Scientific staff
 | Prof. dr. Jan Bouwe van den Berg
Tel: +31 20 5987686 Room: R3.57 Email: janbouwe@few.vu.nl Home Page | I work on nonlinear partial differential equations and dynamical systems, often leading to pattern formation. I am interested in developing mathematical methods for such problems, with an open mind for applications. Subjects include (formal) asymptotic techniques, (rigorous) computational methods, the harmonic map heat flow (and other geometric flows), Hamiltonian systems, fourth order differential equations, biomathematics, periodically modulated travelling waves, Conley index and Floer homology. I especially enjoy topological and variational methods. |
 | Dr. Rein van der Hout
Tel: +31 20 5983717 Room: R4.41 Email: rvdhout@few.vu.nl Home Page | The motivation for my research is in the interaction between mathematical analysis and real life problems. Examples are (discontinuous) reaction-diffusion systems, beating phenomena in MEMS resonators, and flow problems for liquid crystals. The latter subject is closely related to the study of harmonic maps into the unit sphere and their gradient flows, which implies a strong link with topology and geometry. Such interactions tend to reveal a better understanding, both of mathematical and of physical phenomena. |
 | Prof. dr. Joost Hulshof
Tel: +31 20 5987682 Room: R3.40 Email: jhulshof@few.vu.nl Home Page | I work on nonlinear partial differential equations in mathematical models from the applied sciences. In particular I am interested in models that exhibit sharp fronts or free boundaries. Such models appear in a wide variety of applications, notably in combustion models for flame fronts, the lubrication approximation for thin viscous flows, Darcy flows and other processes in porous media, and harmonic map flows in the context of nematic liquid crystals. The central theme is the global behaviour of solutions, the possible formation of singularities and blow up phenomena. The interaction between rigorous methods and formal methods is essential for progress in this area. |
 | Prof. dr. Rien Kaashoek
Professor Emeritus Tel: +31 20 5987683 Room: R2.50 Email: M.A.Kaashoek@few.vu.nl Home Page | My research interests are Analysis and Operator Theory, and various connections between Operator Theory, Matrix Theory and Mathematical Systems Theory. In particular, Wiener-Hopf integral equations and Toeplitz operators and their nonstationary variants. State space methods for problems in analysis. Also metric constrained interpolation problems and completion problems for partially given operators. |
 | Dr. Sara Lombardo
Tel: +31 20 5987689 Room: R3.62 Email: sara@few.vu.nl Home Page | My main research interests are in mathematical physics, in particular in the theory of integrable systems. My research activity concerns symmetries, coherent structures (solitons), algebraic structures of integrable equations (Lie (super) algebras); nonlinear integrable equations and their applications to physics (mainly nonlinear optics) and to selected biophysical systems. Recently I became interested in finite groups cohomology and algebra cohomology. |
 | Dr. Federica Pasquotto
Tel: +31 20 5987689 Room: R3.62 Email: pasquott@few.vu.nl Home Page | I work on problems in symplectic topology and Hamiltonian dynamics. More specifically, my research includes the following topics: construction of symplectic manifolds and computation of their (classical) invariants; existence of periodic solution of Hamiltonian systems on non-compact energy hypersurfaces; resolution of singularities of symplectic orbifolds arising as reduced spaces of Hamiltonian group actions. |
 | Dr. Bob Planqué
Tel: +31 20 5987832 Room: S2.48 Email: rplanque@few.vu.nl Home Page | My research involves applying mathematics to biological problems. My focus lies in ecology and evolution, especially the organization and structure of social insect colonies and their collective behaviour. Mathematically, I mainly draw from differential equations and variational analysis, but I my modelling perspective in the end is driven by the biological problem at hand, not vice versa. |
 | Prof. dr. André Ran
Tel: +31 20 5987691 Room: R3.45 Email: ran@few.vu.nl Home Page | My research interests are operator theory, linear systems and control theory, and matrix analysis. Current projects are matrices and operators in the context of an indefinite inner product space, spectral and J-spectral factorization of rational matrix functions, and the connection with algebraic matrix Riccati equations and nonlinear matrix equations. |
 | Dr. Bob Rink
Tel: +31 20 5987830 Room: S2.30 Email: brink@few.vu.nl Home Page | I am interested in Hamiltonian dynamical systems, in particular lattice systems and systems with symmetries. An example is the Fermi-Pasta-Ulam chain, which models a one-dimensional crystal. It is famous for its surprising thermodynamic properties. Keywords in my research are: Hamiltonian systems, lattices, Fermi- Pasta-Ulam, nonlinear waves, geometric mechanics, equivariant bifurcation theory, quasi-periodicity and Aubry-Mather theory. |
 | Dr. Jan Sanders
Tel: +31 20 5987692 Room: R3.39 Email: jansa@few.vu.nl Home Page | My research interests at the moment are:
1. Computation and classification of unique normal forms of equilibria of ordinary differential equations. 2. The classification of integrable polynomial evolution equations, that is, equations with infinitely many generalized symmetries. 3. The connection between geometry and integrability. |
 | Dr. Freek van Schagen
Tel: +31 20 5987693 Room: S3.40 Email: freek@few.vu.nl Home Page | My research concerns linear operators both on finite and infinite dimensional spaces with applications to integral and differential equations and to extension problems for matrices. |
 | Prof. dr. ir. Jan van Schuppen
Tel: +31 20 5987683 Room: R2.50 Email: schuppen@few.vu.nl Home Page | My research interests are primarily in mathematical control and system theory. In particular, control of stochastic systems, control of hybrid systems, and control of discrete-event systems; and realization and system identification of various classes of systems. Control and system theory is a subarea of mathematics which has its own problems and it uses of mathematics primarily analysis, algebra, and stochastic processes. Building relations between concrete engineering, biological, or economic problems to fundamental mathematics is what interests me very much. Applied research is carried out in cooperation with others on the following topics: control of motorway traffic; control of distributed and hierarchical discrete-event systems motivated by road networks and by manufacturing; modeling and control of biochemical reaction networks (systems biology); and control for economic agents and for mathematical finance. |
 | Dr. ir. René Swarttouw
Tel: +31 20 5987787 Room: R4.26 Email: rene@few.vu.nl Home Page | My research involves special functions and orthogonal polynomials. I am currently focused on a classification of orthogonal polynomials satisfying a certain second order (q-) difference/tial equation. Besides that I am a co-author of a chapter on orthogonal polynomials for a Handbook of Mathematical Functions, which will appear in 2010 both on paper and on the web. |
 | Prof. dr. Rob van der Vorst
Section head Tel: +31 20 5987672 Room: R3.49 Email: vdvorst@few.vu.nl Home Page | My main research interests can be described as a mixture of partial differential equations, dynamical systems, and topology. An overall theme in this are variational methods. Concerning partial differential equations one subject deals with the relation between the topology of braids and the solutions of various types for second order scalar nonlinear diffusion equations. Related to this is Conley index theory. Recently I have become interested in the computational aspects of the Conley index, in particular with respect to braids as described above. Another subject is Hamiltonian systems and Floer homology. In this setting I am interested in generalizations of braid invariants. Related to this is the question of closed characteristics on non-compact energy manifolds. |
 | Dr. Michał Wojtylak Tel: +31 20 5987685 Room: R3.19 Email: mwojtyl@few.vu.nl Home Page | My main research interest is operator theory. I work on operators in indefinite inner product spaces and on unbounded operators in Hilbert spaces. I am also interested in harmonic analysis on *-semigroups, especially in scalar and operator moment problems and in reproducing kernel spaces. |
