60th Birthday of Institute Head Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Mathias Göken!
On the occasion of this year’s 60th birthday of our Head of Institute I, Prof. Mathias Göken, we would like to reflect on his outstanding achievements and tireless dedication to the advancement of science and education.
Prof. Göken obtained his diploma in Physics from the University of Münster in 1990, before pursuing his Ph.D. at the Max Planck Institute for Iron Research in Düsseldorf as a research assistant in the field of Physical Metallurgy. In 1995, he successfully defended his dissertation entitled “In-situ investigations of loaded cracks in NiAl with the Scanning Tunneling and Atomic Force Microscope” at RWTH Aachen University. Subsequently, he spent successful years at Saarland University as a Senior Scientist and Group Leader for Scanning Probe Microscopy, and at Stanford University as a visiting scientist (Feodor Lynen Fellowship). In recognition of his outstanding contributions to the field, he was awarded the Masing Memorial Prize by the German Materials Society in 2000.
In 2002, Prof. Göken succeeded Prof. Hael Mughrabi as head of the Institute I at FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg. Under his leadership, new areas such as nanomechanics were introduced at the institute, and research in the fields of nanostructured materials, lightweight metals, and high-temperature materials was intensified. In addition to modernizing the equipment, numerous new devices were invested in during his tenure, strengthening the institute’s position in the field of microstructural characterization and opening up new possibilities for exploring fundamental mechanisms at the atomic level. Thus, the institute is now an excellently equipped research facility for the characterization of microstructure-related deformation mechanisms on various length scales. Based on this foundation, new research interests, such as the characterization of materials for hydrogen applications, can also be addressed.
In addition to his outstanding scientific work, Prof. Göken actively engaged in the academic community. As a member of various scientific committees and as the editor of the Journal of Materials Research, he made significant contributions to the advancement of his field.
We would like to express our gratitude to Prof. Göken for his tireless dedication and inspiring leadership. His contributions to science will undoubtedly continue to influence and inspire numerous researchers.
Happy 60th birthday, dear Prof. Göken!
Best wishes,
the entire team of the Institute I
Nina Pfeffer and Steffen Neumeier