Teaching and graduate supervision

Graduate Studies in Mathematical Physics in Waterloo
 

 

Graduate studies in my group:
 

  • So far all my graduate students came with scholarships (except for foreign students who were not eligible), which is to say that the competition is strong.
     
  • I expect very good mathematical skills. Particularly useful would be familiarity with the mathematical framework of quantum theory, i.e., functional analysis with emphasis on Hilbert spaces, with the mathematics of general relativity, i.e., differential geometry, and with the basics of information theory.
     
  • Application procedure:
     
    • If you wish to work with me as the primary supervisor you should apply to the Department of Applied Mathematics, mentioning my name. If you wish to apply:
       
      • For the application formalities, click here: Graduate Calendar and Graduate Program.
         
      • If questions remain, our graduate secretary, Ms. Helen Warren, will be glad to answer them, at: amgrad (at) math.uwaterloo.ca .
         
      • Deadline: the departmental deadline is February 1st - but it is not rigid. We consider applications all throughout the year. However, if you do not come with a scholarship, your chances for funding are best if you apply before the deadline (because soon after the deadline potential supervisors will have committed their funds to new students).  
         
    • Note that graduate applications to the Department of Applied Mathematics are rigorously pre-screened by the graduate admissions committee before they are forwarded to potential supervisors. This means that I cannot make any commitments before the committee reviewed and ranked your file.
       
    • We normally fully fund our (full-time) graduate students (as usual through teaching and research assistantships), except if students come with a scholarship, which usually receive a top-up.
       

Graduate studies with other faculty members:

  • The Faculty of Mathematics (with around 200 professors in 4 departments and the school of computer science) offers an exceptionally wide range of high level courses. These cover the whole spectrum of techniques that are of interest to a mathematical physicist, from discrete mathematics and algorithms to advanced differential geometry and cosmological quantum field theory. There are faculty members with interests in quantum information theory in the Department of Combinatorics and Optimization and in the School of Computer Science. In my home department, the Department of Applied Mathematics, these faculty members work in Mathematical Physics:
     
    • Prof. Joseph Emerson
       
    • Prof. John Wainwright
       
    • Prof. Zoran Miskovic
       
    • Prof. Josef Paldus (Emeritus)

       
  • Graduate studies in Mathematical Physics in the physics department:
     
    • The departments of physics of the universities of Waterloo and Guelph have joined forces to strengthen their graduate offerings, namely by forming the Guelph-Waterloo Physics Institute (GWPI). These offerings are coordinated and harmonized with those offered by Waterloo's Faculty of Mathematics.
       
    • For an up-to-date list of theoreticians in the GWPI, please see their web site.
       
    • If you apply to physics I may be a co-supervisor but you need to find a primary supervisor within the Guelph Waterloo Physics Institute.

       

Graduate studies "at Perimeter Institute":

  • There has been some confusion on this. Here are the facts:

     
    • The Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics (PI) is an independent research institute in 15 min. walking distance from the University of Waterloo.
       
    • PI is at the forefront of research into the foundations of quantum theory and general relativity, with applications ranging from quantum computing to cosmology.
       
    • Many of PI's researchers are affiliated with UW and vice versa. This means that UW is able to offer some highly specialized graduate courses taught by researchers from PI. In addition, the Institute frequently holds international conferences, workshops and schools, and it  has a large flux of international guest researchers who give seminars. These events are of great benefit to our graduate students.

    • Important: PI is an independent non-university research institution which has does not confer degrees.
       
    • PI has teamed up with UW and now offers a one-year intensive course work Masters, called PSI, modeled after Part III of Cambridge. It is to provide students with the best possible training for subsequent research in theoretical physics. For information about PSI, see here.
       
    • Students who wish to pursue graduate studies towards a Thesis Masters or a PhD under the supervision of a researcher at PI can do so if that researcher is also a university professor. Some PI researchers are university professors and others are not. If the researcher is not, the student will need a co-supervisor who is a university professor.
       
    • Either way, the student will have to apply to and enroll in a university graduate program, for example in the Department of Applied Mathematics of UW. For this purpose the student applies directly to the university department, the same way as any other prospective graduate student.
       
    • In addition, the prospective graduate student can apply to PI. If successful in the PI competition, PI may grant the student a desk at PI and possibly some financial support. For details on what PI may offer graduate students at UW, see the web site of PI.    
       
    • I am an affiliate member at PI but I am based in the Department of Applied Math at UW. I offer (very nice) office space to my grad students in my lab. My students and I frequently walk over to PI to take part in discussions and seminars.
       

Graduate studies "at the Institute for Quantum Computing (IQC)"

  • The Institute for Quantum Computing (IQC) is part of the University of Waterloo.
     
  • The IQC is at the forefront of both mathematical and experimental research into how to build and operate quantum technology. It is part of a world-wide effort to learn how to control individual atoms and photons with one of the main goals being to utilize quantum mechanical phenomena to achieve an exponential speed-up of certain types of calculations that are important, for example, in cryptography.
     
  • The IQC offers numerous opportunities (i.e. potential supervisors) for graduate students but graduate students cannot enroll at IQC directly. Graduate students apply to and enroll in one of UW's various departments, for example, the Department of Applied Mathematics. 
     

 



Last Modified:  Sunday 13 May 2007
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