Partnership, Partition, and Proof: The Path to the Hardy–Ramanujan Partition Formula

Abstract

The year 2018 marks 100 years since the publication of one of the most startling results in the history of mathematics: Hardy and Ramanujan’s asymptotic formula for the partition function. To celebrate the centenary, this paper looks at the creation of their remarkable theorem: where it came from, how it was proved, and how the assistance of a third contributor helped to influence its ultimate form.