious ice cream. In “Adventure in the Night Sky,” they made star charts, colored in constellations, and used a home planetarium to find their way around the starry sky. A special highlight was the “Star Journey Powered by Fizz,” where they built their own fizzy rockets and launched them from a launch pad. In the “Colors of the Rainbow” workshop, they explored the spectral lines of element lamps using paper spectroscopes. In the “Plasma Workshop,” the older children learned how to apply coatings using a sputter coater and how to measure layer thickness, transmission, and conductivity. Additionally, in the “Experiments with Water” workshop, they were able to explore the properties of water in a playful way.
Lecture Hall Show: A Feast for the Senses
All visitors were treated to an exciting lecture hall show that perfectly embodied the “PlayTime” theme. In addition to fascinating experiments like the “Whirlwind in a Glass Box” and the “Spray-Painting Refrigerator,” the show also explored music and sound waves. The children were able to experience how sound waves are created and how various instruments work. To wrap things up, the experiment “Shaun the Sheep in Sticky Fever” vividly demonstrated how adhesive forces cause molecules of different substances to stick together.
“When I grow up, I want to come back.”
Our physics student council did an excellent job of providing visitors with coffee, juice, and delicious snacks. Overall, we were very pleased with the positive feedback from the participants. For example, one young visitor summed it up this way: “When I grow up, I want to come back. It was a lot of fun!” We’d like to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who helped—the student council, the workshop and group leaders, everyone who supported us with organization or by donating cakes, the Alfried Krupp Student Science Lab for providing its facilities, and the Wilhelm and Else Heraeus Foundation for its financial support of the event.
To the picture gallery