Institute of Biomechanics

Biography

Education

• 1996: Habilitation in "Mechanics", Vienna University of Technology, Austria
• 1993 – 1995: Visiting Scholar at the Division of Applied Mechanics, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, USA, with late Professor Juan C. Simo
• 1990: Ph.D. Mechanical Engineering, Graz University of Technology, Austria (with distinction)
• 6/86 – 1/87: National Service at Red Cross
• 1985: M.Sc. Civil Engineering, Graz University of Technology, Austria (with distinction)
• 1980: Graduation certificate from High School (with distinction)

Professional Appointments

• Since 2/07: Full Professor of Biomechanics – Head of the Institute, Graz University of Technology, Austria
• Since 2/07: Adjunct Full Professor of Biomechanics, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), School of Engineering Sciences, Department of Solid Mechanics, Stockholm, Sweden
• 12/04 – 1/07: Full Professor of Biomechanics, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), School of Engineering Sciences, Department of Solid Mechanics, Stockholm, Sweden
• 1/98 – 11/04: Associate Professor at the Institute for Structural Analysis, Graz University of Technology, Austria
• 5/87 – 12/97: Assistant at the Institute of Strength of Materials, Graz University of Technology, Austria (1991 on leave to P.R. China, 1993-1995 on leave to the USA)
• 1991: Visiting Scholar at University of Shenyang, P.R. China
• 6/88 – 9/88: Visiting Scholar at Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany
• 1/86 – 5/86: Research Assistant at Darmstadt University of Technology, Germany

Awards and Honors

• 03/12: Founding Fellow of EAMBES – European Alliance for Medical and Biological Engineering & Science
  An EAMBES fellowship is indented “for individuals who have distinguished themselves by identifiable contributions or accomplishments in Medical and Biological Engineering and Science”.
• 11/11: Erwin Schrödinger Prize 2011
  Annual award presented by the Austrian Academy of Sciences for lifetime achievements by Austrians in the fields of mathematics and natural sciences. The prize was established in 1956, and was first awarded to Erwin Schrödinger.
• 11/08: Research Award 2008 of the Federal State of Styria, Austria, for Simulation and Modeling – Basic Research and University Research
• Since 12/07: Member of the young curia of the Austrian Academy of Sciences
  The young curia ("Junge Kurie") is a panel of outstanding young scientists who should actively participate within the academy. It is an autonomous instrument that exists besides the Section for Mathematics and the Natural Sciences, and the Section for the Humanities and the Social Sciences.
• 3/03: Awarded with the "Josef-Krainer Würdigungspreis 2003 for exceptional achievements in the field of Biomechanics".
  The prize-winners are selected among scholars from all disciplines by an interdisciplinary Jury after peer review.
• 2001: Founding of the Journal "Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology", Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg, New-York.
• 7/97: START-Award 1997, granted by the Chancellor of the Republic of Austria and the Ministry for Education, Science and Culture.
  START-Awards are awarded to young scientists (below 35 years of age at that time) and are selected by an International Jury. It supports research for 6-7 years.
• 1992 – 1993: Erwin Schrödinger Scholarship for foreign countries
• 1983: Winner of the Amann-Foundation

Professorships

• Since 4/09: Visiting Professor, University of Glasgow, Department of Mathematics, Scotland
• Since 2/07: Full Professor and Chair of Biomechanics, Graz University of Technology, Austria
• Since 2/07: Adjunct Full Professor and Chair of Biomechanics, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), School of Engineering Sciences, Department of Solid Mechanics, Stockholm, Sweden
• 5/07: Visiting Professor, University of Zaragoza, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Spain
• 12/04 – 1/07: Full Professor and Chair of Biomechanics, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), School of Engineering Sciences, Department of Solid Mechanics, Stockholm, Sweden
• 7/03: Offer of a Chair (C4) in Continuum Mechanics, University of Kassel, Germany (not accepted)
• 4/03 – 5/03: Visiting Professor, Universidad Politécnica de Cataluña, Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros de Caminos, Barcelona, Spain
• 11/02: Offer for a Visiting Professorship, University of Trento, Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Strutturale, Italy (not accepted)
• 5/01: Offer for a Visiting Professorship, Polish Academy of Sciences, Institute of Fundamental Technological Research, Warsaw (not accepted)

[Publications]

Biographical Sketch

Gerhard A. Holzapfel is Professor of Biomechanics and Head of the Institute of Biomechanics at Graz University of Technology (TUG), Austria, since 2007. He is also Adjunct Professor at the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Stockholm, Sweden, and Visiting Professor at the University of Glasgow, Scotland. After his PhD in Mechanical Engineering in Graz he received an Erwin-Schrödinger Scholarship for foreign countries to be a Visiting Scholar at Stanford University (1993-95). He achieved his Habilitation at TU Vienna in 1996 and received the START-Award in 1997, which is the most prestigious research award in Austria for young scientists. In the following years (1998-2004) he was the Head of the research group on "Computational Biomechanics" at TUG. Among several awards and honors in the past years he received the Erwin Schrödinger Prize 2011 from the Austrian Academy of Sciences for his lifetime achievements.

Professor Holzapfel’s research includes experimental and computational biomechanics and mechanobiology with an emphasis on soft biological tissues, the cardiovascular system including blood vessels in health and disease, therapeutic interventions such as balloon angioplasty and stent implantation, magnetic resonance imaging and medical image processing; nonlinear continuum mechanics, constitutive (multi-scale) modeling of solids at finite strains, growth and remodeling, nonlinear finite element methods, fracture and material failure. His research has been supported by TUG, Austrian Science Fund, Austrian Academy of Sciences, State of Styria, Österreichische Nationalbank (Jubiläumsfonds), Austrian Exchange Service, KTH, Swedish Research Council, National Institutes of Health (NIH), The Royal Society, Carnegie Trust, European Commission and the private industry.

Professor Holzapfel has authored a graduate textbook entitled "Nonlinear Solid Mechanics. A Continuum Approach for Engineering" (John Wiley & Sons), and co-edited four books. He contributed chapters to 15 other books, and published 100+ peer-reviewed journal articles. He is the co-founder and co-editor of the International Journal "Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology" (Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg).

Professor Holzapfel can be reached at Graz University of Technology, Institute of Biomechanics, Kronesgasse 5-I, 8010 Graz, Austria; Office: +43 316 873 1621; Fax: +43 316 873 1615 and e-mail: holzapfel@TUGraz.at