The name HI-SCORE stands for “Hybrid Integrated Systems for Conversion of Solar Energy.” The scientists at this new research institute are working on projects such as solar cells based on organometallic perovskite or material systems for producing solar fuel. Such systems are able to convert the energy of sunlight into chemical energy so that it can be easily stored in the form of fuel.

HI-SCORE was founded by the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie (Berlin Helmholtz Center for Materials and Energy – HZB) in cooperation with the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, the Technion in Haifa as well as three Israeli universities and the universities in Berlin and Potsdam. As the new Helmholtz International Research School , the project’s basic funding comes from the Helmholtz Association, which in turn is itself funded by the German federal government and the German states. HI-SCORE is slated to start operations in February 2018 and will receive a budget of around 7 million euros over the next six years.

Not only research will take place at HI-SCORE – the center will be a training ground for scientists as well. Four students are already working on topics at the research institution at the HZB as part of a pilot project. Starting in February, another 30 research positions for doctoral students in Israel and Germany are to be filled.