Simon Holzer received his B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in mechanical engineering with a focus on microtechnology from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETHZ) in 2020 and 2022, respectively. He is currently working towards a Ph.D. in the Integrated Actuators Laboratory (LAI) at EPFL in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. His research interests lie in the fields of soft robotics, artificial muscles and biomechanics.
Stefania Konstantinidi is currently a PhD student at the Center for Artificial Muscles at EPFL in Switzerland. Her work is focused on the use of soft actuators for the restoration of facial movements. Notably, she is exploring anisotropic designs and properties of dielectric elastomer actuators through fiber reinforcement.
Markus Koenigsdorff received his Dipl.-Ing. degree in mechanical engineering from the Technische Universität Dresden in 2021. His diploma thesis on the simulation of eddy current distributions in carbon fiber-reinforced composites was awarded the SEW-Eurodrive Foundation study prize. After finishing his studies, he worked at the Institute of Solid-State Electronics, leading into a position as a PhD student in the Research Training Group “Interactive Fiber Rubber-Composites”. His current research focuses on the development of soft artificial muscles based on fiber-reinforced dielectric elastomer actuators. As part of the research program, he completed a research stay at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), working on applications for artificial muscles for facial paralysis patients.
Thomas Martinez received a engineering degree in electrical engineering from Ecole Polytechnique, France, in 2015; an M.Sc. degree in micro- and nano-electronics from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland, in 2016; and a Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering from University Paris-Saclay, France, in 2019. From 2020 until 2024, he was a Postdoctoral Researcher with the Integrated Actuators Laboratory, EPFL. His research interests include piezoelectric devices for energy conversion, low-power electronics, dielectric elastomer and SMA actuators.
Yoan Civet graduated from Grenoble Institute of Technology in France, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology – Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland, and Politechnico di Torino, Italy, with a specialty in micro- and nanotechnologies for integrated systems in 2008 and received a Ph.D. degree in nanoelectronics and nanotechnologies from the Université de Grenoble, France, in 2012 for his thesis on MEMS resonator frequency compensation. In 2013, he joined EPFL as a Postdoctoral Fellow and is now in charge of the Center for Artificial Muscles, Neuchâtel, aiming to develop soft actuators for biomedical applications.
Gerald Gerlach received M.Sc. and Dr.-Ing. degrees in electrical engineering from the Technische Universität Dresden, Germany, in 1983 and 1987, respectively. From 1983 to 1991, he worked in research and development in the field of sensors and measuring devices for several companies. In 1993, he became a Full Professor with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, TU Dresden, where he has been the Head of the Solid-State Electronics Laboratory since 1996. Since 2020, he has been the Vice Rector of Academic Affairs at TU Dresden. His research is focused on sensor and semiconductor technology; simulation and modeling of micromechanical devices; the development of solid-state sensors, especially infrared sensors and piezoresistive chemical sensors; and polymer-based actuators. Prof. Gerlach served as the President for the German Society for Measurement and Automatic Control (GMA) from 2007 to 2010. He was the Vice President and the President of EUREL (The Convention of National Societies of Electrical Engineers of Europe) from 2007 to 2008. From 2002 to 2009, he served as a member for the Advisory Board of the VDE (German Association of Engineers in Electrical Engineering, Electronics, Information Technology) and the Chairperson for the VDE’s Standing Committee for Engineering Education from 2001 to 2012. In 2013, he was an Advisory Board Member of the DVT–German Association of Technical-Scientific Societies for the period of 2013–2016 as the Chairperson.
Yves Perriard was born in Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1965. He received his M.Sc. degree in microengineering and a Ph.D. degree from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology of Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1989 and 1992, respectively. He was a co-founder of Micro-Beam SA. In 1998, he joined EPFL as a Senior Lecturer, becoming a Professor in 2003, where he is currently the Director of the Laboratory of Integrated Actuators. His research interests are in the field of new actuator design and associated electronic devices. In 2018, he was granted CHF CHF 12 million to build up a new Center for Artificial Muscles (CAM) at EPFL. Prof. Perriard is a Member of the Executive Council and the board of the European Power Electronics Association (EPE), Brussels.
