Harry Kesten’s work in probability theory

Abstract

We survey the published work of Harry Kesten in probability theory, with emphasis on his contributions to random walks, branching processes, percolation, and related topics.

Harry Kesten (1931–2019): A Personal and Scientific Tribute

“…In this memoir, we do not aim at a comprehensive survey but, instead, to select and describe some high points. Our selection is personal by necessity, and readers desirous of a more comprehensive account are referred to [2,7]. Random walks on groups.…”

“…This memoir describes only a sample of Harry Kesten's impact within the probability and statistical physics communities. Those seeking more may read Rick Durrett's account [2] or the recent article [7]. The latter includes…”

Harry Kesten (1931-2019), a personal and scientific tribute

“…In this memoir, we do not aim at a comprehensive survey but, instead, to select and describe some high points. Our selection is personal by necessity, and readers desirous of a more comprehensive account are referred to [2,7].…”

“…Those seeking more may read Rick Durrett's account [2]. The more comprehensive article [7] includes summaries of Harry's work in other areas, such as quasi-stationary distributions of Markov chains and bounded remainder sets in Euclidean dynamics.…”

“…Figure 5 is by permission of Michael A. Morgan. Figures 6,7,8,9 are by permission of Geoffrey Grimmett. Figure 10 is by permission of Downing College, Cambridge, and Jean Lachat/University of Chicago, respectively.…”