Heilbronn Colloquium Rudnick

5th September 2019

University of Bristol

We are delighted to welcome Zeev Rudnick (Tel Aviv University), to the University of Bristol for a Heilbronn Colloquium.

Zeev is a Professor of Mathematics at Tel-Aviv University, where he holds the Cissie and Aaron Beare Chair in Number Theory. His main interests are in number theory, mathematical physics and quantum chaos, and his world-leading research in these fields has attracted numerous awards and prizes. For example, in 2001 he received the Erdos Prize of the Israel Mathematical Union and he was elected a Fellow of the American Mathematical Society in 2012. He was an invited speaker at the International Congress of Mathematicians in 2014 and his current research is supported by an ERC Advanced Grant. 

Title: Quantum chaos, eigenvalue statistics and the Fibonacci sequence

Abstract:
One of the outstanding insights in the field of “Quantum Chaos” is a conjectural description of local statistics of the energy levels of simple quantum systems according to crude properties of the dynamics of classical limit, such as integrability, where one expects Poisson statistics, versus chaotic dynamics, where one expects Random Matrix Theory statistics. These insights were obtained by physicists in the last quarter of the 20-th century (much of it in Bristol!). However, mathematicians are far behind in understanding the scope and validity of this theory. The first part of the lecture will be dedicated to an introduction to these conjectures, which I believe deserve to be better known in the mathematics community. In the second part, I will describe more recent work on statistics of the minimal gap between the first N eigenvalues for one such simple integrable system, a rectangular billiard having irrational squared aspect ratio. When the aspect ratio is the “golden ratio”, the problem involves some curious and entertaining properties of the Fibonacci sequence.

The colloquium will take place in 1.15 in the Queens Building at 16.00 on Thursday 5th September. It will be followed by a wine reception in the Pugsley Foyer. To help us plan space and catering, please complete the short registration form if you are planning to come.

 

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