The crowds were huge. Last Saturday, October 28, a total of 17 cultural and educational institutions and churches in the city of Zittau welcomed hundreds of visitors to the 7th Zittau Culture Night. The Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences was once again at the start with a special offer.

Under the title "KLANG SPANNUNG LICHT" , the high-voltage hall in Zittau (Haus Z V) was bathed in a very special light at 7:30 pm and 9:00 pm with experimental live music and high-voltage electrical experiments.

"Arrive early to secure the best seats." True to this motto, the first guests took their seats in the gallery of the high-voltage hall three quarters of an hour before the start of the first performance. A good decision, as the stands filled up very quickly so that the first presentation could start on time.

The event was hosted by Prof. Stefan Kornhuber, Head of the Department of High Voltage Technology. He was supported by numerous members of staff. In two runs, the interested visitors were able to experience technology, music and experiments in various colorful facets.

Playpad Circus in the person of Christian Fischer created an extraordinary electrifying atmosphere with his electronic beats, rousing rhythms and unusual sound fusions, which were perfectly highlighted by Philipp Kappl's projections. The experiments carried out by the high-voltage technology team perfectly matched the artistic performance, so that the "art of electrons" could be experienced with almost all the senses. 

Well done to the homeowner who installed a lightning conductor. The team around the technical director, Porf. Stefan Kornhuber, fierily demonstrated the necessity of Benjamin Franklin's invention in their demonstrations, while fascinating the audience with so-called Lichtenberg figures. These are aesthetically pleasing tree- or star-shaped patterns that are created as a result of electrical high-voltage discharges on insulating materials and made the darkened high-voltage hall glow.

Many visitors came, some from far away, to see the university's electrifying cultural contribution. Those who unfortunately could not get a free seat at the second demonstration took the opportunity to be guided through the large laboratory hall of the Department of Electrical Engineering in House Z I, which was open to the public that evening. The experimental demonstrations there also met with great interest.

Text: Cornelia Rothe

Contact

Prof. Dr. techn. Stefan Kornhuber

Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

High Voltage Engineering / Theoretical Electrical Engineering

Phone: 03583 612-4365

E-mail: s.kornhuber(at)hszg.de