About us

The Department of Mechanical Engineering is part of KIT's Area 3 "Mechanical and Electrical Engineering" together with the Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology, four Helmholtz programs, and eight institutes of the large-scale research area. The department consists of more than 20 institutes with about 1,000 employees, including about 40 professors, 460 scientific employees, and 200 employees in administration and technology. In addition, there are several hundred tutors and scientific assistants.

 

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Study Info Day at KIT

Are you interested in studying mechanical engineering? Have you always wanted to know what mechatronics engineers and information technicians do? If materials science and materials engineering sound exciting, stop by our information stand in the Audimax, attend a taster lecture or visit a research institute. Here you can find our program
Further information and the complete KIT program

Bild einer Studierendengruppe um einen LaptopKIT/ Magali Hauser
KIT's top performance in teaching and transfer

The Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) remains stable at 166th place in the current Times Higher Education (THE) World University Ranking, achieving excellent results in several areas. Particularly pleasing is the improvement in the "Teaching" indicator, where KIT was able to move up almost 50 places compared to the previous year to 147th place worldwide.

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International Fair

On November 26, 2025 from 1pm to 4pm, the annual International Fair of the KIT Department of Mechanical Engineering and the KIT Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology will take place in the Audimax foyer. Both the department's own programs and general exchange and internship opportunities will be presented. You can talk directly to the program managers at their information stands or during the presentations in the seminar room and exchange ideas with former outgoing and current guest students. Further information

Legierungsherstellung mittels Lichtbogenschmelzen im Materialsyntheselabor des Instituts für Angewandte Materialien – Werkstoffkunde. (Foto: Chiara Bellamoli, KIT)Chiara Bellamoli, KIT
Novel metal alloy defies extreme conditions

Reducing the consumption of fossil fuels - a new material could contribute to this in aircraft engines and gas turbines in the future. A team at KIT has developed a refractory metal alloy with a novel combination of chromium, molybdenum and silicon that is malleable at room temperature, stable at a melting temperature of around 2,000 degrees Celsius even at high temperatures and at the same time resistant to oxidation. DOI 10.1038/s41586-025-09516-8 Press release

 

Die Illustration zeigt Reibungsoberflächen (grau) und den Schmierfilm (blau) mit atomaren Vergrößerungen. Hannes Holey
Understanding friction processes with AI

A research team from KIT and the University of Freiburg is developing a new simulation method for friction processes at the level of individual molecules. This allows friction processes at the molecular level to be transferred to large systems. "This allows us to better understand and calculate complex friction systems in which the resulting lubricating film is millions of times thinner than the contact width of the friction surfaces," says Prof. Gumbsch from the IAM. KIT News

 

Kappenbild der Erstsemester im Europa-ParkEuropa-Park
Freshmen welcome at Europa-Park in Rust on 27.10.2025

Once again this year, our department's freshmen welcome event will take place in the first week of lectures on Monday 27.10.2025 at Europa-Park, where there will be lots of information about studying, insights into the technical requirements of building and operating amusement rides and plenty of fun. A construction competition and a backstage tour also await the first-year students. We wish all first-year students a good start to their studies.

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