Doron Gepner (; born March 31, 1956) is an Israeli

theoretical physicist Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain, and predict natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental physics, which uses experi ...

. He made important contributions to the study of

string theory In physics, string theory is a theoretical framework in which the point-like particles of particle physics are replaced by one-dimensional objects called strings. String theory describes how these strings propagate through space and intera ...

two-dimensional conformal field theory A two-dimensional conformal field theory is a quantum field theory on a Euclidean two-dimensional space, that is invariant under local conformal transformations. In contrast to other types of conformal field theories, two-dimensional conformal fi ...

, and integrable models.

Birth and education

Gepner was born in Philadelphia to Israeli parents. He studied mathematics at Technion, Haifa ( B. Sc., 1976) and theoretical physics at the Weizmann Institute, Rehovot (

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

, 1985), where his graduate advisor was Yitzhak Frishman. His early work focused on non-perturbative

quantum field theory In theoretical physics, quantum field theory (QFT) is a theoretical framework that combines Field theory (physics), field theory and the principle of relativity with ideas behind quantum mechanics. QFT is used in particle physics to construct phy ...

in two space-time dimensions.

Research

In 1985–1987 Gepner was a postdoctoral researcher at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

. He made important contributions to the study of

Rational Conformal Field Theory In theoretical physics, a rational conformal field theory is a special type of two-dimensional conformal field theory with a finite number of conformal primary field, primaries. In these theories, all dimensions (and the central charge) are ratio ...

with extended

chiral algebra In mathematics, a chiral algebra is an algebraic structure introduced by as a rigorous version of the rather vague concept of a chiral algebra in physics. In Chiral Algebras, Beilinson and Drinfeld introduced the notion of chiral algebra, which ...

s. He also pioneered the use of methods of conformal field theory to study compactifications of

superstring Superstring theory is an theory of everything, attempt to explain all of the Elementary particle, particles and fundamental forces of nature in one theory by modeling them as vibrations of tiny supersymmetry, supersymmetric String (physics), st ...

and

heterotic string In string theory, a heterotic string is a closed string (or loop) which is a hybrid ('heterotic') of a superstring and a bosonic string. There are two kinds of heterotic superstring theories, the heterotic SO(32) and the heterotic E8 ×&nbs ...

Calabi–Yau manifold In algebraic and differential geometry, a Calabi–Yau manifold, also known as a Calabi–Yau space, is a particular type of manifold which has certain properties, such as Ricci flatness, yielding applications in theoretical physics. P ...

s. He introduced exactly solvable examples of such compactifications now known as Gepner models. This was an important step in establishing that superstrings and heterotic strings have a

landscape A landscape is the visible features of an area of land, its landforms, and how they integrate with natural or human-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. A landscape includes th ...

of consistent vacua. Later he held research and teaching positions at Princeton University (1987-1989), Weizmann Institute (1989-1993) and

California Institute of Technology The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech) is a private research university in Pasadena, California, United States. The university is responsible for many modern scientific advancements and is among a small group of institutes ...

(1992-1994). Since 1993 he has been an associate professor at the Weizmann Institute. Gepner's later work centered on Rational Conformal Field Theory and its relation with 2D integrable models. Gepner also made notable contributions to the theory of partitions in number theory, finding deep generalizations and analogs of the

Rogers–Ramanujan identities In mathematics, the Rogers–Ramanujan identities are two identities related to basic hypergeometric series and integer partitions. The identities were first discovered and proved by , and were subsequently rediscovered (without a proof) by Srin ...

Students

* Ron Cohen *

Anton Kapustin Anton Nikolayevich Kapustin (born November 10, 1971, Moscow) is a Russian-American theoretical physicist and the Earle C. Anthony Professor of Theoretical Physics at the California Institute of Technology. His interests lie in quantum field th ...

* Ernest Baver * Boris Gotkin * Umut Gursoy * Boris Noyvert * Joseph Conlon * Sheshansu Pal * Barak Haim * Genish Arel

References

External links

* http://www.weizmann.ac.il/particle/content/doron-gepner
"Doron Gepner", ''Google Scholar''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gepner, Doron Israeli physicists Princeton University faculty 1956 births Living people String theorists Theoretical physicists