He studied mathematics at the University of Bonn, finishing his Doctor of Philosophy thesis in 1993 under the supervision of Stephan Luckhaus.
Visiting scholar Courant Institute, New York City, New York, 1995—1996. Postdoctoral associate Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, 1996, Courant Institute, New York City, 1996—1997. From assistant professor to professor University California, Santa Barbara, 1997—1999.
Professor University Bonn, Germany, since 1999. Editorial board Archive Rational mechanics and Analysis, 1999, Nonlinearity, 2000, Multiscale Modeling and Simulation, 2002.
Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities. North Rhine-Westphalia Academy for Sciences and Arts.