Paula Herber

Prof. Dr. Paula Herber is a full Professor at the Institute of Computer Science, Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, University of Münster, Germany. She is actively engaged in research on formal methods, cyber-physical systems, and embedded systems verification. Her work bridges theoretical rigor with practical applications in safety-critical domains such as autonomous systems and real-time operating systems.

Her research interests lie at the intersection of formal verification and system design, particularly focusing on deductive verification, automated reasoning, model transformation (e.g., SystemC to Timed Automata), and reusable abstractions for complex systems. She investigates how to make formal methods more scalable and applicable in industrial settings, especially for autonomous cyber-physical systems that incorporate learning components.

The recent publications highlight a consistent trend in advancing formal verification techniques for embedded and cyber-physical systems, with a strong emphasis on automating proof processes, handling concurrency and timing, and integrating domain-specific knowledge to improve analysis efficiency and precision. Her work frequently appears in top-tier venues such as iFM, SEFM, and VMCAI, often in collaboration with leading researchers in formal methods.

Scientific recognition includes contribution to work awarded the Ernst Denert Software Engineering Award 2022, highlighting impact in bridging foundational research with practical software engineering.

• Contribution to Ernst Denert Software Engineering Award 2022 (as co-author of awarded work)

Prof. Herber leads or contributes to significant research projects such as Safe Integration of Learning In Autonomous cyber-physical Systems and the SystemC to Timed Automata Transformation Engine (STATE), which aims to provide formal semantics for SystemC through transformation into UPPAAL models. These projects emphasize reusability, correctness, and tool support for verification. While no explicit list of advisees is provided, her role as a professor and project leader implies mentorship of students and junior researchers. She has not mentioned part-time status, indicating a full-time academic commitment.

Her laboratory or working group focuses on formal methods and algorithms, particularly in the context of embedded and distributed systems, as reflected in the research projects and publications. The team develops transformation engines and verification frameworks to support rigorous analysis of complex software-intensive systems.