High-calibre Scientist Recruited for the University
05/09/2019Stefanie Petermichl is one of eight newly appointed Alexander von Humboldt Professors. She has now been officially presented with her award in Berlin in the presence of many celebrities.
The 2019 Alexander von Humboldt Professorships, each endowed with up to five million euros, are Germany's most highly endowed research awards and go to leading researchers from all disciplines who have previously worked abroad. The award winners were nominated by German universities and research institutions and are now expected to build up teams and structures there that are globally competitive.
On Thursday, 9 May, the current 2019 award winners were officially presented with their awards. The awards were presented by the Federal Minister of Education and Research, Anja Karliczek, and the President of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Hans-Christian Pape.
Transfer from Toulouse to Würzburg
The mathematician Stefanie Petermichl was also present. She has moved from Toulouse to Würzburg and will now set up her own research group at Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg (JMU). In theoretical sciences such as mathematics, a Humboldt Professorship is endowed with 3.5 million euros. It is set up for a period of five years; parallel to this, the chair will be funded by the JMU for an indefinite period.
Stefanie Petermichl is one of the leading researchers in the field of harmonic analysis, a branch of mathematics with a wide range of applications. For example, harmonic analysis can help to improve medical imaging procedures and is used in signal processing and materials science.
Stefanie Petermichl is particularly known for her ability to link harmonic analysis with other mathematical disciplines such as probability theory. In recent years, she has shaped the field of research with her extraordinary ideas: some of the methods she has developed have become standard tools that have enabled decisive progress in the field of harmonic analysis. Petermichl's work is characterised by a particular depth of content. There are also many links to modern mathematical analysis, one of the main research areas of the Institute of Mathematics at JMU.
Great Mathematics is to be Expected
University President Alfred Forchel is delighted with Petermichl's decision to join JMU: "We are very pleased that we have been able to recruit such a top-class scientist in the field of mathematics in Mrs Petermichl. We see Mrs Petermichl as a bridge builder. Her field of work is ideal for linking other fields of mathematics in Würzburg. The interdisciplinary research centre for mathematics, which is to be established at JMU under her leadership, will increase the international appeal of our university. A junior research group on harmonic analysis is also to be established and will provide special support for young international scientists.
The team at the Institute of Mathematics is looking forward to the new impetus that Stefanie Petermichl will bring. Professor Stefan Waldmann, holder of the Chair of Mathematics X, welcomed the new colleague in an interview with the Humboldt Foundation: "She has an incredible depth when it comes to analysis. But the crucial thing is that she combines this expertise with completely different mathematical disciplines such as stochastics or geometry. Something like this is very rare, so you can expect a lot more great mathematics."
Weblink
Stefanie Petermichl in a video portrait on YouTube
Contact
Prof Dr Stefanie Petermichl, T: +49 931 31-83447, stefanie.petermichl@mathematik.uni-wuerzburg.de
