The Faculty of Archaeology is pleased to announce that Dr Sarah Schrader has been appointed as the new Head of the Department of Archaeological Sciences (DV). In April 2026 she succeeds Dr Jason Laffoon, who has led the department for the past six years.

Combine BPS research with different aspects of business studies. Learn to build bridges between science and business.

In Germany, the United States and even in Vietnam: all over the world, the Leiden discovery of the birth of two planets was shared. Astronomer Sebastiaan Haffert and his team were able to record multiple planets in the making for the first time and published their findings in Nature Astronomy. A unique…

NWO has assigned Physics Vrije Programma grants to five collaborations of physicists. Leiden University is involved in three of them.

The Leiden Institute of Physics (LION) is the coordinating partner in the Qluster research project, which was awarded a 2,9 million euro FET Open grant by the European Union. The three-year project, which started on 1 December 2019, aims to produce many photon entanglement to aid quantum communication…

Stefano Pollas master thesis 'Quantum Digital Cooling' has been awarded the Lorentz Master thesis award. The award, 3000 euros and a certificate, has been awarded on 25 November at the Koninklijke Hollandse Maatschappij van Wetenschappen (KHMW) society in Haarlem.

Physicist Jelmer Renema will spend two years conducting research at Oxford University in Great Britain funded by a Rubicon grant from NWO.

More than 700 visitors got to know the Science Faculty during the Leiden Science Family Day. People of all ages could enjoy fascinating experiments, tours, interesting lectures, spectacular nitrogen shows and various workshops. It was an informative day with many (future) scientists, amazement and,…

This year, two Leiden physicists have earned a prestigious ERC Starting Grant. With a budget of 1.5 million euros, this is one of the largest individual grants for scientists.

To be eligible for Astronomy at Leiden University, you must meet the following admission requirements.

To be eligible for Astronomy and Education at Leiden University, you must meet the following admission requirements.

Julia Cramer is the winner of NWO's Minerva Prize for 2017. Cramer will receive the prize for her research in the field of quantum science and technology.

In Leiden, light particles march into Wolfgang Löffler’s experiments one by one. His research focuses on acquiring the fundamental knowledge needed to develop quantum computers and networks.

PhD defence

PhD defence

PhD defence

PhD defence

To improve our teaching and reward excellent teaching assistants, the institute offers a Teaching Assistant Prize to the best teaching assistant of the semester.

Struinen in het historische centrum, de faculteit ontdekken en natuurlijk chillen aan het strand. Honderden eerstejaars leren in de HOP-week elkaar en hun nieuwe stad kennen. Voor veel studenten is de week een 'gamechanger'.

Smiling faces, a mass dance and a bit of awkwardness: after two ‘corona editions’ of EL CID, the Leiden introduction week is back with a vengeance this year. A total of 3,412 first-year students from Leiden University and University of Applied Sciences Leiden, accompanied by 486 mentors, started EL…

Five researchers from Leiden University have been awarded a Starting Grant by the European Research Council (ERC). This grant of on average 1.5m euros enables researchers who show potential to start their own project, lead a research team and implement their best ideas.

Thirty years ago, pioneers of the internet expected that this new technology would be a force for freedom, democracy, justice and peace. Yet today digital communications often involve human rights abuses, criminal activity, disinformation, gender-based violence, and cyber warfare. How can we turn these…

This header image was once elected Image of the Week by De Volkskrant and won second place in the LION Image Award. The research behind it is no less successful if we’re counting prizes. Last August, group leader Tjerk Oosterkamp was awarded an NWO Projectruimte grant, and now NWO-TTW grants him an…

Former PhD student Cameron Mackie will been awarded not one, but two dissertation prizes for his thesis on the aromatic universe. His work could provide us with a virtual sniff of space. ‘These molecules in space likely smell like a big charcoal grill!’

Three major research projects involving Leiden scientists have been awarded a grant from NWO’s Gravitation Programme. The projects are on innovation processes, organs-on-chips and quantum software.

Leiden students often prefer complicated theory and a difficult test to experiments. Yet associate professor Paul Logman believes students learn a lot from practical teaching. He challenges his students to come up with their research questions themselves. The Leiden Institute of Physics (LION) is at…

Measurements on a superconducting material show an abrupt transition between a normal metal and a 'strange' metal. The really strange thing, however, is that this abruptness disappears when the temperature falls. 'We don't have any theoretical machinery for this', says theoretical physicist Jan Zaanen,…

Can humans perceive single photons? What is our place in the universe? How can we make quantum computers more stable? Five researchers from the Faculty of Science have received funding for their research projects within the Dutch Research Agenda (NWA).

In 1925, two young physicists from Leiden University, George Uhlenbeck and Samuel Goudsmit, proposed a radical idea: spin. Their bold hypothesis quickly came to play a key role in physics and formed the basis for later breakthroughs in quantum mechanics. We are celebrating the anniversary of this discovery…

Twenty years from now, the world population is estimated to be around 9 billion people (now 8 billion). In combination with the improvements in living standards and the corresponding growth in consumption, this population will result in an enormous increase in the demand for food, consumables, water…

The Academy of Creative and Performing Arts (ACPA) of Leiden University and Art Institute West Den Haag are pleased to announce their close collaboration in the second season of the public series In the Making. This series, dedicated to the practice of research in the arts, will consist of seven public…

By detecting the tiny forces between a micrometer sized magnet and the spins of hydrogen nuclei, we can do MRI with a volume resolution that is approximately 12 orders of magnitude better than a conventional MRI.  

Are you in a position of talent coach, coordinator, mentor, dean, or teacher and looking for university programmes that provide an extra challenge for the students of your school? The Leiden University Honours Academy provides such a programme, where vwo-students from the final three years of high school…

We review the state-of-the-art in the theory of dissociative chemisorption (DC) of small gas phase molecules on metal surfaces, which is important to modeling heterogeneous catalysis for practical reasons, and for achieving an understanding of the wealth of experimental information that exists for this…

At Leiden Observatory, researchers investigate the origin of stars and their planetary systems. They detect and characterize planets around other stars (exoplanets). They study how stars and planets form. And they follow molecules from interstellar clouds to nascent planet systems. This way they address…

'Technology, law and justice' is one of Leiden Law School's four research focus areas.

The long term goal of the Biophysical Organic Chemistry/SSNMR group, headed by Prof. Huub de Groot, is to reach an understanding of structure, dynamics and functional mechanisms of membrane proteins and self-organized biological assemblies and to translate this knowledge into new concepts for nano-devices,…

Promotor: H.J.M. de Groot

LIACS is committed to inclusive work and study experiences, respectful of all students and staff, and free of discrimination, harassment, bullying, or retaliation. An inclusive and respectful atmosphere is vital to free expression and the open exchange of ideas.

The master’s specialisation Research in Theoretical Physics prepares you for a PhD position in theoretical physics. The research entails a broad range of topics including High Energy Physics and Particle Cosmology, Theoretical Physics of Life Processes and Condensed Matter Theory.

Your time at Leiden is about more than just studying. Some of your best experiences will stem from being a part of our lively and diverse student community, as well as from life in the beautiful city of Leiden.

Discover all the Leiden Science teaching talent that was part of this year's lineup.

Your time at Leiden is about more than just studying. Some of your best experiences will stem from being a part of our lively and diverse student community, as well as from life in the beautiful city of Leiden.

The War and Peace Studies track offers you a comprehensive understanding of the historical, theoretical, and practical dimensions of war and peace, while addressing the complex challenges of conflict and peacebuilding in the contemporary world.

Get to know us through our online and in-person events for prospective students!

Get to know us through our online and in-person events for prospective students!

Minims are letters that are made up of short, vertical pen strokes, such as 'm', 'i', 'n' and 'u'. In Gothic script, there is often little distinction between letters composed of minims. Assistant professor of medieval literature Krista Murchison has written an article in History Today on the hidden…

The discovery that eleven asteroids might collide with our Earth has become world news. The research of three Leiden astronomers has appeared on more than 190 news sites worldwide, from America to China. They developed and trained an artificial neural network for this discovery.