Evgenii Mikhailovich Lifshitz is perhaps best known for his long association with his mentor Lev D Landau, with whom he co-wrote the classic Course of Theoretical Physics, but he was a noted and respected Soviet physicist in his own right. Born in the Ukraine to a scientific family, his long and distinguished career will be remembered for three things - his collaboration with Landau on the internationally acclaimed Course of Theoretical Physics, his work as editor of the Journal of Experimental and Theoretical Physics, and his scientific papers. As well as his work with Landau, E\M\Lifshitz collaborated with many noted Soviet scientists such as I\M\Khalatnikov, I\E\Dyzaloshinskii, V\V\Sudakov, V\A\Belinskii and the editor of this book, L\P\Pitaevskii. Many of the papers presented in this book include their contribution. Collected together they give a comprehensive and penetrating insight into the man and his work, clearly showing Lifshitz's contribution to physics and the influences on his work.
This book presents the basics of mathematics that are needed for learning the physics of today. It describes briefly the theories of groups and operators, finite- and infinite-dimensional algebras, concepts of symmetry and supersymmetry, and then delineates their relations to theories of relativity and black holes, classical and quantum physics, electroweak fields and Yang-Mills. It concludes with a chapter on (the complex theory of) strings and superstrings and their link to black holes — an idea that fascinates both the physicist and the mathematician. Contents:Complex Functions, Riemann Surfaces and Two-Dimensional Conformal Field Theory (an Introduction)Elements of Group Theory and Group RepresentationsA Primer on OperatorsBasics of Algebras and Related ConceptsInfinite-Dimensional AlgebrasThe Role of Symmetry in Physics and MathematicsAll That's Super — An IntroductionGravitation, Relativity and Black HolesBasics of Quantum TheoryTheory of Yang–Mills and the Yang–Mills–Higgs MechanismStrings and Superstrings (Elementary Aspects) Readership: Upper level undergraduates, graduate students, lecturers and researchers in theoretical physics, mathematical physics, quantum physics and astrophysics as well as Yang-Mills and superstring theory.
Quantum field theory, which started with Paul Dirac’s work shortly after the discovery of quantum mechanics, has produced an impressive and important array of results. Quantum electrodynamics, with its extremely accurate and well-tested predictions, and the standard model of electroweak and chromodynamic (nuclear) forces are examples of successful theories. Field theory has also been applied to a variety of phenomena in condensed matter physics, including superconductivity, superfluidity and the quantum Hall effect. The concept of the renormalization group has given us a new perspective on field theory in general and on critical phenomena in particular. At this stage, a strong case can be made that quantum field theory is the mathematical and intellectual framework for describing and understanding all physical phenomena, except possibly for a quantum theory of gravity. Quantum Field Theory: A Modern Perspective presents Professor Nair’s view of certain topics in field theory loosely knit together as it grew out of courses on field theory and particle physics taught at Columbia University and the City College of CUNY. The first few chapters, up to Chapter 12, contain material that generally goes into any course on quantum field theory, although there are a few nuances of presentation which readers may find to be different from other books. This first part of the book can be used for a general course on field theory, omitting, perhaps, the last three sections in Chapter 3, the last two in Chapter 8 and sections 6 and 7 in Chapter 10. The remaining chapters cover some of the more modern developments over the last three decades, involving topological and geometrical features. The introduction given to the mathematical basis of this part of the discussion is necessarily brief and should be accompanied by books on the relevant mathematical topics as indicated in the bibliography. Professor Nair also concentrates on developments pertinent to a better understanding of the standard model. There is no discussion of supersymmetry, supergravity, developments in field theory inspired by string theory, etc. There is also no detailed discussion of the renormalization group. Each of these topics would require a book in its own right to do justice to the topic. Quantum Field Theory: A Modern Perspective serves as a portal to so many more topics of detailed and ongoing research, referring readers to more detailed treatments for many specific topics. The book also contains extensive references, providing readers a more comprehensive perspective on the literature and the historical development of the subject. V. Parameswaran Nair is Professor of Physics at City College of The City University of New York (CUNY). Professor Nair has held Visiting Professorships at The Abdus Salam International Center for Theoretical Physics, Rockefeller University, Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC), located at CERN, Geneva, Switzerland, is the world's largest and highest energy and highest intensity particle accelerator. Here is a timely book with several perspectives on the hoped-for discoveries from the LHC.This book provides an overview on the techniques that will be crucial for finding new physics at the LHC, as well as perspectives on the importance and implications of the discoveries. Among the accomplished contributors to this book are leaders and visionaries in the field of particle physics beyond the Standard Model, including two Nobel Laureates (Steven Weinberg and Frank Wilczek), and presumably some future Nobel Laureates, plus top younger theorists and experimenters. With its blend of popular and technical contents, the book will have wide appeal, not only to physical scientists but also to those in related fields.
Perspectives in Computation covers three broad topics: the computation process & its limitations; the search for computational efficiency; & the role of quantum mechanics in computation.
In 1884 Sir William Thomson (later Lord Kelvin) delivered a significant series of lectures on physics at the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. This book presents the twenty lectures in their original form for the first time.
Named a Best Book of 2021 by the Financial Times and a Best Science Book of 2021 by The Guardian “Rovelli is a genius and an amazing communicator… This is the place where science comes to life.” ―Neil Gaiman “One of the warmest, most elegant and most lucid interpreters to the laity of the dazzling enigmas of his discipline...[a] momentous book” ―John Banville, The Wall Street Journal A startling new look at quantum theory, from the New York Times bestselling author of Seven Brief Lessons on Physics, The Order of Time, and Anaximander. One of the world's most renowned theoretical physicists, Carlo Rovelli has entranced millions of readers with his singular perspective on the cosmos. In Helgoland, he examines the enduring enigma of quantum theory. The quantum world Rovelli describes is as beautiful as it is unnerving. Helgoland is a treeless island in the North Sea where the twenty-three-year-old Werner Heisenberg made the crucial breakthrough for the creation of quantum mechanics, setting off a century of scientific revolution. Full of alarming ideas (ghost waves, distant objects that seem to be magically connected, cats that appear both dead and alive), quantum physics has led to countless discoveries and technological advancements. Today our understanding of the world is based on this theory, yet it is still profoundly mysterious. As scientists and philosophers continue to fiercely debate the meaning of the theory, Rovelli argues that its most unsettling contradictions can be explained by seeing the world as fundamentally made of relationships rather than substances. We and everything around us exist only in our interactions with one another. This bold idea suggests new directions for thinking about the structure of reality and even the nature of consciousness. Rovelli makes learning about quantum mechanics an almost psychedelic experience. Shifting our perspective once again, he takes us on a riveting journey through the universe so we can better comprehend our place in it.
This book addresses a fascinating set of questions in theoretical physics which will both entertain and enlighten all students, teachers and researchers and other physics aficionados. These range from Newtonian mechanics to quantum field theory and cover several puzzling issues that do not appear in standard textbooks. Some topics cover conceptual conundrums, the solutions to which lead to surprising insights; some correct popular misconceptions in the textbook discussion of certain topics; others illustrate deep connections between apparently unconnected domains of theoretical physics; and a few provide remarkably simple derivations of results which are not often appreciated. The connoisseur of theoretical physics will enjoy a feast of pleasant surprises skilfully prepared by an internationally acclaimed theoretical physicist. Each topic is introduced with proper background discussion and special effort is taken to make the discussion self-contained, clear and comprehensible to anyone with an undergraduate education in physics.
Kompakt und verständlich führt dieses Lehrbuch in die Grundlagen der theoretischen Physik ein. Dabei werden die üblichen Themen der Grundvorlesungen Mechanik, Elektrodynamik, Relativitätstheorie, Quantenmechanik , Thermodynamik und Statistik in einem Band zusammengefasst, um den Zusammenhang zwischen den einzelnen Teilgebieten besonders zu betonen. Ein Kapitel mit mathematischen Grundlagen der Physik erleichtert den Einstieg. Zahlreiche Übungsaufgaben dienen der Vertiefung des Stoffes.
This book has been prepared to celebrate the 65th birthday of Gabriele Veneziano and his retirement from CERN in September 2007. This reti- ment certainly will not mark the end of his extraordinary scienti?c career (in particular, he will remain on the permanent sta? of the Coll` ege de France in Paris), but we believe that this important step deserves a special celebration, and an appropriate recognition of his monumental contribution to physics. Our initial idea of preparing a volume of Selected papers of Professor Gabriele Veneziano, possibly with some added commentary, was dismissed when we realized that this format of book, very popular in former times, has become redundant today because of the full “digitalization” of all important physical journals, and their availability online in the electronic archives. We have thus preferred an alternative (and unconventional, but probably more e?ective) form of celebrating Gabriele’s birthday: a collection of new papers written by his main collaborators and friends on the various aspects of th- retical physics that have been the object of his research work, during his long and fruitful career.
