I am a mathematician at the University of Vienna!
From 2025 to late 2029 I will be working as the Principal Investigator of the FWF Project “Multiplicities Between Modular Congruences” (10.55776/PAT2615425) https://www.fwf.ac.at/en/research-radar/10.55776/PAT2615425.
Since 2023 I have worked as the Principal Investigator of the FWF Project “Towards a Unified Theory of Partition Congruences,” (10.55776/PAT6428623) https://www.fwf.ac.at/forschungsradar/10.55776/PAT6428623.
From 2021 to 2023 I worked at Johannes Kepler University Linz as the Principal Investigator of the FWF Stand Alone Project “Partition Congruences by the Localization Method” (10.55776/P33933) https://www.fwf.ac.at/en/research-radar/10.55776/P33933.
My research interests are mainly in number theory and integer partitions, especially the arithmetic properties of the Fourier coefficients of modular forms. My focus since completion of my doctorate has been the development of a systematic approach to studying and proving modular congruence families (p-adic convergence of well-defined subsequences of Fourier coefficients of modular forms), especially in cases where a partition-theoretic interpretation can be given.
We have various different methods of proof for congruence families, but we do not fully understand all of them, and they vary enormously in difficulty. In the last two years I have developed both theoretical and computational techniques that are useful systematic methods that extend our classical methods. I am continuing to generalize my technique in the hope of creating a unified theory of the subject.
In addition, I have studied asymptotics connected with modular forms via the circle method, and I enjoy both number theory and complex analysis in general.
Here is a very brief outline of my career:
- 2025 – 2029: Principal Investigator (10.55776/PAT2615425) at the University of Vienna
- 2023 – 2025: Principal Investigator (10.55776/PAT6428623) at the University of Vienna
- 2021 – 2023: Postdoctoral position and Principal Investigator at JKU Linz
- 2016 – 2020: PhD candidate (Computational Mathematics) at JKU Linz under the supervision of Peter Paule
- 2016: MSc (Mathematics) at Georgia Southern University under the supervision of Drew Sills
- 2014: BSc (Mathematics) at Georgia Southern University under the supervision of William Travis Trentham
Aside from mathematics, I enjoy XKCD, astronomy, Shakespeare, Beethoven, 17th century still-life paintings, 20th century twelve-tone music, and losing at chess.
I also occasionally bicycle.
Nicolas Allen Smoot