Chris Köcher

Chris Köcher is a Researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Software Systems (MPI-SWS) in Kaiserslautern, Germany. His work focuses on theoretical computer science, with a strong emphasis on formal methods, automata theory, and verification of complex systems. He leads research in areas such as algorithms, programming languages, cyber-physical systems, and security. His research bridges foundational theory and practical applications, addressing challenges in distributed systems, mobile systems, and privacy-preserving technologies.

His research interests span formal language theory, verification of concurrent systems, and the analysis of storage mechanisms in automata. Notably, he has contributed to the study of queue automata, multi-pushdown systems, and the decidability of reachability problems in lossy systems. His work often intersects with theoretical computer science and algebraic structures, exploring topics like monoids and trace languages.

Chris’s publications reflect a deep engagement with foundational questions in computer science, including the verification of cooperating multi-pushdown systems, the complexity of semilinear set separability, and the formal analysis of hard attention mechanisms in transformers. His research has implications for improving the reliability and security of software systems through rigorous mathematical foundations.

He is affiliated with MPI-SWS, a leading research institution in software systems, and contributes to the institute’s mission to advance theoretical and applied research in computer science. His work is supported by collaborations within the institute and the broader academic community.