Robert Vaßen made a diploma in physics and received a PhD at RWTH Aachen University (1990). In 2004 he finished his habilitation on the “development of new oxide thermal barrier coatings for applications in stationary gas turbines“. In 2009 he received an appointment as professor at the Ruhr University Bochum, from 2010 on he is also a guest professorship at University West in Trollhättan, Sweden. He is the head of the section “materials for high temperature technologies” and deputy head of IEK-1, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH. His major research topics are thermal spray and powder technology, protective high-temperature coatings especially thermal and environmental barrier coatings, membranes, repair technologies, and ceramics in general. His work is mainly focused on materials development for energy conversion systems including gas turbines, solid oxide fuel cells, hydrogen systems, and concentrated solar power. He published more than 300 papers, about 200 in peer-reviewed journals having an H-index of 77 and more than 20000 citations (google scholar). In 2017, he was introduced into the ASM/TSS Hall of Fame of Thermal Spray and since 2019 he is fellow of both ASM International and the American Ceramic Society. He was elected in 2019 into the evaluation board of the German science foundation (DFG) and re6elected 2023. In 2022, he received the SOFT innovation award for the development of graded tungsten/steal coatings for fusion reactor applications and will receive in 2024 the ASM International Albert Sauveur award.