The postdoctors Thomas Wennink and Jakob Reiffenstein are dedicated to basic research.

Jakob’s fields of research are canonical systems, spectral theory, and complex analysis. Thomas does research in the areas of algebraic geometry and moduli spaces of curves.

Thanks to the grants from the Sverker Lerheden foundation, Jakob and Thomas have been able to carry out their research for one and a half years as postdocs with the Department of Mathematics. Their positions recently got extended until the end of 2026.

The Sverker Lerheden Foundation awards postdoctoral stipends to young researchers at KTH, Stockholm University, and Uppsala University and even the Royal College of Music. The foundation is known for funding both basic as well as applied research.

Jakob explains that a postdoc position is a good way to transition between a PhD and further steps in the career. It allows one to learn more and become independent.

- I have a greater overview, and I’ve broadened my horizon during the last one and a half years. I’ve proven results and taken my research in a new direction, says Jakob. Thomas appreciates the length of the postdoc position as well:

- I had a year-long postdoc position before this. The current position has provided greater opportunity for research with less pressure, since it is for three years. That’s nice because some types of research just take longer, says Thomas.

How would you consider the possibilities for funding basic research in Sweden compared to other countries in the world?

- From our own experience and from talking to colleagues we learned how challenging it is to find funding. We are very grateful for having found this funding in Sweden, they both say. Jakob and Thomas explain that the discussion of grants for research projects often focuses on the question ”what is the expected societal impact?”. Jakob is from Austria, and Thomas is from the Netherlands, and they have done research at several universities in different countries in Europe.

Naturally, basic and applied research do not exclude each other:

- Some time ago, I was invited to give a seminar lecture at the University of Bath by colleagues who were seeking to apply results from my master’s thesis. They work on c omposite materials, consisting of a stiff and a soft part. Their aim is to mathematically predict properties of the composite or to design a composite with a desired behaviour, says Jakob.

How would you further describe the fields in which you do research?

Jakob explains: - In the broadest sense, I study linear transformations between vector spaces. Simple examples of this in 3D space are rotations and reflections through planes. In my work, the space is typically infinite dimensional, so naturally things get very complicated. In spectral theory we try to simplify a linear transformation by decomposing it into simpler objects (think of determining frequencies of a radio signal). My work is mostly about doing spectral theory by applying methods from complex analysis. And if you know complex analysis, maybe you feel the same about it as me when I learned about it: there is something magical about it!

Thomas explains: - I work with the moduli space of curves, which is an important topic in algebraic geometry. Algebraic geometry is an important field in pure mathematics and the number of applications for it has been steadily growing. It is a classical notion in geometry that adding and multiplying functions on a sphere gives an algebraic structure. The counterintuitive but fun thing is that algebraic geometry also goes the other way: you start with an algebraic structure and then you get a geometric space from it. The moduli space of curves, in particular, is very useful for studying string theory in physics.

Where do you see yourself in, say, five years, starting with Jakob?

- If I stay in academia, I’ll hopefully have permanent employment by then. I would like to continue doing research and teaching as well. I’m looking forward to acquiring more knowledge and thus strengthening my ability to collaborate. All in all, I am feeling positive about my future and think that everything is going to be fine, Jakob says. He’s been driven throughout his career by what he calls the force of academia.

- I probably would not have left Austria without it, says Jacob.

Thomas wants to stay in the academic world as well: - I’ll probably have a permanent position in five years. The postdoctoral scholarship I’ve got is the right step in that direction. I’m very comfortable doing theoretical research, so I’d like to continue doing that, says Thomas.