The Zuse Institute Berlin welcomes the participants of the 2026 Graduate-Level Research in Industrial Projects for Students (G-RIPS) summer program. From June to August, international graduate students from the USA and Europe will work in interdisciplinary teams on research projects that combine mathematical and computational methods with practical challenges from industry and applied science.
Organized by ZIB in collaboration with the Institute for Pure and Applied Mathematics (IPAM) at UCLA (USA) and embedded in the Research Campus MODAL at ZIB, the program offers an intensive research experience at the interface of academic research, advanced scientific computing, and application-oriented problem solving.
The three 2026 projects address current challenges in energy storage, biomedical image analysis, and medical technology:
- Green energy storage and reactor optimization: Identification and optimization of chloride storage from green power, focusing on simulation, parameter identification, and optimal control for chemical reactor systems. The project explores how mathematical modeling and numerical optimization can contribute to more efficient storage concepts for fluctuating renewable energy.
- Foundation models for cryo-electron tomography: Task-specific foundation models for cryo-electron tomography, developing deep learning methods for particle picking, membrane segmentation, and domain adaptation in cryo-ET data analysis. The project aims to adapt foundation-model approaches to specific steps in biological image analysis and to improve their robustness across synthetic and experimental data.
- Geometric modeling for medical image registration: Mathematical models of deformation and articulation in model-to-image registration, investigating deformable 2D-3D geometric registration for orthopedic analysis. The project studies how geometric modeling and constrained optimization can support the interpretation of patient-specific anatomical structures from clinical imaging data.
Throughout the program, participants will apply advanced mathematical and computational methods to demanding real-world problems. The program fosters international collaboration, connects students with academic mentors and application partners, and provides a platform for developing research ideas with practical impact.
We look forward to the results and insights that will emerge from this year’s projects and to welcoming another cohort of talented young researchers to ZIB.
