The science manager at IKZ
Janet Zapke organises operations at the Leibniz Institute for Crystal Growth
When Janet Zapke went from Hamburg to Adlershof, it was the return to a landmark of her past. She has many memories connected to this place, memories of her time at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Of chemistry internships at laboratories in Adlershof that she completed as a biology student. And, last but not least, memories of swathes of undeveloped land that took up a significantly larger proportion of the site in the years between 2001 and 2006.
In October 2022, Zapke took up her position as administrative director of the Leibniz-Institut für Kristallzüchtung, IKZ, or Leibniz Institute for Crystal Growth. She is responsible for procurement, finance, personnel, facilities, building. In short: She makes sure operations run smoothly. This is not a “dull administrative position”. “Every day is different. I am putting out small fires every day.”
The IKZ is part of Adlershof’s early tradition. Having emerged from the “Technical Centre for Crystal Growth” at the Academy of the Sciences of former East Germany, it is now one of 96 research facilities under the umbrella of the Leibniz Association, which, due to its importance to the country as a whole, is funded in equal parts by the federal government and the governments of the German states. As a development and production site of crystalline materials, says Zapke, the IKZ is “unique in Germany, if not Europe,” and a sought-after partner in the industry.
“We also produce crystals in very small quantities that would not be available on the market otherwise,” she says. Crystals from Adlershof are used in chips manufacturing, found in laser devices, and are indispensable in all areas of photonics and electronics. In this way, the institute is contributing to more independence from foreign and insecure providers, an endeavour that has become known as “technology sovereignty”. “That’s the key term right now. Especially in this day and age with all that’s happening internationally, things simply have to move in this direction.”
The Leibniz Association has accompanied the now 42-year-old throughout much of her life. She calls herself a “product of Leibniz”. After studying biology, she completed her doctoral thesis at the Leibniz-Institute for Molecular Pharmacology (FMP) in Berlin-Buch. Later, she acquired a master’s in business administration as an additional qualification.
Thus equipped, she began working in the administration of the Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research in Bremen in 2012. One of her tasks there was to prepare the institution for the evaluation that Leibniz Institutes must undergo every 7 years and that determines the continuation of government funding. After six years, she moved from Bremen to Hamburg, not for Leibniz Institute this time, but the Jugend forscht Foundation. This was a job that seemed tailor-made for her.
“I was brought up by parents that were very concerned with achievement and advancement,” says Zapke, who, growing up in today’s Saxony-Anhalt, lived through enough of the pre-school and school system of former East Germany to be “shaped” by the experience. Working with young, enthusiastic young researchers is close to her heart. As a sponsoring company of Jugend forscht, WISTA Management GmbH hosts the regional competition for Berlin South in Adlershof. Zapke volunteers as a member of the biology jury. She is very happy, she says, “to be able to seamlessly continue” this work for the foundation.
Dr. Winfried Dolderer for Adlershof Journal
Leibniz-Institut für Kristallzüchtung - Contact (ikz-berlin.de)