On 27 November 2025, the event Women in Quantum Physics. Yesterday – Today – Tomorrow took place at the Faculty of Physics. Around 60 students, researchers and lecturers from the faculty, as well as guests from other universities and international participants of a workshop at ESI, gathered in the faculty's Christian Doppler Lecture Hall to highlight and honour the contributions of women in quantum physics on the occasion of the International Year of Quantum Research.
After a welcome by Dean Stefan Fredenhagen, Brigitte Bischof, the faculty's diversity coordinator, spoke about how the story of the Vienna's physics faculty is closely interwoven with milestones of quantum physics. Notable examples include Nobel Prize winners Erwin Schrödinger and Anton Zeilinger, as well as Viennese physicist Marietta Blau, who this year was honoured as the namesake of an institute for particle physics at the Austrian Academy of Sciences, and of the Quantum Ground Station at Hafelekar.
Marietta Blau (1894-1970) worked at the Vienna Institute for Radium Research in the interwar period. She pioneered nuclear emulsion techniques and her innovations transformed particle detection and paved the way for future discoveries. She has faced many barriers that kept her from the positions and recognition she deserved. Nevertheless she was nominated for the Nobel Prize several times, including by Erwin Schrödinger.
The evening’s programme featured three lectures reflecting the themes Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow:
Andrea Reichenberger, philosopher and science historian, who is currently investigating the role of women in the history of quantum physics as part of a DFG project, addressed the question of why it is necessary to examine common narratives about the history of quantum physics and presented examples of women's contributions to the field.
Simone Rademacher, mathematical physicist and professor at the University of Mannheim starting in 2026, addressed the current situation of underrepresented groups in physics and presented the results of her analysis of diversity in mathematical physics based on registration data from the International Congress of Mathematical Physics over the past 10 years.
Francesca Ferlaino, quantum physicist, professor at the University of Innsbruck and director of the Institute for Quantum Optics and Quantum Information at the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW), shared her personal journey into quantum research and presented her initiative, the Platform Atom*innen.
Finally, there was a short joint closing session with the speakers, followed by informal exchanges over snacks and drinks, where key points were discussed further.
However, the exchange will not end at this point! Further opportunities to discuss the necessary measures and next steps to foster change and build a supportive community for all will follow.
The event was organised by the diversity coordinator of the Faculty of Physics. Thanks for their support go to the Dean's Office, the STV Physik – Roter Vektor and the lecture hall support team!
