Research Priority Areas (RPAs) of the TU Dresden

These research priority areas represent the currently strongest research fields of our University, which are characterized by publication impact and third-party funds. Especially three Clusters of Excellence and various collaborative research centers contribute to the research excellence of the TU Dresden.

The research of the TU Dresden is focused on five strategic research priority areas:

Health Sciences, Biomedicine and Bioengineering

Health Sciences, Biomedicine and Bioengineering comprises four interconnected fields at the interface of basic and translational research:

  • Interdisciplinary fundamental research of physical concepts and priciples that underlie the organisation of living matter (Cluster of Excellence: Physics of Life);
  • Stem Cells and Tissue Formation, which directly leads to Regenerative Therapies (CRTD - Center for Regenerative Therapies TU Dresden);
  • research uncovering the causes of, and developing therapeutic approaches for, major diseases of modern societies, i.e. Cancer (OncoRay), Diabetes (DZD), and Neurodegeneration (DZNE) as well as other disorders of the brain, notably those tackled by the Psychological and Behavioral Sciences; and
  • Molecular Bioengineering, which provides an interface between biology and engineering (B CUBE, BIOTEC, Max Bergmann Center of Biomaterials).

In addition to these four established fields, an emerging research area is Systems Biology, where experimental and theoretical science meet. A particular strength of this RPA is the transdisciplinary networking of basic and translational researchers within TUD and its local non-university partners such as the MPI of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics. These research foci constitute a fertile ground for the advancement of young researchers, as exemplified by the Dresden International Graduate School for Biomedicine and Bioengineering (DIGS-BB), awarded in the 1st program phase of the Excellence Initiative.

Examples of the reseach excellence for the priority area:

Information Technology and Microelectronics

Information Technology and Microelectronics is an area of utmost importance as the largest microelectronics hub in Europe is centered in Dresden, with over 1,500 companies growing at an average rate of well over 1,000 jobs/year, and currently approximately 50,000 employees. As a result of strategic appointments over the past decade, TUD´s scientific competence now covers the full spectrum from basic and applied research on information processing and communication, to developing and testing innovative materials (Nanotechnology, Bionics). There are strong ties with several regional Fraunhofer Institutes as well as multiple joint ventures with industry’s global leaders, e.g. reflected by acquiring and steering the German Leading-Edge Cluster “CoolSilicon”. The Cluster of Research "Center for Advancing Electronics Dresden" (cfaed) and the Cluster of Excellence "Centre for Tactile Internet with Human-in-the-Loop" (CeTI) are towering examples of our cutting-edge research.

Examples of the reseach excellence for the priority area:

Materials Science and Engineering

Materials Science and Engineering is playing a decisive role in providing solutions to global mega-challenges such as energy, resources and mobility. By establishing the Cluster of Excellence „Complexity and Topology in Quantum Matter (ct.qmat), physicists, chemists and material scientists from Dresden and Würzburg are going to unite their efforts to understand, control and apply fundamentally new states of quantum matter. Fundamental scientific research activities at TUD also focus on understanding the principles of structure-property relations and interactions of materials in various environments, on nanotechnology concepts, new functional and smart materials and corresponding technologies, advanced surface engineering, high performance multifunctional lightweight materials, materials for energy, and new design concepts with adapted sensors and actuators. TUD competences are complemented by intense collaboration with local Leibniz-, Fraunhofer- and Max Planck Institutes and a network of strategic cooperations with prestigious industry partners.

Examples of the reseach excellence for the priority area:

  • Cluster of Excellence: Complexity and Topology in Quantum Matter (ct.qmat)

  • Dresden Center for Computational Materials Science (DCMS)

  • C3 - Carbon Concrete Composite

  • RUBIN-ISC_IMB - Development of tools for the planning and dimensioning of carbon concrete components

  • CRC 1415 "Chemistry of Synthetic Two-Dimensional Materials"

  • CRC 1143 " Correlated Magnetism: From Frustration to Topology"
  • CRC/Transregio 339 "Digital twin of the road system – Physical-informational representation of the future road system" - Locations: Dresden, Aachen
  • SFB/Transregio 285 „Method development for mechanical joinability in transformable process chains“, Locations: Paderborn, Dresden, Erlangen/Nürnberg
  • CRC/Transregio 280 "Design strategies for carbon concrete structures using a minimum of material - Fundamentals for a new way of constructing" - Locations: Dresden, Aachen
  • Starting in 2026: RTG 3120 "Biomolecular Condensates: From Physics to Biological Functions“
  • RTG 2868 "D³ - Data-Driven Design of Resilient Metamaterials"
  • RTG 2861 "PCL - Planar Caron Lattices"
  • RTG 2767 "Supracolloidal Structures: From Materials to Optical and Electronic Components"
  • RTG 2430 "Interactive Fiber Rubber Composites"
  • RTG 2250 "Mineral-bonded composites for enhanced structural impact safety"
  • FOR 3013 "Vector- and Tensor-Valued Surface PDEs"
  • SPP 2388 "Hundred plus – Extending the Lifetime of Complex Structures through Intelligent Digitalization"
  • SPP 2244 "2D Materials – Physics of van der Waals [hetero]structures (2DMP)"
  • SPP 2005 "Opus Fluidum Futurum – Rheologie reaktiver, multiskaliger, mehrphasiger Baustoffsysteme"
  • Reinhart Koselleck-Projekt " Long-range magnetic order in metal-free materials"
  • Werner Siemens Foundation: "2nd Life Metal Components: A Pathfinding Project for Upcycling"

  • ERC Proof of Concept: DYNALIP

  • ERC Synergy Grant: 2DPolyMembrane

  • ERC Consolidator Grant: T-Higgs

  • ERC Advanced Grant: IONOLOGIC

  • ERC Starting Grant: BattSkin

  • ERC Consolidator Grant: IXTREME

  • ERC Starting Grant: PhotoMat

Energy, Mobility and Environment

Energy, Mobility and Environment is a Research Priority Area with high development potential across the entire spectrum of TUD's faculties and institutes. Existing competencies cover topics such as adaptation to climate change, bio-geo-chemistry, biomass, combustion engines, electrochemistry, energy economics, energy efficiency, energy law, energy system analysis, power generation, Renewable Energy Systems, environmental monitoring and Geoinformation Technologies, forestry, hydrology, limnophysics, risk and water resource management, mobility/transport and automotive engineering.

Highlights: The Friedrich List Faculty of Transport and Traffic Sciences is the largest academic Competence Center in the field of transport sciences in Germany. With its broad range of expertise, TU Dresden is in an excellent position to tackle not only core scientific areas, but also interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research topics, which are increasingly becoming the focus of major projects in the environmental and energy sector.

The Research Priority Area "Energy, Mobility and Environment" has the following scientific excellence and international visibility:

  • N5GEH - Introduction of future-oriented communication structures in energy technology
  • Landnetz - Area-thinking communication and cloud network for Agriculture 4.0 and rural areas
  • DAKORE (GreenICT) - Radio data network with adaptive hardware and AI optimization to reduce energy consumption
  • E4C (Green ICT) - Extremely energy-efficient edge cloud hardware
  • HyLeiT(H2Giga) - Cost-optimized system technology and grid integration of systems for the production of green hydrogen
  • HuKmeN - Heating and cooling with one network: technology for geothermal infrastructure (Kollektorweber)
  • High-immersion driving simulator
  • NFDI4Earth - NFDI Consortium Earth System Research
  • Starting in October 2025: SFB/Transregio 408 "AgiMo: Data-driven agile planning for responsible mobility" - Locations: Dresden, Munich
  • SFB/Transregio 339 "Digital twin road - Physical-informational mapping of the "road of the future" system" - Locations: Dresden, Aachen
  • CRC/Transregio 248 "Fundamentals of Comprehensible Systems - for a Comprehensible Cyber-Physical World" - Locations: Saarbrücken, Dresden
  • RTG 2947 "Technical-operational integration of highly automated aviation in metropolitan areas"
  • RTG 2323 "Conducive design of cyber-physical production systems"
  • "Center for Advanced Water Research(CAWR)"
  • "Helmholtz Interdisciplinary Graduate School for Environmental Research" (HIGRADE)
  • Boysen-TU Dresden Research Training Group "Sustainable Energy Systems"
  • Close cooperation with UNU Institute for Integrated Management of Material Fluxes and of Resources - UNU-FLORES in Dresden
  • ESF Plus InnoTeam: OptRail

  • Reinhart-Koselleck-Project: Strongly Driven Nonlinear Network Dynamics, Prof. Marc Timme

  • INTERREG cross-border cooperation Saxony-Czech Republik: IDEAL

  • INTERREG Central Europe: ReBioClim

  • ERC Starting Grant: BIOCOMP

  • HEU Mission Smart Cities: U_CAN

  • HEU Mission Smart Cities: NEUTRALPATH

Culture and Societal Change

The Culture and Societal Change Research Priority Area focuses on transformations in the field of culture and society with regard to social and political orders, urban and regional developments and cultural institutions such as museums and libraries. In Dresden, a city rich in tradition as a cultural capital, where the cultural sector also plays an above-average role in the regional economy and labor market, a number of interdisciplinary research programs have been launched and strong networks established, in particular with

  • the Deutsches Hygiene-Museum Dresden, a unique museum of science, culture and society
  • the prestigious Saxon State and University Library Dresden with its internationally renowned collections of manuscripts, documents, maps and photographs;
  • the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden (Dresden State Art Collections), one of the oldest and most important museum associations in Europe (consisting of 13 thematically different museums) with a worldwide reputation;
  • the Militärhistorisches Museum der Bundeswehr, which offers a multi-perspective and critical
    a multi-perspective and critical view of the history of violence and
  • the Leibniz Institute of Ecological Urban and Regional Development.

Scientific excellence and international visibility of the "Culture and Societal Change" profile line are demonstrated by, among other things:

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Last modified: Jun 19, 2025