A roadmap for advanced ceramics has been developed for the period from 2010 to 2025 to provide guidelines for future investments for policy makers, scientists and industry alike. This project was funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG). Based on questionnaires, interviews and a final workshop with representatives from both industry and academia, three roadmaps on application fields and two roadmaps on scientific areas have been developed and contrasted. The three application fields selected are: (i) electronics, information and communication; (ii) energy and environment; (iii) mechanical engineering and the two scientific fields are: (a) structural and functional properties; (b) process technology. Within these fields, the tremendous growth opportunities for ceramics as an enabling technology are highlighted and suggestions for future development are made. Trends in advanced ceramics have been determined which describe future markets and applications. These applications will be linked with technology and material developments. This information about applications, technologies and material developments will help material science to derive the skills needed to develop a curriculum to improve research in advanced materials for the future. Developing these skills and incorporating them in a curriculum will help to shape the future strategy, not only in advanced materials, but also in processing and application technologies. This project supports the process of identifying future relevant competencies which can improve the understanding and the exploitation of future opportunities in advanced materials.

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