Prof. Dr.-Ing. Christoph Leyens studied and graduated in materials science and engineering, earned his Ph.D. in the field of coatings for and engineering of titanium alloys, and finally habilitated on materials for aerospace – RWTH Aachen being his alma mater. He has worked at DLR – German Aerospace Center as research scientist, group leader and finally acting director of the Institute of Materials Research before he accepted a full professorship in Metallurgy and Materials Technology at BTU Cottbus in 2004. Here he was also board member of the Light Weight Development Center Panta Rhei and served as the university’s Vice President for Research, Development and Innovation for more than two years. In 2009 he accepted the full professorship for Materials Technology at TU Dresden, and since 2010 he serves as the director of the Institute of Materials Science at TU Dresden. After several management positions at the Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS, Dresden, he was appointed its director in 2016. Since 2022 he is a member of the Executive Board of acatech - National Academy of Science and Engineering.

Prof. Leyens has covered a wide range of research topics including science and technology of high temperature and lightweight materials, surface engineering and coatings development, (laser-based) thermal surface technology, laser processing and additive manufacturing. He has published more than 300 scientific papers, 16 books and book chapters and holds 11 patents.