The conference was dedicated to the topics of vacuum, plasma, surface and coating and was held under the motto "Sustainability, Resilience, Circular Economy". The V2025 once again provided a central platform for technologists, developers and users of surface and coating technology to exchange ideas.
The program included 90 specialist lectures, 65% of which were contributions from industry, as well as over 40 poster presentations from 17 nations - a new record. In the accompanying industrial exhibition, more than 60 exhibitors from 13 countries presented the entire spectrum of thin-film technology - from materials and equipment manufacturers to coating processes.
Among the highlights were the themed workshops, which covered many applications - from coatings for energy applications, tool coatings and hard materials to optical components, life science applications and sustainable concepts. In the IGF session "Innovation with Collaborative Research", joint industrial research projects were presented and demonstrated the transfer of science into practice.
Future topics in thin film and plasma technology addressed
The participants listened with interest to the opening keynote speech by Dr. Yilmaz Dikme (Element 3-5 GmbH) with his presentation "Next Level Epitaxy - Novel Growth Technique for Compound Semiconductors". Other contributions addressed future topics in the industry, including the circular economy in thin-film technology, sustainable packaging concepts, plasma technologies for chemical and environmental applications and novel approaches to low-carbon hydrogen production.
One highlight was the panel discussion "Navigating Sustainability, Resilience & Circular Economy", moderated by Prof. Christoph Herrmann. Dr. Nazlim Bagcivan (Schaeffler Technologies AG & Co. KG), Richard Kallee (G.P.A. Gesellschaft für Plasma Applikation mbH) and Dr. Ruben Wagner (GfE Fremat GmbH) took part in the panel discussion.
The tutorial "Sustainability in Surface Engineering", organized by the Fraunhofer FEP, attracted great interest with 30 participants. The focus on "Sustainability in surface engineering" was demonstrated during a tour of the technical center. The tutorial also provided the framework for the 25th anniversary of the Maxi plant, which is part of the application-oriented research at the Fraunhofer FEP.
Two prizes were awarded during the conference: The EFDS Award 2025 went to Dr. Phillip Reinders (IHI Ionbond Netherlands B.V.) and the Rudolf Jaeckel Prize 2025 of the German Vacuum Society (DVG) e. V. to Prof. Holger Kersten (Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel). Both awards recognize excellent scientific achievements and commitment to the further development of thin-film and plasma technologies.
V records a clear increase in international guests in 2025
With participants from 27 countries, almost 25% of them from Europe and around 5% from abroad, V2025 underlined its role as a forum for the surface, thin-film, vacuum and plasma technology community - with a further increase in the proportion of international guests. Prof. Udo Klotzbach, Managing Director of EFDS, draws a positive conclusion: "V2025 has shown how strongly the topics of sustainability, circular economy and resilience are shaping the surface industry - and how important European cohesion is in a time of change. In times of crisis, it was always the joint exchange and cooperation in the industry that made it possible to overcome challenges and emerge stronger."
Planning for V2027, which will take place in Dresden from October 11-14, 2027, will begin shortly. Further information and impressions of V2025 are available at www.efds.org/v2025