Christian Knedlik was born on August 31, 1941 in Rochlitz (Saxony). His academic career is closely linked to the TH / TU Ilmenau. After studying technical physics from 1960 to 1966, he began his scientific work at the Institute of Materials Science and Non-destructive Materials Testing and continued as a senior research assistant in the Physics and Technology of Electronic Components (PHYTEB) section from 1970. In 1973, Prof. Knedlik was awarded his doctorate with a dissertation on the thickness and sheet resistance measurement of thin metal layers using the eddy current method. In 1975 / 76, Prof. Knedlik completed a 10-month research stay at the STU Bratislava and summarized the results for the materials science clarification of the contact behaviour of internal contacts in electronic components in his habilitation. Prof. Knedlik gained experience in the non-university sector, which was desirable for a career as a university lecturer, during an industrial assignment from 1979 to 1983 as group leader for technological investment preparation at VEB Elektroglas Ilmenau.
He was appointed honorary lecturer in 1981, university lecturer for "Materials for Electrical Engineering and ELectronics" in 1983, associate professor in 1987, full professor of materials science in 1989 and finally university professor in 1996.
From 1989 until his retirement in 2007, Prof. Knedlik headed the Department of Materials in Electrical Engineering and in this context played a decisive role in the reorganization of existing and the establishment of new efficient organizational forms and structures. Examples of this include the Institute of Materials Engineering, founded in 1997, the "Materials" field of study in the Electrical Engineering degree course and the "Materials Science" joint degree course - Thuringian model as a new form of study in materials training, the Coating and Material Properties Test Center as a branch of the MFPA Weimar at the TU Ilmenau and the Center for Micro and Nanotechnologies with the analytics area established in 2002. As Vice Dean of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology, Prof. Knedlik successfully coordinated the process of converting the faculty's diploma courses to the two-tier education system.
Prof. Knedlik was a member of numerous specialist committees and working groups focusing on non-destructive material testing, material characterization, materials in microsystems technology, micro- and nanotechnologies and a member of the Collaborative Research Centre SFB 622 "Nanopositioning and Nanomeasuring Machines".
The research work led by Prof. Knedlik covered a broad spectrum in the areas of materials development, characterization and testing, such as layer thickness measurement, stability of contact and guideway systems, novel functional materials, analysis of liquid metal alloys, nanoparticle-induced surface modification, computer simulation of material parameters.
As a university lecturer, Prof. Knedlik has introduced a large number of students from various disciplines to the secret world of materials and supervised a large number of diploma theses and dissertations. He was co-author of the university textbook "Materials Testing" and three textbooks "Materials in Electrical Engineering" and author of numerous lecture manuscripts.
Prof. Knedlik has made a lasting contribution to the extremely successful and fruitful scientific cooperation with the Chair of Microelectronics at the Slovak Technical University of Bratislava, which he coordinated on behalf of the TU Ilmenau for almost two decades. For his outstanding contribution, he was awarded the Medal of Honor of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology of STU in 1997 and the Medal of Honor of STU Bratislava in 2006.
We will remember him vividly for his life's work, his dedication and prudence and will always honor his memory and continue to work in his spirit.
Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology
Institute of Materials Engineering
Group of Materials for Electrical Engineering and Electronics
