The chairs in the area of Foundations of Computing focus on the core areas of theoretical, practical, and technical computer science, ranging from theoretical foundations to practical applications.
Theoretical computer science addresses fundamental questions regarding the computability, efficiency, and capabilities of functions and algorithms, and develops formalizations that are used in other areas of computer science to describe and analyze complex systems.
- Which functions can a computer in principle compute, and which cannot?
- For which problems are there efficient algorithms?
- Can we prove that some algorithms are better than others, and in what sense?
- Can computers “learn on their own” to perform certain tasks, and if so, which ones and how?
In practical computer science, current research focuses on the efficient construction of large software systems, the analysis and transformation of structured data, algorithms for automated proof and optimization, and solutions for complex web-based distributed systems.
- Declarative languages for the analysis and transformation of structured data
- New paradigms for data-intensive programming
- Efficient construction of large software systems
- Definition, analysis, and verification of software systems
- Algorithms for computation in mathematical propositional logic
In technical computer science, current research focuses on the design, analysis, and optimization of embedded systems, communication networks, and computer architectures, as well as technical applications of machine learning methods.
- Design and verification of secure embedded systems
- Timing and power analysis of embedded software
- Architectural design: from the system level to tapeout
- Neural interfaces and brain signal decoding
- Design, optimization, and application of communication networks
- Internet protocols, Software-Defined Networking (SDN)
- Industrial, automotive, and satellite networks, 5G/6G
- Fault tolerance, network security, cybersecurity
