Yongbin Ruan (; born 14 February 1963) is a Chinese mathematician, specializing in

algebraic geometry Algebraic geometry is a branch of mathematics which uses abstract algebraic techniques, mainly from commutative algebra, to solve geometry, geometrical problems. Classically, it studies zero of a function, zeros of multivariate polynomials; th ...

differential geometry Differential geometry is a Mathematics, mathematical discipline that studies the geometry of smooth shapes and smooth spaces, otherwise known as smooth manifolds. It uses the techniques of Calculus, single variable calculus, vector calculus, lin ...

, and

symplectic geometry Symplectic geometry is a branch of differential geometry and differential topology that studies symplectic manifolds; that is, differentiable manifolds equipped with a closed, nondegenerate 2-form. Symplectic geometry has its origins in the ...

with applications to

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 ...

. Ruan studied from 1978 at

Sichuan University Sichuan University (SCU) is a public university in Chengdu, Sichuan, China. The university is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. I ...

with ''Benke'' Certificate of graduation followed by a master's degree in 1985. In 1985/86 he was a teaching assistant at the

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

. In 1991 he received his Ph.D. from the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

with thesis ''Gauge theory and its applications to Riemannian Geometry'' under the supervision of

Robion Kirby Robion Cromwell Kirby (born February 25, 1938) is a Professor of Mathematics at the University of California, Berkeley who specializes in low-dimensional topology. Together with Laurent C. Siebenmann he developed the Kirby–Siebenmann invariant ...

(and

Tomasz Mrowka Tomasz Mrowka (born September 8, 1961) is an American mathematician specializing in differential geometry and gauge theory. He is the Singer Professor of Mathematics and former head of the Department of Mathematics at the Massachusetts Institut ...

). As a postdoctoral researcher he was at

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...

. In 1993 he became an assistant professor at the

University of Utah The University of Utah (the U, U of U, or simply Utah) is a public university, public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret (Book of Mormon), Deseret by the General A ...

. At the University of Wisconsin–Madison he became in 1995 an associate professor and in 1999 a full professor. Since 2006 he is a professor at the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

. He has been a visiting professor at the

ETH Zurich ETH Zurich (; ) is a public university in Zurich, Switzerland. Founded in 1854 with the stated mission to educate engineers and scientists, the university focuses primarily on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. ETH Zurich ran ...

, in Hong Kong, and at MIT. He was in 1993 and again in 2004 at the

Institut des hautes études scientifiques An institute is an organizational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations (research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes ca ...

, in 1993 at the

Max Planck Institute for Mathematics The Max Planck Institute for Mathematics (, MPIM) is a research institute located in Bonn, Germany. It is named in honor of the German physicist Max Planck and forms part of the Max Planck Society (''Max-Planck-Gesellschaft''), an association o ...

, in 1994 at Cambridge's

Isaac Newton Institute The Isaac Newton Institute for Mathematical Sciences is an international research institute for mathematics and its applications at the University of Cambridge. It is named after one of the university's most illustrious figures, the mathematician ...

, and in 1994 at the

Mathematical Sciences Research Institute The Simons Laufer Mathematical Sciences Institute (SLMath), formerly the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute (MSRI), is an independent nonprofit mathematical research institution on the University of California campus in Berkeley, Califor ...

. In 1998 he was an Invited Speaker with talk ''Quantum Cohomology and its Applications'' at the

International Congress of Mathematicians The International Congress of Mathematicians (ICM) is the largest conference for the topic of mathematics. It meets once every four years, hosted by the International Mathematical Union (IMU). The Fields Medals, the IMU Abacus Medal (known before ...

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. From 1995 to 1997 he was a Sloan Research Fellow. He became a Fellow of the

American Mathematical Society The American Mathematical Society (AMS) is an association of professional mathematicians dedicated to the interests of mathematical research and scholarship, and serves the national and international community through its publications, meetings, ...

in the class of 2015.

Selected publications

* * * * with W. Chen: ''Orbifold Gromov-Witten theory.'' Orbifolds in mathematics and physics (Madison, WI, 2001), 25–85, Contemp. Math., 310, Amer. Math. Soc., Providence, RI, 2002 * with A. Li: ''Symplectic surgery and Gromov-Witten invariants of Calabi-Yau 3-folds.'' Invent. Math. 145 (2001), no. 1, 151–218. * with

Gang Tian Tian Gang (; born November 24, 1958) is a Chinese mathematician. He is a professor of mathematics at Peking University and Higgins Professor Emeritus at Princeton University. He is known for contributions to the mathematical fields of Kähler g ...

: ''Higher genus symplectic invariants and sigma models coupled with gravity'',

Inventiones Mathematicae ''Inventiones Mathematicae'' is a mathematical journal published monthly by Springer Science+Business Media. It was established in 1966 and is regarded as one of the most prestigious mathematics journals in the world. The current (2023) managing ...

, vol. 130, 1997, pp. 455–516
arXiv preprint
* ''Topological sigma model and Donaldson type invariants in Gromov theory'',

Duke Mathematical Journal ''Duke Mathematical Journal'' is a peer-reviewed mathematics journal published by Duke University Press. It was established in 1935. The founding editors-in-chief were David Widder, Arthur Coble, and Joseph Miller Thomas. The first issue inclu ...

, vol. 83, 1996, pp. 63–98 * with Gang Tian: ''A mathematical theory of quantum cohomology'',

Journal of Differential Geometry The ''Journal of Differential Geometry'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal of mathematics published by International Press on behalf of Lehigh University in 3 volumes of 3 issues each per year. The journal publishes an annual supplement in book ...

, vol. 42, 1995, pp. 259–367 * ''Stringy geometry and topology of orbifolds'', Contemporary Mathematics, vol. 312
arXiv preprint

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruan, Yongbin 1963 births Living people 20th-century Chinese mathematicians 21st-century Chinese mathematicians Chinese expatriate academics in the United States Fellows of the American Mathematical Society Sichuan University alumni Sloan Research Fellows University of California, Berkeley alumni University of Michigan faculty University of Utah faculty University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty Academic staff of ETH Zurich