Value distribution of exponential polynomials and their role in the theories of complex differential equations and oscillation theory

An exponential polynomial is a finite linear sum of terms P ( z ) e Q ( z ) $P(z)e^{Q(z)}$ , where P ( z ) $P(z)$ and Q ( z ) $Q(z)$ are polynomials. The early results on the value distribution of exponential polynomials can be traced back to Georg Pólya's paper published in 1920, while the latest results have come out in 2022. Despite of over a century of research work, many intriguing problems on value distribution of exponential polynomials still remain unsolved. The role of exponential polynomials and their quotients in the theories of linear/non-linear differential equations, oscillation theory and differential-difference equations will also be discussed. Thirteen open problems are given to motivate the readers for further research in these topics.