Schlagwort: ‘Forschungszentrum Jülich’
Software-defined vehicles and automated driving – last call in Europe for new alliances and architectures
Professor Lutz Eckstein © IKA
Lecture by Professor Lutz Eckstein, Head of the Institute for Automotive Engineering at RWTH Aachen University and President of the VDI, on Wednesday, 22 October 2025, from 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Admission is free. The lecture/discussion will take place via Zoom and will be available as a video recording afterwards.
The automotive industry is facing major challenges. As well as electrification and automated driving, these mainly relate to the underlying hardware and software architecture that defines the functionality of modern motor vehicles. As with smartphones, it is now possible to update the infotainment system with apps and updates. However, established vehicle manufacturers are reluctant to implement a service-oriented software architecture and provide frequent updates and upgrades for safety-related functions.
Emerging competition in the field of automated driving, however, makes this necessary. From both a social and customer perspective, it would be unacceptable to respond to critical situations or even accidents only after months with a software update. While new vehicle manufacturers with an IT background are already addressing this capability with suitable architectures, established manufacturers have so far attempted to develop expensive proprietary solutions with mixed results. Consequently, there is a growing willingness within the European automotive industry to collaborate on the development and use of open-source software, beginning with the S-CORE middleware. In his presentation, Professor Eckstein will highlight the challenges involved and the further cooperation required to achieve this.
The lecture series is being held in cooperation with the RWTH Computer Science Department, Forschungszentrum Jülich, the Regional Group of the German Informatics Society (RIA), the Regional Industry Club for Computer Science Aachen (Regina) and the Aachen Group of the German University Association.
New dimensions for microelectronics: RWTH and TU Dresden launch major joint project
Artistic visualization of a stacked chip resembling a skyscraper. © TU Dresden / cfaed
Professor Max Lemme is the co-spokesperson for the new DFG Collaborative Research Centre, ‘Active-3D’. The project aims to enhance the performance of microchips by utilising the previously unused space above the chip surface.
The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) is establishing a new Collaborative Research Centres/Transregios (CRC/TRR-404), namly Next Generation Electronics with Active Devices in Three Dimensions (Active-3D). This pioneering research project aims to take the miniaturisation of microelectronics to the next phase. With Professor Max Lemme, holder of the Chair of Electronic Devices at RWTH Aachen University, a renowned scientist from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology is involved in a central role as co-spokesperson. Together with Professor Thomas Mikolajick from TU Dresden, he is coordinating the joint project, in which several universities and non-university research institutions are involved.
The aim of the Collaborative Research Centre is to make the third dimension electronically usable. While conventional chips have mainly been optimised in terms of surface area, the volume above this – i.e. the area of the so-called metallisation level (back-end of line, BEOL) – is now also to be developed for active components that enable logic and memory functions as well as switchable connections. Based on new materials, innovative components are being developed and integrated into circuits and systems that offer enhanced performance, processing speed and surface area. As part of the technology-design-system co-development approach, materials, technology and circuits are being developed simultaneously. This makes it possible to distribute functionalities across the volume previously reserved for passive wiring, thus utilising the entire volume of the chip. The result could be completely new 3D electronic systems that are not only more powerful, but also more energy-efficient and compact.
‘The TRR Next Generation Electronics With Active Devices in Three Dimensions (Active-3D) will strengthen Germany’s and Europe’s position in basic microelectronics research,’ explains Professor Mikolajick. ‘The researchers involved at the various locations are ideally placed to investigate the use of the entire volume of a chip for active components.’
This major project has already resulted in the formation of a powerful network at the forefront of international electronics research. Partners include Forschungszentrum Jülich, AMO GmbH, NaMLab gGmbH, the Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics in Halle, and Ruhr University Bochum. The Collaborative Research Centre/Transregio format enables close, cross-location cooperation. RWTH Aachen University and TU Dresden share scientific responsibility, each contributing complementary focal points. In addition, young scientists from other universities and non-university research institutions are involved. Around 15 doctoral and postdoctoral positions have already been filled, with one further position yet to be advertised. Further vacancies will follow during the course of the project.
Vacancies will be posted on the homepage of the Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics.
