A grazing reflection on some canonical problems in diffraction theory and their investigators
- đ¤ Speaker: David Abrahams (University of Cambridge)
- đ Date & Time: Wednesday 08 February 2023, 11:45 - 12:30
- đ Venue: Seminar Room 1, Newton Institute
Abstract
The field of diffraction theory can be identified as commencing at the end of the nineteenth century, with the first papers by Sommerfeld, Kirchhoff and then Schwarzschild. This talk aims to progress from these works to the present(ish) day, examining both the ‘simple’ canonical geometries that admit elegant exact solutions and the magnificent mathematical machinery developed to derive such results. This presentation will be a highly selective, biased and apocryphal account of the origins and development of the field, with brief mention of the giant characters who took the subject forward! It will focus principally towards the corner now predominantly occupied by applied mathematicians, who continue to develop and promulgate the subject into its myriad areas of application.
Series This talk is part of the Isaac Newton Institute Seminar Series series.
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David Abrahams (University of Cambridge)
Wednesday 08 February 2023, 11:45-12:30