Günther Landgraf (14 September 1928 in Kryry – 12 January 2006 in

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...

) was a German

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate caus ...

and, from 1990 till 1994, President of

Technische Universität Dresden TU Dresden (for german: Technische Universität Dresden, abbreviated as TUD and often wrongly translated as "Dresden University of Technology") is a public research university, the largest institute of higher education in the city of Dresden, th ...

. Günther Landgraf was born in Kryry, in

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

(now

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

). He came to Dresden in 1938 and studied

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...

. Landgraf graduated in fatigue strength science at the Technische Hochschule Dresden in 1952 and received his

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

in 1961 and

Habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including a ...

at the renamed Technische Universität Dresden in 1969. 1970 he was appointed to Professor for theory of plasticity at the Dresden University of Technology. Landgraf was the first free elected President of the Dresden University of Technology in 1990. He received the status of a full university. Landgraf did not cease work after his retirement in 1996 and came daily for several hours in the office. He wrote far appraisals and specialized books. In addition he was since 1991 scientific director of the created institute "European Institute for postgraduate Studies at the University of Technology at Dresden" (EIPOS). Up until his illness, Günther Landgraf also took care of over 70 graduate students. He is buried in the Trinity Cemetery in Dresden.

Honors

* 1997 honorary senator of the

* 1994 Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany ("

Bundesverdienstkreuz The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

") * 1990 honorary doctor of the

Chemnitz University of Technology Chemnitz (; from 1953 to 1990: Karl-Marx-Stadt , ) is the third-largest city in the German state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden. It is the 28th largest city of Germany as well as the fourth largest city in the area of former East Germany a ...

* 1978 National Prize of the German Democratic Republic

References

External links

Obituaries TU Dresden
1928 births 2006 deaths 20th-century German physicists Recipients of the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany TU Dresden alumni People from Louny District Sudeten German people {{Germany-scientist-stub