Connected, Interdisciplinary and Future-Oriented

Research Profile of the MNF

The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (MNF) at the University of Cologne (UoC) stands for internationally visible excellence in research across mathematics and the natural sciences. Its research strength is reflected in a high number of international publications, successful acquisition of competitive third-party funding, and a wide range of collaborations with renowned partners both within and beyond the university. Regional partners include University Hospital Cologne, the Cologne-based Max Planck Institutes, Forschungszentrum Jülich, the German Aerospace Center (DLR), and universities in the region. Our international partnerships extend across the globe.

The Faculty’s research is characterized by broad thematic diversity combined with clearly defined scientific areas of excellence. It ranges from fundamental questions about the structure and dynamics of the universe to research on matter and quantum information, as well as plant sciences, Earth and environmental sciences, life sciences, and mathematical methods. Interdisciplinary collaboration is a fundamental element of the Faculty’s research approach: knowledge and methods from different disciplines are brought together to address complex scientific and societal challenges.

The MNF aims to create outstanding conditions for advancing the frontiers of science, opening up new fields of research, and developing answers to the key questions of the future.

The Key Profile Areas (KPAs) are a central pillar of the University of Cologne’s research profile. They bring together thematically related research with high scientific and societal relevance, build on a substantial critical mass of expertise, and combine internationally leading research with transdisciplinary collaborations within and beyond the University.

The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences plays a particularly strong role in this structure: it leads four of the University’s nine KPAs and is involved in three additional ones. This places the Faculty at the heart of key future-oriented research areas at the University of Cologne – ranging from quantum science and astrophysics to plant and Earth system research, as well as research into ageing and cancer.

The research strength of the MNF is particularly evident in its participation in four of the five Clusters of Excellence currently funded at the University of Cologne. The clusters establish long-term structures for internationally competitive collaborative research and bring together the expertise of the UoC with strong external research partners.

The four Clusters of Excellence reflect key pillars of the Faculty’s research profile: life sciences, plant sciences, quantum science, and astrophysics. At the same time, they are closely linked to the corresponding Key Profile Areas of the University and further strengthen their international visibility.

For the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, excellent research means not only strengthening established areas of expertise, but also identifying and developing emerging scientific fields at an early stage. The University of Cologne’s Emerging Groups play an important role in this regard. As part of the Excellent Research Support Program (ERSP), they support innovative teams typically consisting of five to ten researchers who explore new directions in research and have the potential to develop into larger, sustainable collaborative research initiatives. Successful Emerging Groups can provide the foundation for new externally funded research consortia and, in the longer term, potentially for new Key Profile Areas.

The MNF is involved in all of the UoC’s current Emerging Groups.