Rate My Professor Paul Aspinwall

Paul Aspinwall is a Professor of Physics and Professor of Mathematics at Duke University, where he has maintained joint appointments since 2006. He received his B.A. in 1985 and D.Phil. in 1988 from the University of Oxford. Aspinwall's tenure at Duke commenced in 1997 as Assistant Professor in the Departments of Physics and Mathematics, progressing to Associate Professor of Physics from 2001 to 2006 and Associate Professor of Mathematics from 2000 to 2006. Beyond his professorial duties, he has undertaken significant administrative responsibilities in the Mathematics Department, serving as Associate Chair from 2010 to 2015 and since 2016, as well as Interim Chair in 2015.

Aspinwall's research specializes in string theory, leveraging algebraic geometry to examine higher-dimensional spaces and their compactification to four-dimensional spacetimes that model the physical universe in string theory frameworks. Key areas include compactification of extra dimensions, supersymmetric physics, string dualities such as mirror symmetry linking distinct string theories, the geometry of compactified spaces pertinent to real-world physics, and nonperturbative string theory elements that interconnect mathematics and physics. As Principal Investigator, he has led National Science Foundation grants: "Moduli Spaces & String Theory" (2012-2017), "Geometry and Mathematical Physics of D-Branes" (2009-2014), and "Algebraic Geometry and Quantum Field Theory of D-Branes" (2006-2011). His publications feature "String moduli spaces and parabolic factorizations" (Journal of High Energy Physics, 2025), "Mirror Symmetry and Discriminants" (2017), "General mirror pairs for gauged linear sigma models" (Journal of High Energy Physics, 2015), "Exoflops in two dimensions" (2015), "Rational curves and (0,2)-deformations" (Journal of Geometry and Physics, 2015), and "A McKay-like correspondence for (0,2)-deformations" (Advances in Theoretical and Mathematical Physics, 2014). Aspinwall instructs courses like Multivariable Calculus (Math 219), Representation Theory (Math 603/Physics 603), Algebraic Geometry (Math 627), and General Relativity (Math 527/Physics 622), and is linked to Duke's Center for Geometry and Theoretical Physics.