GSI scientist Kathrin Wimmer holds W3 professorship for nuclear structure at the University of Cologne
09.03.2026 |
Physicist Kathrin Wimmer from GSI/FAIR has taken up a W3 professorship in Experimental Nuclear Physics/Nuclear Structure at the University of Cologne. The appointment underscores her outstanding scientific expertise and is also a sign of the excellent support for young scientists at GSI/FAIR.
Professor Kathrin Wimmer is a researcher in the Nuclear Spectroscopy Department at GSI/FAIR. She also coordinates the LISA (Lifetime measurements with Solid Active targets) project, which measures rare atomic nuclei using innovative detectors and high-resolution gamma-ray spectroscopy and has been funded by an ERC Consolidator Grant over several years. After receiving the prestigious grant, the physicist came to Darmstadt specifically to use the GSI/FAIR facilities for the practical research part of her project.
In recent years, Professor Kathrin Wimmer and her team have developed an active target as part of the LISA project. Working closely with the detector and target laboratories and the Experimental Electronics department at GSI, the team developed diamond-based detectors and the associated electronics and successfully used them for the first time to identify reactions with exotic ion beams. After two very successful beam times at GSI/FAIR, the research group plans to use LISA in an experiment aimed at determine the size of exotic atomic nuclei and draw conclusions about their shape. LISA is thus ready for future FAIR operation, taking advantage of the unique capabilities of the FAIR accelerator center.
Professor Kathrin Wimmer studied physics at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, received her doctorate at the Technical University of Munich, and completed her habilitation at Heidelberg University in 2023. Following her studies, she conducted research in Germany and abroad, including as a postdoctoral fellow at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory in the USA and as Assistant Professor at Central Michigan University. Further stages in her research career included the University of Tokyo and the Ramon y Cajal Fellowship at CSIC in Madrid. She has been conducting research at GSI/FAIR since 2021. She has already received several awards for her work. Among other distinctions, she received the GENCO Membership Award for her investigations into the nuclear structure of exotic unstable atomic nuclei and the development of new methods for investigating very short-lived atomic nuclei.
“We are delighted about Professor Wimmer's academic success and proud that one of our scientists is taking on this important position,” said Professor Thomas Nilsson, Scientific Director of GSI and FAIR. “Kathrin Wimmer's professorship will further strengthen the close cooperation between GSI/FAIR and the University of Cologne and provide new impetus for research into nuclear structure.” (BP)
