PhD projects
On-going projects
Plant-derived polymer incorporation and turnover in soils under warming
PhD candidate: Erica Ceresa
UZH supervisor: Guido Wiesenberg
For more information click here
Plant and belowground traits as predictors of wetland carbon function
PhD candidate: Tiia Määttä
UZH supervisor: Avni Malhotra
For more information click here
How much molecular information is needed for a reliable vegetation reconstruction using the VERHIB model?
PhD candidate: Dario Püntener
UZH supervisor: Guido Wiesenberg
For more information click here
Deciphering paleopedogenetic mechanisms at the microscale
PhD candidate: Andrew Trott
UZH supervisor: Guido Wiesenberg
For more information click here
Soil organic matter in a warming world
PhD candidate: Binyan Sun
UZH supervisor: Michael Schmidt
For more information click here
Deciphering incorporation and decomposition of plant-derived organic matter in forest soils in a warmer future
PhD candidate: Christène Vouillamoz
UZH supervisor: Guido Wiesenberg
For more information click here
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Completed PhD projects
All PhD theses are available online via the Hochschulschriftenkatalog of the Zentralbibliothek Zurich.
Title |
Name |
Date |
Supervisors |
| Towards Improved Source Apportionment of Organic Matter in Soil and Peat Using Lipid Biomarkers and Inverse Modeling | Carrie Thomas | 2024 | PD Dr. G. L. B. Wiesenberg Dr. B. Jansen |
| Alterations in the Source and Decomposition of Soil Organic Matter in an Afforestation Sequence on a Swiss Alpine Pasture | Tatjana Speckert | 2023 | PD Dr. G. L. B. Wiesenberg |
Aging and transfer from source to sink: The pathways of pyrogenic carbon in the soil environment of a tropical ecosystem |
Severin Bellé |
2023 |
Dr. S. Abiven |
Carbon Dynamics in Response to Warming and Elevated Atmospheric CO2 Concentration in Temperate Forest and Boreal Peatland Plant-Soil Systems |
Nicholas Ofiti |
2022 |
Prof. Dr. M. W. I. Schmidt PD Dr. G. L. B. Wiesenberg |
Seeing the Forest for the Trees: European Beech through the Lenses of Spectroscopy and Metabolomics |
Fanny Petibon |
2022 |
PD Dr. G. L. B. Wiesenberg Prof. Dr. M. C. Schuman Dr. M. Kneubühler |
Dynamics of Fire-Derived Carbon in Permafrost-Affected Mineral Soils - Transport and Mobility of Pyrogenic Carbon in Soils. |
Marcus Schiedung |
2022 |
Dr. S. Abiven |
Are We Losing It? Exploring Subsoil Organic Carbon Dynamics in a Warming World on the Molecular Level |
Cyrill Zosso |
2022 |
Prof. Dr. M. W. I. Schmidt PD Dr. G. L. B. Wiesenberg |
Organic Carbon Vulnerability in Swiss Forest Soils |
Beatriz Gonzalez Dominguez |
2018 |
Dr. S. Abiven |
Agricultural Management and Below Ground Carbon Inputs |
Juliane Hirte |
2018 |
Dr. S. Abiven |
Fire's Black Legacy: The Fate of Pyrogenic Carbon in Soils across Scales |
Moritz Reisser |
2018 |
Dr. S. Abiven |
Breeding and drought influence root biomass and rooting depth |
Cordula Friedli |
2017 |
Dr. S. Abiven |
Molecular and Isotopic Signatures of Combustion in the Modern Environment |
Ulrich Hanke |
2017 |
Prof. Dr. M. W. I. Schmidt |
Effect of Drought on Carbon Cycling in Model Temperate Grassland and Heathland Plant-soil Systems |
Kavita Srivastava |
2017 |
PD Dr. G. L. B. Wiesenberg |
A Holistic Approach to Study Carbon Cycling |
Mirjam S. Studer |
2015 |
Dr. S. Abiven |
New Insights into Pyrogenic Carbon by an Improved Benzene Polycarboxylic Acid Molecular Marker Method |
Daniel Wiedemeier |
2014 |
Prof. Dr. M. W. I. Schmidt |
Nitrogen deposition and elevated CO₂ effects on geochemical biomarkers in soil fractions |
Marco Griepentrog |
2014 |
Prof. Dr. M. W. I. Schmidt |
The fate of pyrogenic organic matter in soil and its interaction with native soil organic matter and increased N inputs |
Bernardo Maestrini |
2014 |
Dr. S. Abiven |
Dynamics of Pyrogenic Organic Matter: Physical, Chemical and Biological Transformation and Stabilization Processes in the Soil |
Nimisha Nimisha |
2013 |
Dr. S. Abiven |
Turnover and stabilization of soil organic matter: effect of land-use change in alpine regions |
David Hiltbrunner (WSL Birmensdorf) |
2012 |
Dr. S. Zimmermann Dr. F. Hagedorn |
Turnover and stabilization of soil organic matter in Alpine grasslands |
Stefanie Meyer (ART Reckenholz) |
2012 |
Dr. J. Leifeld Prof. Dr. J. Fuhrer |
Does carbon distribution and turnover in (sub)alpine grassland soils indicate these areas may be potential carbon dioxide hotspots in the event of global warming? |
Karen Budge (ART Reckenholz) |
2011 |
Dr. J. Leifeld Prof. Dr. J. Fuhrer |
Carbon Fluxes from Decaying Beech Litter: Insights from a 13C-Tracer Experiment and a New Method to Analyse the Stable Isotopes in Soil CO2 Effluxes |
Adrian Kammer (WSL Birmensdorf) |
2011 |
Dr. F. Hagedorn Prof. Dr. A. Knohl |
Assessment of a Molecular Marker Method to Determine the Pyrogenic Carbon Component in Charcoals and Soils |
Maximilian Schneider |
2011 |
Prof. Dr. T. Dittmar Dr. R.H. Smittenberg Dr. S. Abiven |
Lignin dynamics in arable soils as determined by 13C natural abundance |
Anett Hofmann |
2009 |
Dr. A. Heim Dr. A. Miltner |
Detecting prehistoric fire-based farming using biogeochemical markers |
Eileen Eckmeier |
2007 |
Prof. Dr. R. Gerlach J. O. Skjemstad |
Analysis and fate of combustion residues in soil |
Karen Hammes |
2007 |
Dr. R. J. Smernik Prof. Dr. M. W. I. Schmidt |
Effects of pedogenic processes and vegetation on soil organic matter, Fe, Al, Si and clay mineralogy in the Southern Alps |
Remo Zanelli |
2007 |
PD Dr. M. Egli Prof. Dr. P. Fitze |
Spectroscopic quantification of soil organic carbon fractions that can be related to model pools |
Michael Zimmermann (ART Reckenholz) |
2007 |
Dr. J. Leifeld Prof. Dr. J. Fuhrer Dr. M. G. Johnson |