Probabilistic Methods in Statistical Mechanics of Random Media and Random Fields 2021.

A highly successful Bilateral Joint Seminar between Japan and The Netherlands took place in Leiden, 27–31 May 2019, on Probabilistic Methods in Statistical Mechanics of Random Media and Random Fields. The meeting was attended by 19 mathematicians from Japan (of whom 16 presented lectures) and 24 mathematicians from The Netherlands (of whom 13 presented lectures). World-leading research in the interdisciplinary area covered by the Bilateral Joint Seminar is being carried out both in Japan and in The Netherlands. Collaboration already exists, but there is ample opportunity for intensification. The goal of the 2019 seminar was to strengthen and enhance cooperation, to offer junior and senior researchers a chance to meet colleagues, and to learn from each other about the latest developments. During the lectures, common lines of interest and complementary expertise were identified. During brainstorm sessions future possibilities for collaboration were discussed. The possibilities for symbiosis are plenty. The 2019 seminar lead to the identification of a number of common research themes. In the follow-up seminar, for which we request funding in the present application, our aim is to work out these research themes in the form of new collaborations. The meeting will take place in Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan, and will last 5 days. Before and after the meeting, the participants from The Netherlands will stay in Japan for 5 more days, to work with Japanese colleagues. Funding for this extension will be secured directly from the participating institutions. We plan to invite 10 participants from The Netherlands and 20 participants from Japan. In addition, several PhD-students and postdocs from The Netherlands and Japan will be invited to attend the meeting, for which funding will be sought directly from their university.