The Institute is a private, independent academic institution located in Princeton, New Jersey. It was founded in 1930 in order to support fundamental research in the sciences and humanities, and it soon became one of the world’s leading centers for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. Work at the Institute takes place in four Schools: Historical Studies, Mathematics, Natural Sciences, and Social Science. A permanent Faculty of approximately 30 guides the work of the Schools, and each year some 200 visiting Members come to the Institute from universities and research institutions throughout the world. Explore the Institute’s website to learn more about its mission and history, read about current research, watch lectures by Institute scholars, and sign up for IAS eNews to get the latest updates from the Institute.

The School of Natural Sciences at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey includes seven permanent faculty and approximately fifty postdoctoral men and women working full time on frontier topics in astrophysics, biology, mathematical physics, quantum field theory, particle phenomenology, string theory and quantum gravity.

Members of the Institute are free to work on any problems in which they are interested. In any given year, some of the members will collaborate with each other, with relevant Institute faculty members, with members of the physics and astronomy faculties at Princeton University, or with scientists at other institutions. The research in mathematical physics and string theory benefits from a strong synergistic activity involving the School of Mathematics and the School of Natural Sciences.  The Institute programs in physics and astronomy are closely integrated with the corresponding activities at Princeton University via joint seminars and lunches, as well as frequent informal contacts.