Lukas Gahleitner

Lukas Gahleitner is a Researcher at the Research Center Wels, Center of Excellence Automotive/Mobility, University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria, specializing in Materials Thermography and Non-Destructive Testing for high-performance composite components in automotive applications. His work directly supports UN Sustainable Development Goals related to industry and innovation.

Education:

• BSc
• Dipl.-Ing. (Diplom-Ingenieur)

His research focuses on advanced thermographic NDE methodologies including photothermal imaging, virtual wave concepts, and pulsed thermography for defect detection in carbon fiber composites. He pioneers techniques for 3D defect reconstruction in curved orthotropic structures and develops industrial solutions for quality control in fluid injection molding processes. His fingerprint analysis confirms deep expertise in subsurface defect characterization and virtual wave parameter estimation.

Recent publications (2024-2025) reveal a strong trend toward solving industrial NDE challenges through algorithmic innovation, particularly in handling non-uniform thermography data and reconstructing defects in complex composite geometries. This work bridges fundamental thermal physics with practical applications in automotive manufacturing.

Scientific recognition:

• Teufelberger Master-Thesis Award 2023
• Innovation Award FH Wels 2023 (1st place in Engineering)

Research leadership:

• Co-Investigator in EXCITE project (2025-2028): Thermo-tomographic sensor technologies for composite quality control
• Co-Investigator in JR-Centre for Thermal NDE of Composites (2018-2022)
• Active peer-reviewer for Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation journal

He operates within the Research Center Wels infrastructure, collaborating with Gerald Mayr's team on the Center of Excellence Automotive/Mobility initiatives, with experimental facilities focused on thermographic NDE of composite materials.