Becoming number one – SEK 160 million to Swedish research in Mathematics

In order for Sweden to regain an international, cutting edge position in Mathematics, the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation, in cooperation with the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, will support 84 prominent researchers in Mathematics during 2014-2022. The funding amounts to a total of SEK 160 million, and in the first application round 15 positions have been filled.

Sweden has a longstanding tradition of fostering internationally prominent mathematicians and many students want to undertake doctoral studies in this field. There is a great demand for mathematicians with research training, in trade and industry as well as in academia. Nevertheless, Swedish mathematical research has been losing ground internationally during past decades.

– The purpose of the initiative is for Sweden to regain an international, cutting-edge position. Mathematics is one of the largest disciplines at Swedish universities. It is also of great importance for Sweden’s future development, as it constitutes the basis for many medical and virtually all scientific and technological implementations, says Peter Wallenberg Jr, Vice-Chairman of the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation.

Five established researchers from abroad will become visiting professors at Swedish universities (in parenthesis): Prof. Lars Andersson, Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics, Germany (KTH Royal Institute of Technology); Prof. Stefano Serra Capizzano, University of Insubria, Italy (Uppsala University); Prof. Ai-Hua Fan, University of Picardie Jules Verne, France (Lund University); Prof. Mark David Groves, Saarland University, Germany (Lund University); Prof. Christiane Tretter, University of Bern, Switzerland (Stockholm University)

Six established researchers will receive funding for a post-doctoral position in Sweden open to researchers from abroad: Prof. Mats Boij, KTH Royal Institute of Technology; Prof. Pär Kurlberg, KTH Royal Institute of Technology; Prof. Volodymyr Mazorchuk, Uppsala University; Dr. Andreas Rosén, Chalmers University of Technology/ University of Gothenburg; Prof. Anna-Karin Tornberg, KTH Royal Institute of Technology; Prof. Warwick Tucker, Uppsala University

Four researchers holding Swedish doctorates will be recruited to post-doctoral positions at universities abroad (in parenthesis) and will also receive support for two years upon returning to Sweden: Dr. Per Alexandersson, Stockholm University (University of Pennsylvania, USA); Dr. Gabriel Bartolini, Linköping University (National Distance Education University, Spain); Dr. Georgios Dimitroglou Rizell, Paris-Sud University, France (University of Cambridge, UK); Dr. Jens Wittsten, Kyoto University, Japan (Ritsumeikan University, Japan)

The programme provides SEK 160 million in funding, enabling 24 Swedish post-docs to go abroad, and 35 post-docs and 25 visiting professors to be recruited internationally to Swedish institutions. Additionally, SEK 40 million will be given to support the Royal Academy’s Institut Mittag-Leffler, one of the top-ten Mathematics research institutes in the world.

Applications for the second round will be accepted later this spring. 

This year marks the 275th anniversary of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. The Academy was founded in 1739 and is an independent organization whose overall objective is to promote the sciences and strengthen their influence in society. The Academy takes special responsibility for the natural sciences and mathematics, but endeavours to promote the exchange of ideas between various disciplines.