More than 250 researchers from around the world gathered to share insights and explore emerging trends
An international audience of more than 250 participants came together in Berlin from September 23–26, 2025 to celebrate the 30th edition of PicoQuant’s renowned Single Molecule Workshop. Marking three decades of scientific exchange, the anniversary event brought together pioneers of the field, leading experts, and a new generation of researchers shaping the future of single-molecule science.
The program featured outstanding contributions from internationally recognized scientists, including Nobel Laureates Stefan W. Hell (Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences) and W.E. Moerner (Stanford University). Presentations covered recent advances in FLIM, smFRET, FCS/FLCS, and single molecule localization microscopy, alongside emerging approaches in machine learning and open-source data analysis.
Over four days, participants engaged in keynote lectures, invited and contributed talks, as well as lively poster sessions. Networking opportunities—including a festive anniversary dinner—provided a welcoming setting for discussion, collaboration, and reconnecting with colleagues across disciplines.
“The 30th workshop was an inspiring platform – shaped by exceptional expertise, lively exchange, and young talent. We thank all participants; together we are writing the next chapters in single molecule research.”
– Rainer Erdmann, CEO of PicoQuant
Invited Speakers
Guillermo Acuna
University of Fribourg (UNIFR), Switzerland
Thorben Cordes
TU Dortmund University, Germany
Christian Eggeling
Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany
Jörg Enderlein
University of Göttingen, Germany
Paul French
Imperial College London, UK
Maria Garcia-Parajo
ICFO, Barcelona, Spain
Viktorija Glembockyte
Max Planck Institute for Medical Research, Heidelberg, Germany
Taekjip Ha
Harvard Medical School (HMS), Boston, USA
Mike Heilemann
Goethe University Frankfurt, Germany
Stefan Hell (Key Note)
Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, Göttingen, Germany
Johan Hofkens
KU Leuven, Belgium
Jessica P. Houston
New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, USA
Madhavi Krishnan
University of Oxford, UK
Don Lamb
LMU Munich, Germany
W.E. Moerner (Key Note)
Stanford University, USA
Michel Orrit
Leiden University, The Netherlands
Aleksandra Radenovic
EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
Verena Ruprecht
Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona, Spain
Vahid Sandoghdar
Max Planck Society, Erlangen, Germany
Markus Sauer
University of Würzburg, Germany
Ben Schuler
University of Zurich, Switzerland
Petra Schwille
Max-Planck-Institute of Biochemistry, Martinsried, Germany
Claus Seidel
Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Germany
Sobhan Sen
Jawaharlal Nehru University,
New Delhi, India
Allison Squires
The University of Chicago, USA
Philip Tinnefeld
LMU Munich, Germany
Jerker Widengren
KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden
Paul Wiseman
McGill University, Montreal, Canada
Xiaoliang Sunney Xie
Peking University, China
Program
The program of the 30th Single Molecule Workshop 2025 is available for download as a PDF.
Student Award
Continuing a long-standing tradition, the workshop honored young researchers through the Best Student Talk Award, recognizing outstanding contributions to the field.
This year, the award and a prize of 500 EUR each went to:
🏆 Marie Reischke, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light,
with her talk on chip-based iSCAT microscopy under evanescent illumination
🏆 Rick Seifert, The Julius Maximilians University of Würzburg,
with his talk on correlative confocal and super-resolution imaging of the immunological CAR-T cell synapse
🏆 Philipp Gebauer, University of Konstanz
with his talk on investigating spectral fluctuations in the emission of halide-perovskite nanoparticles using heralded spectroscopy
Congratulations to all three winners for their outstanding contributions!
We’re excited to see where your research journeys take you next.
Since its launch in 1995, the Single Molecule Workshop has grown into one of the leading interdisciplinary events in the field, connecting researchers across physics, chemistry, biology, and materials science. The 30th anniversary edition not only celebrated this legacy but also highlighted the dynamic progress of the community—demonstrating that collaboration and innovation will continue to drive discoveries in single-molecule research for years to come.
Impressions
