Six professors appointed
At the meeting on?21st and 22nd May 2025, the ETH Board appointed two female and four male professors at the request of ETH President Jo?l Mesot. The Board also awarded the title of "Professor" three times and the title of "Professor of Practice" twice.
New appointments
Professor Georg Gasteiger (*1976), currently Professor at the University of Würzburg, Germany, as Full Professor of Tissue Immunity in the Department of Biology. Georg Gasteiger investigates the interaction between immune cells in the different tissues of the body. He was founding director of the renowned Würzburg Institute and helped set up the Max Planck Research Group for Systems Immunology in Würzburg. In addition to his pioneering work on the tissue residency of lymphocytes, he has made fundamental contributions to understanding the interactions between innate and adaptive immunity. In 2017 he was awarded an ERC Starting Grant for his research. He has extensive teaching experience as well as specialist knowledge as a medical doctor and basic researcher. By appointing him, the Department is strengthening research and teaching in the field of tissue immunity.
Dr Sanne Klompe (*1992), currently Postdoctoral Researcher at the Institut Pasteur in Paris, France, as Assistant Professor of Phage-Host Interactions in the Department of Biology. Sanne Klompe has won multiple awards for her research, which focuses on genomic interactions between mobile genetic elements (e.g. viruses) and their hosts (e.g. bacteria). She has a particular interest in how mobile genetic elements maintain their ability to hijack host resources while simultaneously evolving to protect themselves against defences encoded by the host. The appointment of Sanne Klompe presents the Department with an ideal opportunity to strengthen intradepartmental links between the research areas of virology, microbiology, evolution and biotechnology.
Dr Timothée Proix (*1988), currently Research Group Leader at the University of Geneva, as Assistant Professor of Computational Neuroscience in the Department of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering. Timothée Proix focuses on the neural bases of language in his research, which combines theoretical modelling, data-driven analysis and invasive neurophysiology in human beings. His work has resulted in significant advances in epilepsy research and opened up new perspectives on the neural mechanisms of speech perception and production. With the appointment of Timothée Proix, the Department is strengthening the field of theoretically based neuroscience and promoting synergies with the areas of biomedicine, machine learning and neuromorphic computing.
Dr Nicole Ursula Stoffel (*1990), currently Research Group Leader at the University of Oxford, United Kingdom, as Tenure Track Assistant Professor of Clinical Biopharmacy in the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences. Nicole Ursula Stoffel's research has a focus on translational pharmacokinetics and biopharmacy. She is currently investigating the use of stable iron isotopes to study human iron metabolism. Her work is of far-reaching significance for clinical practice and the prevention and treatment of anaemia. She also brings with her an excellent network of national and international cooperation partners. Through the appointment of Nicole Ursula Stoffel, the Department is strengthening the subject area of biopharmacy and pharmacokinetics, particularly in the direction of nutritional pharmacology.
Promotions
Professor Marco Hutter (*1985), currently Associate Professor at ETH Zurich, as Full Professor of Robotic Systems in the Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering. Marco Hutter has carried out pioneering work in the field of legged robots and is a globally recognised progressive thinker and leader in his area of expertise. He develops intelligent robotic systems for use in challenging environments, such as industrial inspections or search and rescue. Marco Hutter holds six patents, has received numerous prizes for technology transfer and was awarded an ERC Starting Grant in 2019. His professional commitment to the academic community at ETH Zurich, as well as nationally and internationally, is exceptional. The research area of robotics will be further strengthened by his appointment as a full professor.
Professor Victor Mougel (*1985), currently Tenure Track Assistant Professor at ETH Zurich, as Associate Professor of Bioinorganic and Bioinspired Chemistry in the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences. Victor Mougel’s research has a focus on the development and characterisation of catalysts inspired by natural systems for the transformation of small molecules into useful synthetic building blocks and fuels using renewable sources of energy. His work has won several awards, including an ERC Starting Grant. By appointing Victor Mougel, the Department is retaining a renowned expert in bioinspired chemistry who works at the interface of catalysis, inorganic molecular chemistry and materials science.
Award of the title of “Professor”
Dr Oliver Fuhrer (*1975), currently Lecturer at ETH Zurich and Head of the Department of Numerical Forecasting at the Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology (MeteoSchweiz), as Adjunct Professor in the Department of Environmental Systems Science. Oliver Fuhrer is one of the world’s leading experts in numerical weather and climate modelling using hybrid high-performance supercomputers. He played a key role in the (further) development of the Swiss Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) model, COSMO. As an adjunct professor, he will continue to foster the close cooperation between ETH Zurich and MeteoSchweiz, as well as with the Swiss National Supercomputing Centre (CSCS).
Dr Thomas Hofstetter (*1969), currently Senior Scientist and Private Lecturer at ETH Zurich and Head of Department at Eawag, as Adjunct Professor in the Department of Environmental Systems Science. Thomas Hofstetter is a globally recognised expert in environmental chemistry and has made significant contributions in several areas. He has won multiple awards for his work, which achieved a breakthrough in the use of stable isotope systems to track what happens to industrial chemicals in the natural environment. As an outstanding scientist, teacher and mentor, Thomas Hofstetter will continue to enhance the Department, Eawag and ETH Zurich as a whole.
Dr Jasmin Smajic (*1971), currently Senior Scientist and Lecturer at ETH Zurich, as Adjunct Professor in the Department of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering. Jasmin Smajic is a leading scientist in the field of theoretical and computational electromagnetics. His research is concerned with numerical methods for electromagnetic field simulations, computational optics and photonics, multiphysics simulations and design optimisation. Jasmin Smajic represents ETH Zurich nationally by performing various services for Skyguide and the Federal Office for Defence Procurement armasuisse.
Award of the title of “Professor of Practice”
Philipp H?fliger (*1969), currently Project Manager at Frutiger AG in Thun and CEO of his own start-up LHTC Group GmbH in Bern, as Professor of Practice in the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering. Philipp H?fliger has 30 years of management experience on major national and international infrastructure construction projects, and also spent several years as a member of the management board of a mechanical engineering company specialising in construction site logistics. As a Professor of Practice, Philipp H?fliger will assume a managerial and teaching function for the newly established CAS ETH in Infrastructure Construction Management. He will perform a key bridging function between academic research and the construction industry, as well as further strengthening ETH Zurich's reputation as a leading institution for training and research in the field of infrastructure construction.
Dr. Christina Ruob (*1968), currently Managing Director of medinform AG and Pharmacist at ApoDoc, Zurich, as Professor of Practice in the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences. Christina Ruob has over 25 years’ professional experience in addition to proven skills in implementing and monitoring scientific projects. She is an exceptional general pharmacy manager whose particular strengths are her capacity for analytical thought, her outstanding communication skills and her flair for teaching. By awarding Christina Ruob this title, the Department is further strengthening its practice-oriented teaching and research in relation to its pharmacy courses and is responding to the growing demand for primary care in Switzerland.
Departures from ETH Zurich
Professor Rima Alaifari (*1987), currently Assistant Professor of Applied Mathematics in the Department of Mathematics, is leaving ETH Zurich at the end of July 2025. Rima Alaifari joined ETH Zurich in 2015 as a postdoctoral researcher and was promoted to assistant professor in 2016. She works mainly in the areas of applied analysis, inverse problems and scientific machine learning. At ETH Zurich she has been a committed and successful lecturer and supervisor of students at all levels. She has won multiple awards for her research. Rima Alaifari is leaving ETH Zurich to take up an appointment at RWTH Aachen.
Professor Emmanuel Frossard (*1960), currently Full Professor of Plant Nutrition in the Department of Environmental Systems Science, is to retire at the end of January 2026. Emmanuel Frossard joined ETH Zurich as an associate professor in 1994. He has won many awards for his research, which addresses the challenge of improving nutrient efficiency in productive agricultural systems. He makes use of the latest methodological approaches to solving problems, working under laboratory and glasshouse conditions and in field experiments. Alongside his work in temperate climate zones, he also undertakes intensive research for development projects concerned with soil and crop management in Africa and South Asia. Emmanuel Frossard has been a dedicated member of the Department and of ETH Zurich, having served in positions including Head of Institute, Director of Studies, Head of Department and President of the steering committee of the Swiss National Research Programme on “Sustainable use of soil as a resource” (NRP 68).
Professor Gudela Grote (*1960), currently Full Professor of Work and Organizational Psychology in the Department of Management, Technology and Economics, will retire at the end of January 2026. Gudela Grote joined ETH Zurich as a postdoctoral researcher and lecturer in 1988 and became an assistant professor in 1992. She is one of the world’s leading researchers on the regulation of individual and organisational uncertainty and on the fit between control and responsibility in the development and use of new technologies. The main objective of her research is to provide psychologically based concepts and methods for integrative job and organisational design, taking account of changing opportunities and demands. Gudela Grote has made a significant contribution to ETH Zurich, including as Head of the Institute of Work Psychology and of the Department, and as the President’s Delegate for Faculty Appointment Procedures.
Professor Ludger Hovestadt (*1960), currently Full Professor of Digital Architectonics in the Department of Architecture, is to retire at the end of January 2026. Ludger Hovestadt joined ETH Zurich as a full professor in 2000. Even during his time as a doctoral student, he was laying the foundations for digital architectonics. His main interest is in developing tools for the design and management of over-complex systems, drawing on interdisciplinary research involving architecture, computer science, mechanical engineering, robotics and cognitive psychology. He believes that the current need is for research into adapting technological developments made in other disciplines to the building industry (with its long-term basis), given the exceptional importance of the building industry, both ecologically and economically. The roles in which Ludger Hovestadt has served the Department include that of Head of Institute.
Professor Ursula Keller (*1959), currently Full Professor of Experimental Physics in the Department of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering, will retire at the end of July 2025. Ursula Keller joined ETH Zurich in 1993 as an associate professor and was a member of the Department of Physics until 2024. As a leading international scientist, she has shaped ultrafast laser physics and attosecond science, and her work has led to major scientific breakthroughs and numerous industrial applications. She was a member of the Research Council of the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) and directed the National Center of Competence in Research (NCCR) MUST from 2010 to 2022. One of Switzerland’s most cited women professors, Ursula Keller has won many awards for her research, including the Marcel Benoist Prize and two ERC Advanced Grants. As Director of the NCCR MUST, she founded the ETH Women Professors Forum and has been committed to improving academic governance ever since.
Professor Nicolai Meinshausen (*1976), currently Full Professor of Statistics in the Department of Mathematics, will leave ETH Zurich at the end of July 2025. Nicolai Meinshausen joined ETH Zurich as a full professor in 2012. He is one of the leading statisticians of his generation and has won multiple awards for his work, which has a focus on causality, high-dimensional data and machine learning. His methods, algorithms and research have had an enormously broad influence on the scientific world, in areas ranging from statistics to applications in the natural sciences and medicine. Nicolai Meinshausen’s contribution to the Department includes serving as Head of the Institute of Statistics and Head of the IT Committee, as well as participating in the development of the new Master’s course in Data Sciences.
Professor Manfred Sigrist (*1960), currently Full Professor of Theoretical Physics in the Department of Physics, is to retire at the end of January 2026. Manfred Sigrist joined ETH Zurich as a full professor in 2001. His field of research is theoretical condensed matter physics, with a particular focus on theoretical solid state physics, especially unconventional superconductivity and strongly correlated electron systems with topological properties. Manfred Sigrist’s strong commitment to the scientific community is seen in his membership of various editorial boards as well as his support for young scientists, and he has been awarded a Golden Owl for his teaching. His contribution to the Department includes serving as Vice Rector for Doctoral Studies and as a Head (and Deputy Head) of Institute.
Professor Sean Willett (*1960), currently Full Professor of Sedimentology in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, will retire at the end of January 2026. Sean Willett joined ETH Zurich as a full professor in 2006. His main research interests lie in the interdisciplinary connections between the solid Earth, the climate, the surface and biological processes. He is currently investigating how climatic, erosional and sedimentation processes affect the structure and evolution of mountain belts and their associated sedimentary basins. At ETH Zurich, Sean Willett contributed to the introduction of courses in the field of Thermochronometry and Tectonic Geomorphology, as well as to the new Bachelor’s capstone course in Integrated Earth Systems. As Head (and Deputy Head) of the Geological Institute, he played a key role in shaping its high reputation.
Professor David Paul Wolfer (*1960), currently Associate Professor of Anatomy in the Department of Health Sciences and Technology, is to retire at the end of July 2025. David Paul Wolfer joined ETH Zurich as a full professor in 2005 as part of a dual professorship with the University of Zurich (leading house). His research revolves around the biological foundations of cognitive functions in the normal and the diseased brain, and especially the role played by the hippocampus in memory and behaviour control. He mainly uses mice as animal models, and develops new approaches to analysing their cognitive performance. David Paul Wolfer’s teaching area covers the entire anatomy of the human body, with special emphasis on neuroanatomy, the musculoskeletal system and behavioural genetics. At ETH Zurich he has helped develop the partnership with the University of Zurich.
The ETH Board would like to thank the departing professors for their services to science, teaching and academic administration.