Leibniz Prize
The Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize is Germany's highest academic honor. Awarded since 1985, it is financed and presented by the German Research Foundation (DFG).
The Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize is Germany's highest academic honor. Awarded since 1985, it is financed and presented by the German Research Foundation (DFG).
Dmitri Efetov is a pioneer in manufacturing highly homogeneous ‘magic-angle’ graphene. If you twist two layers of graphene to a certain ‘magic’ angle in relation to each other, you get a variety of exotic quantum phases with new physical phenomena such as superconducting, magnetic, and isolating states, the properties of which Dmitri Efetov studies.
Karen Radner is studying the early history and culture of the Near and Middle East. In thematically diverse and interdisciplinary projects, Karen Radner looks into the elements of early forms of power politics as well as the dynamics of settlement development and the evidence of early advanced civilization.
Professor of Immunology
Veit Hornung studies the workings of the innate immune system, the body’s first line of defense against pathogens. His research work contributes in particular to the development of therapeutic agents for the treatment of autoimmune diseases.
Professor of Biochemistry
Karl-Peter Hopfner received the Leibniz Prize for his outstanding work in structural molecular biology and genome biology, with which he has made pioneering contributions to the field of DNA repair and the cellular detection of foreign nucleic acids.
Portrait on DFG's website
Erika von Mutius won a Leibniz Prize for her ground-breaking insights into the pathogenesis and therapy of childhood asthma and allergies.
Portrait on DFG's website
Christoph Klein, Director of the Pediatric Clinic and Outpatient Clinic in the Dr. von Hauner Children‘s Hospital **
Christoph Klein studies the molecular mechanisms that underlie rare genetic diseases which disrupt blood-cell differentiation and immune-cell function, as a basis for the development of effective therapies for these conditions.
Portrait on DFG's website
Professor of Physiological Genomics
The seminal work of Magdalena Götz on the genesis of nerve cells in the mammalian brain has had a major impact on the understanding of stem cell behavior in general, and on efforts to manipulate the differentiation of neural stem cells in a controlled manner.
Professor of Greek Philology
Classical scholar Oliver Primavesi works at the interface between Greek philology and the philosophy of the Ancient Greeks. His pioneering research has provided the basis for the reconstruction of Aristotle’s lost work on the Pythagoreans, and for a new interpretation of the writings of Empedokles.
Professor of Biochemistry and Managing Director of the Gene Center *
Patrick Cramer Professor Cramer's elucidation of the three-dimensional structure of RNA polymerase II stands as a major advance in cell biology. This key enzyme is one of the largest molecular machines in the cell nucleus, and is essential for protein synthesis.
Professor of Experimental Physics
Ferenc Krausz is regarded as the founder of the field now known as attoscience, which is based on techniques that enable the ultrafast motions of electrons within atoms to be observed in real time.
Professor of Molecular Biology
Peter Becker Professor Becker's discovery of a novel underlying principle for the dynamic behavior of chromatin is of fundamental significance for the understanding of gene activity, carcinogenesis and embryonic development.
Quantum Optics **
Immanuel Bloch was the first experimental physicist to demonstrate that a Bose-Einstein condensate could be converted by means of laser radiation, and in a controlled fashion, into a new state of matter with very different properties. This breakthrough is of great interest for, among other things, the development of quantum computers.
Professor of Organic Chemistry
Thomas Carell Professor Carell's work on DNA repair has potential applications in the treatment of cancer, while his research on electron transport is of crucial importance to the field of photonics. His interdisciplinary approach thus spans the spectrum from synthetic chemistry to molecular biology to medicine.
Professor of Molecular Cell Biology of Plants (shared with the Freiburg researcher Prof. Dr. Nikolaus Pfanner)
The research findings made by Nikolaus Pfanner and Jürgen Soll have made a major contribution to our understanding of protein import into the various subcellular compartments present in the cells of higher organisms.
Professor of Biochemistry
The work of Christian Haass on the molecular and cell biological mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis ofneurodegenerative diseases has ensured a leading position for German research groups in this burgeoning field.
Portrait on DFG's website
Photonik und Optoelektronik
Jochen Feldmann studies the optical and electronic properties of novel inorganic and organic materials. His work has had a profound influence on both basic and applied research in the field.
Institute of Physiology *
The work of Arthur Konnerth and his research group focuses on neuronal networks in the cerebellum and the hippocampus, and has made important contributions to the understanding of the mechanisms and processes that form the cellular basis for motor control and motor learning.
Dieter Lüst **
Professor of Theoretical Physics
Friedrich Wilhelm Graf
Professor of Lutheran Protestant Theology **
Paul Knochel
Professor of Organic Chemistry **
Wolfgang Schnick
Professor of Solid-State Chemistry **
Winfried Schulze
Professor of Early Modern History
Regine Kahmann
Professor of Molecular Genetics *
Svante Pääbo
Professor of Molecular Biology *
Claus Wilhelm Canaris
Professor of Civil Law / Commerce and Labor Law
Theodor W. Hänsch
Professor of Laser Physics / Quantum Optics
Knut Borchardt
Professor of Economic History / Economics *
* Leibniz Prize winner who was at LMU when the award was announced but has since left.
** Leibniz Prize winner who had already received the award before joining the staff at LMU.