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Peter Keim is a Professor and Group Leader in Experimental Statistical Physics at the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization, with a representative professorship at Heinrich-Heine-University of Düsseldorf since spring 2024. His research focuses on structure formation, self-organization, and spontaneous symmetry breaking in low-dimensional systems, particularly using colloidal ensembles to study fundamental phenomena in statistical physics.
Dr. Keim completed his physics studies in Frankfurt/Main and Konstanz, earning his doctorate in 2005. He conducted postdoctoral research at Farl-Franzens University in Graz, Austria with a stipend from the German Research Foundation. He returned to Lake Constance to lead a junior research group, completed his habilitation and venia legendi in experimental physics in 2015, and was accepted into the prestigious Heisenberg program of the German Research Foundation in 2021.
Keim's research primarily investigates two-dimensional physical systems, with emphasis on the KTHNY theory of 2D melting, the Kibble-Zurek mechanism for defect formation during rapid cooling, and Mermin-Wagner fluctuations in low-dimensional systems. His experimental work with colloidal monolayers has provided crucial evidence supporting theoretical predictions, including work highlighted by Nobel laureate Michael Kosterlitz in his Nobel Lecture. His approach bridges fundamental statistical physics with experimental validation in soft matter systems.
His publication record demonstrates consistent contributions to understanding phase transitions, symmetry breaking, and glass formation in two-dimensional systems. Recent work extends into photonic structures, tetratic phases, and ultrafast symmetry breaking phenomena, showing the evolution of his research from fundamental 2D melting studies toward broader applications in amorphous and structured materials.
- Gustav-Hertz Prize of the German Physical Society (2016) for investigation of phase transitions far from thermal equilibrium
- Heisenberg Fellow of the German Research Foundation (2021)
Keim has mentored numerous doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers who have become independent scientists in their fields. His research has been consistently supported by the German Research Foundation, culminating in his Heisenberg Fellowship. His experimental group maintains specialized equipment for studying colloidal systems under controlled conditions, including magnetic field manipulation and high-resolution microscopy capabilities for observing particle dynamics at the microscopic level.
