Are you driven by research in applied algebra and geometry? Are you a bridge builder and are you experienced in collaboration with engineers and industry? Do you have a vision for building up a research group in applied algebra and geometry?  The Discrete Mathematics (DM) cluster of the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science (M\&CS) at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) is looking for a full professor in Applied Algebra and Geometry. This vacancy is part of the Irène Curie Fellowship and is currently only open for female candidates. 

The position will take on a leading role in the Discrete Algebra and Geometry (DAG) group within the DM cluster. The group is expected to open two assistant professor positions over the next few years and the exact profiles of these positions within the areas of applied algebra and geometry will be determined together with the department after this more senior position is filled. A junior researcher already hired in DAG is Rob Eggermont; other direct colleagues will be Hans Cuypers and Hans Sterk. DAG provides undergraduate and graduate courses in linear algebra, algebra, discrete mathematics and geometry, as well as service teaching.

The ideal candidate is accomplished in research and education in applied areas of algebra and geometry and has proven leadership competences.  The candidate should bring experience in collaborations with engineers and industry or demonstrate an openness towards these. We are seeking to complement the existing strengths in the DM cluster provided by the Coding Theory and Cryptology group (CC).

Research area
Discrete Mathematics is concerned with finite structures and their properties. It is an exciting growth area in the modern information age: Just as continuous mathematics led to major scientific developments in the 19th and 20th century, Discrete Mathematics with its various subfields such as algebra, geometry, number theory, combinatorics, graph theory, discrete optimization, coding theory, cryptography, machine learning, computational algebra, information theory etc., underlies much of the developments in modern fields such as computer technology, communication networks and e-commerce. The rapidly increasing data and computational power has transformed businesses, sciences and pretty much everything around us, and computational thinking is starting to be viewed as a fundamental skill required for everyone, similar to reading, writing, and arithmetic. Discrete mathematics lies at the heart of this skill. Discrete mathematics has important contributions to all focus areas in the department strategy: (Data Science and AI,,Computational Science, Cybersecurity, andComplex Networks).

Discrete Algebra and Geometry focuses on algebraic and geometric aspects of discrete structures. It develops the mathematics needed for their description. Algebra is a traditional strength of the DM cluster and our vision with this position is to re-establish it with an applied flavor. Applied algebra and geometry are increasingly important areas of applied mathematics. Algebra and algebraic geometry provide the theoretical tools for answering research questions that are ``discrete'' in nature, most notably problems in computer science and applied mathematics, such as in coding theory and cryptology, but also beyond: Research in algebra translates into applications in a variety of other domains of science, such as biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering.

In recent years, algebra started to play a crucial role also in the solution of problems that are traditionally dominated by numerical approaches. More specifically, combining techniques from algebra and more traditional numerical methods seems to be key to solve contemporary challenges in, for example, computational biology and optimization. Similarly, algebraic statistics arose from the use of algebraic and geometric methods in statistics, e.g. to understand statistical learning techniques and to infer biological and social networks via algebraic statistical models.

This position should be filled with a senior researcher with a broad coverage of research topics who can connect with CC on coding theory and cryptology within the DM cluster, and with other groups in the department, e.g., with the Combinatorial Optimization and the Statistics group, both in the Statistics, Probability and Operations Research cluster, and with the Applied Differential Geometry cluster, but who brings in their own specific application area.