International appreciation of the results has been achieved by the efforts and activities in low temperature physics in Jena that has progressed at a relatively rapid rate from its beginning in the late 1960s until today. These results range from the extension of the scope of knowledge acquisition, for example, with SQUIDs or in biomagnetism over new materials or material combinations, such as HTS and devices on the basis of HTS, to essentially simplified arrays of cooling units. Recently, new advances have been made in the highly topical field of quantum computing.

The pace of progress was essentially determined by taking calculable risks. Prior to the own provision of helium, the helium was transported from Dresden to Jena. Before lithographic methods could be used, microbridges had been scratched under the microscope. Before an expensive magnetically shielded room could be used, a small µ-metal shielding had been used; and the today´s usual way of measuring in unshielded environment by means of second order gradiometers was already followed in the early 1980s.

The internal and external readiness for co-operation was the essential key to success. Finally, we often tried to cross traditional lines between basic research and applied research and technology at the institutes of universities up to the 1980s and treated those three aspects as a whole. We just did the same in our field of activity as was usual in the collectives of industry long ago, especially in the Zeiss works.