News and Pressroom

Erlangen, Germany: Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS and the Technical University of Dresden have tested a new approach for investigating disease-related changes in body odor. Using laser-based photoacoustic spectroscopy, they analyzed volatile organic compounds in simple body swabs. An initial study revealed differences between samples from healthy individuals and those from people with Parkinson’s disease, COVID-19, and other diseases. The results demonstrate the method’s potential for faster preliminary screenings in the future.

Erlangen/Munich, Germany: The Fraunhofer RISC-V Secure Element is now available as a licensable security platform for custom systems-on-chip (SoCs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), and chiplets. The silicon prototype has successfully completed functional validation. Based on this verified hardware foundation, companies can shorten development cycles, reduce technical risk, and implement security by design more effectively at the semiconductor level.

Fürth – The Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS has developed a software library for the automated analysis of 2D X-ray images of vehicle batteries as part of the AIR project. The technology enables the non-destructive assessment of mechanical abnormalities in battery systems, supporting both second-life applications and the safe handling of electric vehicles involved in accidents.

Erlangen/Nuremberg: AI has already found its way into many areas of work and everyday life. However, training modern AI models requires enormous computing resources, resulting in high energy consumption and significant CO₂ emissions. Reducing this demand through intelligent methods has therefore become a pressing priority. The QC-Train project team, consisting of infoteam Software AG, the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS, OptWare GmbH, and the associated partners DATEV and Schaeffler Technologies, is developing a quantum computing-based solution to significantly reduce emissions while simultaneously increasing the performance of training large foundation models. The project is funded under the Bavarian Collaborative Research Program “Digitalization” (BayVFP) of the Free State of Bavaria.

With the RISC-V Secure Element, the Fraunhofer Institutes for Integrated Circuits IIS, for Applied and Integrated Security AISEC, and for Electronic Microsystems and Solid State Technologies EMFT are introducing a security chip that was designed and manufactured in Germany. The design is based on transparent open-source hardware, integrates post-quantum cryptography, and can be used as a standalone chip or as a system-on-chip component. The goal is to offer companies a trustworthy and customizable trust anchor – with points of contact in the EU – for connected devices and to support them in meeting the requirements of the European Cyber Resilience Act (CRA).

Berlin – The Soofi consortium presents initial performance results for "Soofi S", the first building block of a European AI model family. The project, funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy as part of the IPCEI-CIS / 8ra initiative, aims to develop high-performance foundation models on European infrastructure, offering businesses, public administration, research institutions and start-ups a transparent alternative to non-European models.

Drone swarms can monitor progress on large construction sites, inspect remote offshore wind farms and search for survivors after natural disasters. When multiple drones are deployed, they generally are controlled centrally by mobile communications up to now. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS are working on a decentralized solution that is less susceptible to interference while at the same time ensuring greater flexibility.

In April 2026, the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS successfully demonstrated a broadband 5G NTN connection in the Ka-band frequency range via the geostationary (GEO) satellite Heinrich Hertz. A seamless handover between the two satellite beams of the German communications satellite was also achieved. The transmission and reception equipment, specially adapted for broadband transmission, was installed at the Fraunhofer IIS headquarters in Erlangen. The tests were conducted as part of the Heinrich Hertz mission, led by the German Space Agency at the German Aerospace Center (DLR).

Professor Dieter Seitzer passed away on April 12 at the age of 92. As a professor at Friedrich Alexander Universität Erlangen Nürnberg (FAU) and founding director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS, Seitzer shaped microelectronics research in Erlangen and beyond and laid the foundation for the world-renowned mp3 format.

Nuremberg/Wien/Munich/Noordwijk(NL): The European Galileo satellite navigation system has become a crucial cor-nerstone for global positioning services. As increasingly demanding use cases emerge the need for reliable and highly accurate positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) services in space continues to grow. The European Space Agency (ESA), on behalf of the European Commission and under the Horizon Europe programme, has awarded a contract to the satellite navigation experts of Fraunhofer IIS – together with Beyond Gravity Austria GmbH, Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, and IABG mbH – to design and develop a first space-ready test prototype for the Galileo Public Regulated Service (PRS). This secure test space receiver STACIE could support institutional and governmental space missions and applications of the European Union member states.