Michael Lang

Dr. Michael Lang is a researcher at the Leibniz Institute for Polymer Research Dresden, specializing in Material Theory and Modeling. He earned a diploma (2001) and Ph.D. (2004) in Physics from the University of Regensburg, working under Dietmar Göritz. His postdoctoral research (2005-2007) at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill with Michael Rubinstein focused on polymer conformations. Since 2007, he has been a permanent scientist at IPF, serving as deputy head of the Institute of Polymer Theory since 2015.

Lang’s research explores the structural and mechanical properties of polymer networks, rings, and gels through theoretical and computational approaches. Key interests include entangled ring polymer dynamics, cross-link density in networks, monomer fluctuations, and elasticity in phantom models. His work bridges fundamental polymer physics with practical applications, often utilizing simulations to investigate chain behavior in complex environments.

He teaches Polymer Physics (since 2008) and Computer Simulation of Soft Condensed Matter (since 2013) at Dresden University of Technology (TU Dresden) and Chemnitz University of Technology. Collaborations include Michael Rubinstein (UNC Chapel Hill), Jens-Uwe Sommer (IPF Dresden), and Kay Saalwächter (University of Halle-Wittenberg).

Publications highlight his contributions to understanding topological constraints in ring polymers, cross-link defect analysis in PDMS networks, and advanced modeling of polymer elasticity. His work appears in Nature Materials, Macromolecules, and ACS Macro Letters.