Royal honour for professor Detlef Lohse

03 May 2010 

Prof. Detlef Lohse, professor of Physics of Fluids at the University of Twente, has been made a Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion. He received the royal honour, which was presented by the mayor of Enschede, Peter den Oudsten, for his outstanding contribution to science and the connections he has succeeded in making between fundamental research and practical applications in society.

Prof. Lohse (1963) has been a professor at the University of Twente since 1998, and has built up an impressive scientific record. His group carries out world-leading research in fields including bubble dynamics, convection, fluid dynamics and turbulence, and it was categorized as 'hors catégorie' by a recent independent assessment committee. In 2005 the University of Twente recognized his outstanding services with his appointment as professor. In the same year he was awarded the Spinoza Prize, the highest scientific honour in the Netherlands. The fact that he also received the 2009 Simon Stevin Prize illustrates that Prof. Lohse not only carries out fundamental research at the highest level, but also groundbreaking work in new practical applications. Examples of this include the use of microscopic bubbles in combination with ultrasound in the medical world, and improved inkjet technology thanks to a deeper understanding of fluid dynamics. Lohse's group has often published papers in leading scientific journals such as Physical Review Letters, Nature and Science.

Prof. Lohse has not only distinguished himself in his scientific work, he has also demonstrated great involvement in the organization and financing of scientific research in the Netherlands. In addition, he has done a great deal of work to interest children in science and technology from primary school onwards.

Detlef Lohse is a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and the German Academy of Sciences 'Leopoldina', and is a Fellow of the American Physical Society (APS) and the Institute of Physics (IoP) in Great Britain.

The mayor of Enschede, Peter den Oudsten, presents Prof. Detlef Lohse with the medal of the Order of the Netherlands Lion

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