Patrick Huber

Prof. Dr. Patrick Huber is a leading physicist and Institute Director at the Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), heading the Institute for Materials and X-Ray Physics (M-2). He also leads the High-Resolution X-Ray Analytics of Materials group at DESY through a cooperative professorship. His research spans condensed matter physics, nanoporous materials, and X-ray analytics, with significant contributions to molecular water science and soft matter in confinement.

• Education: PhD in Physics (1999, Saarland University), Diploma in Physics (1995, Saarland University)
• Professional Career: Full Professor at TUHH (2020-present), Member of CRC 1615 (2023-present), Spokesperson for CMWS (2024-present), Cluster of Excellence BlueMat (2025)

Research Interests focus on multi-scale material behavior under extreme confinement, particularly hierarchical porous silicon and silica systems. His work examines adsorption-induced deformation, elastocapillarity, fluid transport in nanopores, and metamaterial design principles using electrolytes, polymers, and liquid crystals. Fundamental studies include fluid interface thermodynamics and microscopic hydrodynamics.

Scientific Awards include the Top Reviewer Award (2018) from Applied Physics Letters and the Dr.-Eduard-Martin Award (2000) for his dissertation. He contributes to 130+ publications with an h-index of 36 (2021).

Advising and Grants involve supervising 18 doctoral and master's students, including Manuel Brinker, Marc Thelen, and Stella Gries. He participates in Collaborative Research Centre CRC 1615, Cluster of Excellence EXC 3120 BlueMat, and the United Nations University Hub on Climate Engineering.

Laboratory and Teams include the Institute for Materials and X-Ray Physics (M-2) at TUHH, the High-Resolution X-Ray Analytics group at DESY, and contributions to the Centre for Hybrid Nanostructures (CHyN).