Head (acting):
Matthias Liero

Coworkers:
Thomas Eiter, Annegret Glitzky, Martin Heida, Georg Heinze, Thomas Koprucki, Anieza Maltsi, Michael O'Donovan, Dirk Peschka, Joachim Rehberg, Stefanie Schindler, Burkhard Schmidt, Leon Schütz, Artur Stephan, Marita Thomas, Willem van Oosterhout

Secretary:
Andrea Eismann

Honorary Members:
Alexander Mielke, Jürgen Sprekels

Fellowships:
Michael Kniely, Michael Tsopanopoulos



Former Honorary Members:
Herbert Gajewski
Konrad Gröger

 
Upcoming Events:

 

From top left to bottom right: Andrea Eismann, Thomas Eiter, Annegret Glitzky, Martin Heida, Thomas Koprucki, Matthias Liero, Anieza Maltsi, Alexander Mielke, Michael O'Donovan, Dirk Peschka, Joachim Rehberg, Stefanie Schindler, Burkhard Schmidt, Leon Schütz, Jürgen Sprekels, Artur Stephan, Marita Thomas, Willem van Oosterhout.


Overview

Many fundamental processes in nature and technology can be described by partial differential equations. The research group is working on the analytical theory of such equations (existence, uniqueness, qualitative behaviour) and on the development and implementation of algorithms for their numerical solution. The algorithms are used for the numerical simulation in industrial applications. The functionality of modern materials, for instance, relies on the complex interplay of effects on several length and time scales as well as on different physical effects, such as mechanics, thermodynamics, optics, and electromagnetism. The main topics of research are mathematical models of carrier transport in semiconductors and optoelectronic devices and reaction-diffusion equations for the transport of dopants in solids. Furthermore, nonlinear material models for linearized and nonlinear elasticity and plasticity as well as for systems with internal variables are under study. In this context, we develop in particular methods for abstract evolutionary equations, e.g. gradient systems, and for multiscale problems.

Highlights

Georg Heinze successfully defended his PhD thesis entitled ”Graph-based nonlocal gradient systems and their local limits” on 15th March, 2024. Congratulations!

From December 3 to 8, 2023, the fifth workshop of the series “Variational Methods for Evolution" took place at the “Mathematisches Forschungsinstitut Oberwolfach", organized by Franca Hoffmann (Pasadena), Alexander Mielke (FG 1), Mark Peletier (Eindhoven), and Dejan Slepcev (Pittsburgh). About 25 talks covered a wide range of topics on discrete and continuous evolutionary systems, such as gradient structures, minimizing-movement schemes or optimal transport. RG 1 was represented by four of its members.

From October 9 to 13, the conference "Variational and Geometric Structures for Evolution" took place in Levico Terme (Italy). It was jointly organized by Marita Thomas (RG 1), Dorothee Knees (U Kassel), Riccarda Rossi (U Brescia), and Giuseppe Savaré (U Milano). The scientific focus was on recent developments in the identification and analytic exploration of variational and geometric structures for evolutionary problems. Katharina Hopf and Artur Stephan from RG 1 contributed talks to the programme. The conference also marked the 65th birthday of Alexander Mielke, former head of RG 1, and honoured his achievements in this field.

The workshop "Energetic Methods for Multi-Component Reactive Mixtures - Modelling, Stability, and Asymptotic Analysis" took place at WIAS from September 13 to 15, 2023. It was organized by Katharina Hopf and Michael Kniely (both RG 1) in cooperation with Ansgar Jüngel (TU Wien). The 22 talks and three poster presentations covered a variety of aspects in the modelling and analysis of reaction-diffusion systems and fluid models, including viscoelastic fluids and multiphase flow. Special emphasis was put on energy and entropy methods, which are known as a versatile tool in the context of complex systems subject to temperature effects, electrostatic forces, and compressibility.

On September 6, 2023, Alexander Mielke's 65th birthday was celebrated with a scientific colloquium. The event started with welcome addresses by the institute's director and close colleagues. The scientific part of the event featured presentations by renowned speakers such as Rupert Klein (FU Berlin), Felix Otto (MPI Leipzig), and Riccarda Rossi (U Brescia).