This document lists notable German inventors, scientists, engineers and thinkers across many fields including physics, chemistry, medicine, mathematics, engineering and more. Some of the individuals mentioned and their contributions include Albert Einstein and his work on relativity and quantum mechanics, Max Planck and his founding of quantum theory, Rudolf Diesel and his invention of the diesel engine, Gottlieb Daimler and Carl Benz for their pioneering work on automobiles, and Wernher von Braun for his leadership in rocketry and space exploration. The document provides a broad overview of many important figures and discoveries in German history of science and technology.

1. A
Ernst Abbe: Invented the first refractometer, and many other devices.
Robert Adler: Invented a better television remote control.
Udo Adelsberger: Invented the PTR Quartz clock among other things together with Adolf Scheibe.
Konrad Adenauer: Invented soya sausage (1916; "Kölner Wurst") and [coarse] wholemeal bread (1917;
Kölner Brot).
Alois Alzheimer: Psychiatrist who discovered Alzheimer´s disease, a degeneration of the brain in old age.
Manfred von Ardenne: Self taught researcher, applied physicist and inventor. Inventor of television among
other things. 600 patents in fields including electron microscopy, medical technology, nuclear technology,
plasma physics, and radio and television technology.
Martin Leo Arons: Mercury-vapor lamp together with Peter Cooper Hewitt.
Leopold Auerbach: Discovery of Plexus myentericus Auerbachi, or Auerbach's plexus.
Max Abraham: Physicist. Worked as Max Planck's assistant for three years. Developed theories on
electrons.
B
Karl Ernst von Baer: Discovered mammal ovum.
Oscar Barnack: The father of the first mass marketed 35mm camera and Leica.
Wilhelm Bauer: Inventor and engineer, who built several hand-powered submarines.
Hans Beck: Inventor of the toy Playmobil.
Martin Behaim: Inventor of the first globe of the world (Erdapfel).
Emil Adolf von Behring: Discoverer of diphtheria antitoxin. He was awarded histories first Nobel Prize in
Physiology or Medicine in 1901.
Melitta Bentz: Inventor of the coffee filter, 1908.
Karl Benz: Father and inventor of the gasoline-powered automobile, 1885, and pioneering founder of
automobile manufacturing.
Johann Elert Bode Discovered the Titus-Bode Law
Carl Bosch: Chemist and Nobel laureate, discovered the processes of industrial high pressure chemistry.
Robert Bosch: He invented, engineered and launched various innovations for the motor vehicle.
Karlheinz Brandenburg: Inventor and audio engineer; father of audio compression format MPEG Audio
Layer 3, more commonly known as MP3.
Wernher von Braun: The preeminent rocket engineer of the 20th century. Developed the V2 rocket for
Germany. Built Saturn V rocket in USA which put man on the moon.
Carl Friedrich Bückling: Inventor of the first German steam-powered machine.
Robert Bunsen: Chemist who developed the Bunsen burner, and with Gustav Kirchhoff he discovered
caesium (1860) and rubidium (1861).
Wilhelm Busch: Caricaturist, painter and poet; father of comics.
Walther Bothe: nuclear physicist, who shared the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1954 with Max Born.
C
Georg Cantor: Mathematician, discoverer of the set theory (1870s), which has become a fundamental
theory in mathematics.
Carl von Clausewitz: The father of modern military theory.
Claus-Frenz Claussen: Robot-Auto for seniors "Auto-Cyberno-Mobil“ around 2007.
Justus Claproth: Jurist and inventor of recyclable Paper and deinking.
Heinrich Clobes: Engineer who invented first mechanical street sweeper, patented 1909.
Manfred Curry: Curryklemme for Sheet (sailing) and sailboats, discoverer of the pseudoscientific
phenomenon of "geomagnetic lines" called the Curry Grid.
D

2. Gottlieb Daimler: He invented the first high-speed petrol engine and the first four-wheel automobile, also
the first internal combustion motorcycle, the Reitwagen.
Adolf "Adi" Dassler: Sport sneakers with and without spikes. (Adidas).
Rudolf Dassler: First sport shoes with screw-in shoe spikes, 1949. (Puma).
Johann Friedrich Dieffenbach: Pioneer of skin transplantation and cosmetic surgery.
Rudolf Diesel: Inventor of the diesel engine.
Christian Doppler: Discovered the Doppler effect.
Walter Robert Dornberger: Co-inventor of the V2 rocket.
Karl Drais: Inventor of the bicycle and typewriter (1821) among other things.
Peter Ferdinand Drucker: Invented the science of modern management.
E
Albert Einstein in 1921, the year he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics
Paul Ehrlich: Scientist in the fields of hematology, immunology, and chemotherapy, and Nobel laureate.
Developed an effective treatment against syphilis.
Albert Einstein: Godfather of Theoretical Physics, inventor and discoverer.
Leonard Euler: Various discoveries in mathematics. "He is our teacher in all things."
F
Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit: Physicist and engineer who invented the alcohol thermometer (1709), the
mercury thermometer (1714), and a temperature scale now named after him.
Hermann Emil Fischer: Discoveries in chemistry.
Joseph von Fraunhofer: Discovery of the dark absorption lines known as Fraunhofer lines in the Sun's
spectrum, and for making excellent optical glass and achromatic telescope objectives.
Nikolaus Friedreich: Discovery of Friedreich-Auerbach disease (together with Leopold Auerbach) among
other things.
G
Brothers Grimm: Academic pioneers of linguistics and storytelling; Grimm's law.
Johann Carl Friedrich Gauß: Inventor of the first electromagnetic telegraph; discoverer of many things in
mathematics and physics, known as "the Prince of Mathematicians".
Walter Gerlach: Physicist who co-discovered spin quantization in a magnetic field, the Stern-Gerlach
effect.
Heinrich Göbel: Inventor of the first light bulb in 1854.
Kurt Gödel: Important discoveries in math and logic, such as the incompleteness theorems
Peter Carl Goldmark: Engineer who was instrumental in developing the long-playing (LP) microgroove 33-
1/3 rpm vinyl phonograph disc.
Heinz Guderian: The father of modern mechanized warfare.
Otto von Guericke: Discovered vacuum pump.
Johannes Gutenberg: Inventor of the technology of printing with movable type.
H
Otto Hahn the first man to split the atom.
Fritz Haber:German chemist and Nobel laureate who pioneered synthetic ammonia and chemical warfare.
Otto Hahn: German chemist and Nobel laureate who pioneered the fields of radioactivity and
radiochemistry. "The father of nuclear chemistry" and the "founder of the atomic age". Discovered nuclear
fission.
Henry J. Heinz: Tomato ketchup and fifty six other things.
Werner Heisenberg: Theoretical physicist who made fundamental contributions to quantum mechanics.
Discovered a particle's position and velocity cannot be known at the same time. Discovered atomic nuclei

3. are made of protons and neutrons.
Rudolf Hell: Inventor of the first fax machine (Hellschreiber).
Richard Hellmann: Hellmann's (Blue Ribbon) Mayonnaise, 1905.
Hermann von Helmholtz: Discovered the principal of the conservation of energy.
Peter Henlein: Inventor of the watch.
Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel: Discovered infrared radiation among other things.
Heinrich Hertz: Physicist, Discoverer of electromagnetic/radio waves.
Victor Francis Hess: Discovered Cosmic rays. Also won the Nobel Prize.
David Hilbert: Influential Mathematician, discovered and developed a broad range of fundamental ideas in
math.
Albert Hoffman: Discovered the chemical properties of chitin and lysergic acid diethylamide.
Felix Hoffmann: Aspirin (Bayer), 1897.
Gottlob Honold: Inventor of the spark plug and the modern internal combustion engine, as well as
headlights.
Christian Huelsmeyer: Inventor of Radar.
Alexander von Humboldt: Naturalist and explorer. His quantitative work on botanical geography was
foundational to the field of biogeography.
Wilhelm von Humboldt: Originator of the linguistic relativity hypothesis.
I
Otmar Issing: Economist who invented the "two pillar" decision algorithm now used by the ECB.
J
Hugo Junkers: Pioneer of all-metal aircraft construction with the Junkers J 1 (1915–16).
K
Donald J. Kessler - Astrophysicist, known for developing the Kessler syndrome.
Johannes Kepler: Discovered the laws of planetary motion.
Erhard Kietz: Pioneer discoverer of video technology.
Gustav Kirchhoff: Discovery of the principles upon which spectrum analysis is founded.
Martin Heinrich Klaproth: Discovered the element Uranium.
Robert Koch: Physician, discoverer, inventor and Nobel Prize winner. He became famous for isolating
Bacillus anthracis (1877), the Tuberculosis bacillus (1882) and the Vibrio cholera (1883) and for his
development of Koch's postulates.
Arthur Korn: Inventor involved in development of the fax machine, specifically the transmission of
photographs or telephotography, known as the Bildetelegraph.
Julius H. Kroehl: Inventor and engineer, who built the first functioning submarine in the world.
Alfred Krupp: Pioneer in metal casting and metal working process and procedures.
L
Eugen Langen: Entrepreneur, engineer and inventor, involved in the development of the petrol engine and
the Wuppertal monorail.
Max von Laue: Discoveries regarding the diffraction of X-rays in crystals.
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz: Philosopher known for discovering the mathematical field of calculus and
coherently laying down its basic operations in 1684.
Justus von Liebig: Discoveries in chemistry.
Otto Lilienthal: Father of Aviation and first successful aviator. Main discovery was the properties and
shape of the wing.
M

4. Ernst Mach: Discovered many effects of high speed projectiles; the Mach number is dedicated to his
memory.
Georg Hans Madelung: Academic and aeronautical engineer; a participant in the development of the
Junkers F.13.
Karl Marx: Political economist and philosopher, who discovered the mechanics of Marxism and whose
ideas influence the world we now live in.
Wilhelm Maybach: Together with Gottlieb Daimler the first gasoline-powered motorcycle, power-engined
boat and later, 1902, the Mercedes car model.
Ottomar von Mayenburg: Inventor of "Chlorodont", the first commercial brand of toothpaste.
Lise Meitner: Nuclear physicist, who, together with Otto Hahn, provided a theoretical account of nuclear
fission.
Gregor Mendel: Discoveries in genetics.
Johannes Peter Müller: Discoveries in physiology.
N
Walther Nernst: Inventor of the Nernst lamp and Nobel laureate.
Karl Nessler: Inventor of the permanent wave.
O
Hermann Oberth: Pioneer of rocket science and discoverer of the Oberth effect.
Hans Joachim Pabst von Ohain: The modern jet engine in 1933, patented in 1936.
Nikolaus August Otto: Inventor of the first internal-combustion engine to efficiently burn fuel directly in a
piston chamber.
P
Max Planck: Physicist, Scientist. He is considered to be the founder of the quantum theory, and one of the
most important physicists of the twentieth century.
Robert Wichard Pohl: In 1938, together with Rudolf Hilsch, built first functioning solid-state amplifier using
salt as the semiconductor.
R
Johann Philipp Reis: Inventor of the first phone transmitter in 1861, he also invented the term Telephone.
Ralf Reski: Moss bioreactor (1998)
Paul Julius Freiherr von Reuter: Communications pioneer.
Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen: Physicist and discoverer of x-rays/Röntgen rays (8 November 1895), this
earned him the first Nobel Prize in Physics in 1901.
Fritz Reiche: was a student of Max Planck and a colleague of Albert Einstein,who was active in, and
made important contributions to the early development of quantum mechanics including co-authoring the
Thomas-Reiche-Kuhn sum rule
S
Hans Sauer: Inventor of miniature high power relays; 309 patents worldwide in relay conceptions.
Adolf Scheibe: Invented the PTR Quartz clock (1930) among other things together with Udo Adelsberger.
Heinrich Schliemann: Father of archaeology, among other things he discovered Homeric Troy.
Bernhard Schmidt: Discovered major improvements to the telescope.
Paul Schmidt (inventor): Developed since 1928 his idea of a new drive, the "pulsating incineration", also
used in the V1-Rocket (engine was called "Argus-Schmidtrohr"); pulsejet was a development by Schmidt.
Johann Lukas Schönlein: Professor of medicine, he discovered among other things the parasitic cause of

5. ringworm or favus (Achorion Schönleinii).
Marx Schwab: Silversmith, invented coining with the screw press around 1550.
Theodor Schwann: Discovery of properties of cells in animals.
Werner Sell: (Georg Robert Werner Sell) invented airplane kitchens, fitted kitchens and the prefabricated
house among other things.
Friedrich Sertürner: First to isolate morphine from the opium poppy, discovering morphine.
Ernst Werner von Siemens: Dynamo, pointer telegraph that used a needle to point to the right letter, first
electric elevator, trolleybus.
Georg Wilhelm Steller: Discoverer of Alaska (1741) and pioneer of Alaskan Natural History.
Otto Stern: Nobel laureate; contributed to the discovery of spin quantization in the Stern-Gerlach
experiment with Walther Gerlach in 1922.
Eduard Suess: Discoveries in geology.
Friedrich Albert Moritz Schlick: was a German philosopher, physicist and the founding father of logical
positivism and the Vienna Circle.
Walter H. Schottky:played a major early role in developing the theory of electron and ion emission
phenomena, invented the screen-grid vacuum tube and the pentode.
T
Louis Tuchscherer: Inventor and mechanical engineer.
U
Dietrich "Diedrich" Uhlhorn: Engineer, mechanic and inventor, who invented the first mechanical
tachometer (1817), between 1817 and 1830 inventor of the Presse Monétaire (level coin press known as
Uhlhorn Press) which bears his name.
Hand mit Ringen: print of Wilhelm Röntgen's first "medical" x-ray, of his wife's hand, taken on 22
December 1895 and presented to Professor Ludwig Zehnder of the Physik Institut, University of Freiburg,
on 1 January 1896
V
Abraham Vater: Ampulla of Vater.
Hans Vogt: Invented sound-on-film (idea 1905) together with Jo Engl and Joseph Massolle, first sound-
on-film for the public on 17 September 1922 in Filmtheater Alhambra , Berlin, Germany.
Woldemar Voigt: Physicist, who taught at the Georg August University of Göttingen. He worked on crystal
physics, thermodynamics and electro-optics. He discovered the Voigt effect in 1898.
Waldemar Voigt (aerospace engineer): Chief designer at Messerschmitt's Oberammergau offices and
pioneer of the Me 163 and Me 264, project leader of the development of Me P. 1101, Me P. 1106, Me P.
1110, Me P. 1111 und Me P. 1116.
W
Hellmuth Walter: Engineer who pioneered research into rocket engines and gas turbines.
Felix Wankel: Inventor of the Rotary Motor.
Max Weber: Discovered the mass effects of capitalism and modernity.
Wilhelm Eduard Weber: Inventor of the first electromagnetic telegraph together with Carl Friedrich Gauss.
Gustav Weißkopf: Aviation pioneer - Worlds First Motorized Flight: August 14, 1901.
Clemens Alexander Winkler: Chemist who discovered the element germanium in 1886.
August Wöhler: Investigated fatigue phenomena in the behavior of materials
Friedrich Wöhler: The first to synthesis urea.
Z

6. Carl Zeiss: Pioneered glass casting and allied procedures and processes for high quality optics.
Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin (1838–1917): Inventor of the airship named after him. Start of the airship
LZ1 in 1900.
Karl Zimmer: Discovered the effects of ionizing radiation on DNA.
Konrad Zuse: Inventor of the first computing machine/computer, and the first high-level programming
language.