From April 13 to 16, 2026, the NFDI consortia MatWerk and FAIRmat hosted the research data management (RDM) Spring School at FAU Erlangen–Nuremberg. The event attracted participants from across Germany and provided an engaging learning environment, making it a great success.

The students showed a keen interest and enthusiasm for learning how to manage their research data in a way that aligns with the FAIR principles. They were engaged throughout the presentations and actively participated in the hands-on sessions, creating a dynamic and interactive atmosphere.

The program covered the basics of RDM, including key concepts, the FAIR data principles, and the application of AI/ML methods in materials science. Participants got to learn about the NFDI activities and tried out some tools developed within FAIRmat and MatWerk, like NOMAD, NOMAD CAMELS, PASTA ELN, and Coscine.

The FAIRmat team offered the "Getting Started with NOMAD" tutorial, during which participants learned how to upload, structure, share, and publish both experimental and computational data within NOMAD.

A particular highlight was the hands-on session in the electronics lab at FAU. Here, participants experienced a complete end-to-end research data workflow: from performing real measurements using NOMAD CAMELS, to generating structured data with rich metadata, and automatically transferring them into NOMAD Oasis. Then, they explored how to analyze the data within NOMAD using NORTH and document results within the NOMAD ELN. This demo showed how the NOMAD ecosystem can handle the whole research data lifecycle, from data acquisition to analysis and preservation.

In addition, participants visited the Interdisciplinary Center for Nanostructured Films (IZNF) at FAU, gaining insight into real-world research environments where large-scale data are generated and managed.

The spring school wrapped up with a session on artificial intelligence and machine learning, with a focus on the importance of managing research data effectively to support machine-readable, data-driven science.

A new publication in Nature Catalysis, "Enabling open and FAIR catalysis data with standardized data structures", highlights FAIRmat’s work on making catalysis data more open, structured, and reusable. The paper presents the concept and implementation behind the NOMAD Catalysis App, a web-based application that enables researchers to share, explore, and analyze catalysis data in a FAIR-compliant way, and provides a foundation for AI-driven discovery of more efficient and sustainable catalysts.

The work was carried out within FAIRmat with major contributions from Dr. Julia Schumann and scientific leadership by FAIRmat Principal Investigator Dr. Annette Trunschke. The collaboration brings together researchers from the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, and the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin.

Released last summer, the NOMAD Catalysis App is integrated into the central NOMAD platform, and is available as a NOMAD plugin that can be installed on self-hosted NOMAD Oasis deployments. It allows researchers to explore catalysis datasets through an interactive interface. Users can search and filter data by parameters such as reactants and products, synthesis method, catalyst form, and reaction conditions. Data can be uploaded both manually and automatically via the API. The authors developed schemas, i.e., data structures, for typical datasets in catalysis. Furthermore, they designed Excel spreadsheet templates that can be directly parsed and allow users to enter their data in a format that is familiar to most researchers.

A key advantage of the app is its data visualization feature. Some plots are predefined, but users can also create their own graphical representations.

The publication marks an important milestone for FAIRmat and the catalysis research community. It shows how digital research infrastructures and standardized metadata can help make catalysis data more reproducible, interoperable, and ready for data-driven research.

The Catalysis App supports the exchange of catalysis data and lays important groundwork for future AI-driven analytics. At the same time, its value depends on active use by the community. Researchers are therefore encouraged to explore the tool, test its capabilities, and contribute data and feedback to help develop the application further and ensure that it continues to meet the evolving needs of researchers.

For full documentation, including installation, usage, and functionality, visit NOMAD Catalysis Plugin Documentation.

FAIRmat II has been recommended for funding by the NFDI Expert Committee. This recommendation marks an important milestone for the consortium and acknowledges both the progress achieved in the current funding phase and the strength of the proposal for the next period.

Over the past years, FAIRmat has developed a comprehensive digital infrastructure for FAIR data in condensed matter physics and the chemical physics of solids. This includes the development of tools and services, the establishment of metadata standards, and the support of a growing and active research community.

The positive evaluation reflects the collective effort of all contributors across the consortium and partner institutions. Their work has been central to advancing FAIR data practices and building a sustainable ecosystem for materials science.

FAIRmat would like to thank all members of the community, collaborators, and partners for their continuous support and contributions.

Last week, the FAIRmat team took part in the Spring Meeting of the Condensed Matter Section of the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft (DPG). From March 8 to 13, 2026, thousands of participants from Germany and beyond gathered at Technische Universität Dresden to exchange ideas and discuss the latest developments in condensed matter physics.

FAIRmat was represented throughout the program, with contributions from several Areas presenting recent advances in NOMAD. The talks highlighted how NOMAD supports FAIR research data management across both computational materials science and experimental research.

A particular highlight was the Hacky Hour session on Thursday morning, where participants explored hands-on applications of NOMAD, from publishing datasets and using electronic lab notebooks to controlling experiments with NOMAD CAMELS.

As in previous years, FAIRmat joined forces with DAPHNE4NFDI to host a shared information booth at the exhibition for scientific instruments and literature. The strong interest from the community and the many engaging discussions once again underlined the growing importance of research data management.

We thank the organizers for an inspiring event and are already looking forward to the next DPG Spring Meeting in our home city of Berlin!

On February 18, 2026, the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina welcomed its newly elected members at a special ceremony in Halle. We are proud to announce that Prof. Claudia Draxl, FAIRmat’s spokesperson and Einstein Professor of Physics at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, received her official membership certificate.

The FAIRmat community warmly congratulates Prof. Draxl on this outstanding achievement, which highlights her significant scientific contributions to condensed-matter theory, computational materials science, and the advancement of data-centric approaches in materials research. Her election to the Leopoldina recognizes both her scientific excellence and her commitment to strengthening the foundations of open science. Through her leadership at FAIRmat, she advances transparent and reusable research data practices, enabling scientists worldwide to collaborate more effectively and accelerate innovation in materials research.

The 8th edition of the FAIRmat newsletter is now available for download. The past six months have brought lots of exciting developments. Here is a glimpse of what you will find in this issue:

• The FAIRmat infrastructure: Lauri Himanen on the release of NOMAD version 1.4.0 and the alpha launch of the new graphical user interface.
• Project milestones: an updated scaling overview and new NeXus standards for a wide range of materials-science experiments.
• Project news: submission of the FAIRmat renewal proposal to the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) and the launch of the FAIRmat spin-off Glaide Data GmbH.

In addition, the issue features user and expert interviews, an opinion article, and further insights from across the consortium.

You can read and download the full newsletter via the link below.

Last week, the FAIRmat team joined Love Data Week 2026, an international initiative promoting the value of good data management practices. This year’s theme, "Where’s the Data?", inspired a series of engaging online events from February 9 to 13.

The week kicked off with the workshop "Challenges in Data Reusability", co-hosted with DAPHNE4NFDI and the Helmholtz Metadata Collaboration (HMC). Participants explored common challenges in making research data reusable and discussed strategies to overcome them.

On February 10, Siamak Nakhaie led a coffee talk titled "19M+ FAIR Data Entries and Growing – How NOMAD is Transforming Physics and Materials Research", highlighting the NOMAD platform’s role as a free, community-driven resource for experimental and computational materials data.

Throughout the week, FAIRmat also ran a dedicated social media series answering the question "Where’s the Data in NOMAD?" and showcasing what happens to the data once uploaded to the platform. Check out our LinkedIn page for more information.

Let’s keep the spirit of Love Data Week alive and continue strengthening FAIR data practices together all year round!

The recordings of the talks from the Seventh FAIRmat Users Meeting, held on November 20, 2025, are now available online. The full playlist features the following contributions:

• FAIRmat and NOMAD: Recent Updates and Emerging Use Cases – José A. Márquez
• NOMAD Data Management Workflow for Multidimensional Time-Resolved Photoemission Data – Laurenz Rettig
• NOMAD Oasis for the Solid-State NMR Community – Sathya Sai Seetharaman
• FAIR Data Management for Fabrication Processes. A Plugin as Implemented at CNR-IFN@TN – Matteo Bontorno
• Extending NOMAD with Plugin and Metadata Support for EPR, NMR, and EFG – Cecilia Zagni
• Seamless Data to Discovery: Digitalizing Electrocatalysis with NOMAD – Carla Terbove and Marcel Risch

Subscribe to the FAIRmat and NOMAD YouTube channel to stay informed about newly published recordings.

Last week, the FAIRmat community gathered for the seventh semi-annual Users Meeting – a key event for scientists and data stewards in physics, chemistry, and materials science who are committed to advancing research data management (RDM) and accelerating scientific discovery.

The morning session featured presentations by NOMAD users and collaborators, demonstrating the versatility of NOMAD and its ability to adapt to diverse research needs. Recordings of the talks will soon be available on our YouTube channel:

• NOMAD Data Management Workflow for Multidimensional Time-Resolved Photoemission Data – Laurenz Rettig (Fritz Haber Institute)
• NOMAD Oasis for the Solid-State NMR Community – Sathya Sai Seetharaman (Science and Technology Facilities Council, UK)
• FAIR Data Management for Fabrication Processes. A Plugin as Implemented at CNR-IFN@TN – Matteo Bontorno (SISSA)
• Extending NOMAD with Plugin and Metadata Support for EPR, NMR, and EFG – Cecilia Zagni (eXact lab s.r.l.)
• Seamless Data to Discovery: Digitalizing Electrocatalysis with NOMAD – Carla Terbove (HZB) and Marcel Risch (HZB)

In the afternoon, two hands-on workshops introduced participants to getting started with NOMAD, structuring data, and using NOMAD in different roles. Topics covered everything from basic GUI functions to plugin development and NOMAD Oasis administration.

The event concluded with the Users-Meet-Developers exhibit, where participants showcased their RDM workflows, plugins, custom schemas, data analysis tools, and other tailored solutions. The session created a dynamic space for exchange, collaboration, and inspiration.

We look forward to welcoming you to the next Users Meeting in summer 2026 – and stay tuned for more exciting events to come!

Last week, FAIRmat participated in the MADICES 2025 workshop, an event that brought together leading initiatives in materials data infrastructure and computational science. The meeting served as a vibrant forum for discussing how different projects across Europe can collaborate to make research data more interoperable, reusable, and aligned with FAIR principles.

Representing FAIRmat, Dr. Joseph Rudzinski co-organized the event and gave an overview of interoperability features within the NOMAD platform, highlighting ongoing developments that connect experimental and computational workflows through flexible routes to FAIR data provenance storage.

In the workshop’s breakout sessions, participants explored practical strategies for bridging diverse electronic laboratory notebooks (ELNs) and research data management (RDM) systems. The discussions led to two new NOMAD plugin prototypes demonstrating how data from different sources can be integrated via common exchange formats – an important step toward transparent, reproducible research across scientific communities.

Beyond the technical progress, MADICES 2025 reinforced the shared vision that collaboration between infrastructures is essential for building a connected and sustainable research data ecosystem. The workshop concluded with a roadmap for continued cooperation between the participating consortia, ensuring that tools like NOMAD remain at the forefront of open, interoperable data management.