We prove the equivariant Gromov-Witten theory of a nonsingular toric 3-fold X with primary insertions is equivalent to the equivariant Donaldson-Thomas theory of X. As a corollary, the topological vertex calculations by Agangic, Klemm, Mariño, and Vafa of the Gromov-Witten theory of local Calabi-Yau toric 3-folds are proven to be correct in the full 3-leg setting.

We use a topological framework to study descendent Gromov-Witten theory in higher genus, non-toric settings. Two geometries are considered: surfaces of general type and the Enriques Calabi-Yau threefold. We conjecture closed formulas for surfaces of general type in classes K and 2K. For the Enriques Calabi-Yau, Gromov-Witten invariants are calculated in genus 0, 1, and 2. In genus 2, the holomorphic anomaly equation is found.

Noether-Lefschetz divisors in the moduli of K3 surfaces are the loci corresponding to Picard rank at least 2. We relate the degrees of the Noether-Lefschetz divisors in 1-parameter families of K3 surfaces to the Gromov-Witten theory of the 3-fold total space. The reduced K3 theory and the Yau-Zaslow formula play an important role. We use results of Borcherds and Kudla-Millson for O(2,19) lattices to determine the Noether-Lefschetz degrees in classical families of K3 surfaces of degrees 2, 4, 6 and 8. For the quartic K3 surfaces, the Noether-Lefschetz degrees are proven to be the Fourier coefficients of an explicitly computed modular form of weight 21/2 and level 8. The interplay with mirror symmetry is discussed. We close with a conjecture on the Picard ranks of moduli spaces of K3 surfaces.

We discuss the Gromov–Witten/Donaldson–Thomas correspondence for 3-folds in both the absolute and relative cases. Descendents in Gromov–Witten theory are conjectured to be equivalent to Chern characters of the universal sheaf in Donaldson–Thomas theory. Relative constraints in Gromov–Witten theory are conjectured to correspond in Donaldson–Thomas theory to cohomology classes of the Hilbert scheme of points of the relative divisor. Independent of the conjectural framework, we prove degree 0 formulas for the absolute and relative Donaldson–Thomas theories of toric varieties.

We study relative Gromov-Witten theory via universal relations provided by the interaction of degeneration and localization. We find relative Gromov-Witten theory is completely determined by absolute Gromov-Witten theory. The relationship between the relative and absolute theories is guided by a strong analogy to classical topology. As an outcome, we present a mathematical determination of the Gromov-Witten invariants (in all genera) of the Calabi-Yau quintic 3-fold in terms of known theories.