Ludwig J. Gauckler

Ludwig J. Gauckler is Professor for Nonmetallic Inorganic Materials at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich, Switzerland.

He got his degree in Physics from the University of Stuttgart and his PhD in Natural Sciences with Prof. Petzow from the Max Planck Institute for Materials Research in Stuttgart in 1976 where he also worked from 1973 until 1979 as research assistant. From 1976 to 1977 he was a post doc with Prof. T.Y. Tien at the University of Michigan, USA. From 1979 until 1988 served as senior scientist at the central R&D laboratories of Swiss Aluminium Ltd. In 1988 he became Professor at the Department of Materials at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich.

Prof. Gauckler coauthored more than 300 articles in peer reviewed journals and more than 60 book chapters and he holds 15 patents.

Ludwig Gauckler’s research interests include the application of thermodynamics of ceramic systems and processing of ceramic materials. He worked on crystal chemistry and phase equilibria of silicon nitride, silicon carbide, and zirconia.

Since joining ETH-Zurich, his work focuses on colloidal processing of ceramics for medical implants, teeth restorations (DCM process) and engineering ceramics. He also researched thermodynamics and processing-property relations of high temperature superconductors as well as mixed ionic-electronic conductors for solid oxide fuel cells. New porous ceramics, capsules as well as polymer/ceramic composites are among his recent inventions.

Professor Gauckler is founder of Cerion Ltd and co-founder of the DeCavis Ltd, both spin-off companies of ETH- Zurich and served on the board of different ceramic companies. Prof. Gauckler has been a Fellow of The American Ceramic Society since 1998. He was honored with the Gold ribbon of the National Academy of Science, Technology and Society, USA for the new approach in ”Enzyme Catalysis of Ceramic Forming“ in 1994 and was elected academician of the World Academy of Ceramics and member of the Swiss Academy of Technical Sciences (SATW). He was awarded the Christian Schoenbein Medal of the European Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Forum in 2006 and received the Richard and Patricia Spriggs Phase Equilibria Award from the American Ceramic Society and the Wei Lun Professorship of the Chinese University Hong Kong in 2008. In 2009 he delivered the Orton Lecture at The American Ceramic Society Annual Meeting.

No longer restrained by academic duties, Ludwig Gauckler now fully enjoys his physical and mental mobility. He continues serving the community as a member of editorial boards, remains involved in spin-off companies and serves as a member of scientific and industrial boards. Increasingly he takes time for the more ‘simple and important’ matters of life such as extensive sailing cruises with his wife and colleagues on Alpine Lakes, in the Mediterranean Sea and overseas.