MATH+ Mourns the Loss of Peter Deuflhard
On 22 September 2019, Professor Peter Deuflhard passed away at the age of 75. Berlin mathematics has lost a highly respected colleague and wonderful person.
Born in Bavaria, Peter Deuflhard studied physics at TU München. After he received his diploma in 1968, he went to Universität zu Köln, from which he got his dissertation in mathematics in 1972. Following his habilitation again from TU München in 1977, he was appointed Chair of Numerical Analysis at Universität Heidelberg. In 1986 he came to FU Berlin as Chair of Scientific Computing. It was in this role that he shaped the Berlin mathematics landscape significantly by helping to bring Zuse-Institut Berlin (ZIB) into being. He was one of the founders of the Research Center Matheon , a founding member of the Berlin Mathematical School, and acted as an integrative and representative figure for all of Berlin mathematics throughout.
Although he retired in 2012, Peter Deuflhard continued to participate in the academic life of the FU Berlin, ZIB, and MATH+ and was a welcomed and frequent guest at public events.
MATH+ mourns the loss of a wonderful member of the scientific community. Our thoughts are with his family in these hours of grief.