Quarternionic calculus covers a branch of mathematics which uses computational techniques to help solve problems from a wide variety of physical systems which are mathematically modelled in 3, 4 or more dimensions. Examples of the application areas include thermodynamics, hydrodynamics, geophysics and structural mechanics. Focusing on the Clifford algebra approach the authors have drawn together the research into quarternionic calculus to provide the non-expert or research student with an accessible introduction to the subject. This book fills the gap between the theoretical representations and the requirements of the user.
The use of Clifford algebras in mathematical physics and engineering has grown rapidly in recent years. Whereas other developments have privileged a geometric approach, this book uses an algebraic approach that can be introduced as a tensor product of quaternion algebras and provides a unified calculus for much of physics. It proposes a pedagogical introduction to this new calculus, based on quaternions, with applications mainly in special relativity, classical electromagnetism, and general relativity.
Quaternion and Clifford Fourier and wavelet transformations generalize the classical theory to higher dimensions and are becoming increasingly important in diverse areas of mathematics, physics, computer science and engineering. This edited volume presents the state of the art in these hypercomplex transformations. The Clifford algebras unify Hamilton’s quaternions with Grassmann algebra. A Clifford algebra is a complete algebra of a vector space and all its subspaces including the measurement of volumes and dihedral angles between any pair of subspaces. Quaternion and Clifford algebras permit the systematic generalization of many known concepts. This book provides comprehensive insights into current developments and applications including their performance and evaluation. Mathematically, it indicates where further investigation is required. For instance, attention is drawn to the matrix isomorphisms for hypercomplex algebras, which will help readers to see that software implementations are within our grasp. It also contributes to a growing unification of ideas and notation across the expanding field of hypercomplex transforms and wavelets. The first chapter provides a historical background and an overview of the relevant literature, and shows how the contributions that follow relate to each other and to prior work. The book will be a valuable resource for graduate students as well as for scientists and engineers.
The invited papers in this volume provide a detailed examination of Clifford algebras and their significance to analysis, geometry, mathematical structures, physics, and applications in engineering. While the papers collected in this volume require that the reader possess a solid knowledge of appropriate background material, they lead to the most current research topics. With its wide range of topics, well-established contributors, and excellent references and index, this book will appeal to graduate students and researchers.
Quaternion and Clifford Fourier Transforms describes the development of quaternion and Clifford Fourier transforms in Clifford (geometric) algebra over the last 30 years. It is the first comprehensive, self-contained book covering this vibrant new area of pure and applied mathematics in depth. The book begins with a historic overview, followed by chapters on Clifford and quaternion algebra and geometric (vector) differential calculus (part of Clifford analysis). The core of the book consists of one chapter on quaternion Fourier transforms and one on Clifford Fourier transforms. These core chapters and their sections on more special topics are reasonably self-contained, so that readers already somewhat familiar with quaternions and Clifford algebra will hopefully be able to begin reading directly in the chapter and section of their particular interest, without frequently needing to skip back and forth. The topics covered are of fundamental interest to pure and applied mathematicians, physicists, and engineers (signal and color image processing, electrical engineering, computer science, computer graphics, artificial intelligence, geographic information science, aero-space engineering, navigation, etc.). Features Intuitive real geometric approach to higher-dimensional Fourier transformations A comprehensive reference, suitable for graduate students and researchers Includes detailed definitions, properties, and many full step-by-step proofs Many figures and tables, a comprehensive biography, and a detailed index make it easy to locate information
Clifford algebras are assuming now an increasing role in theoretical physics. Some of them predominantly larger ones are used in elementary particle theory, especially for a unification of the fundamental interactions. The smaller ones are promoted in more classical domains. This book is intended to demonstrate usefulness of Clifford algebras in classical electrodynamics. Written with a pedagogical aim, it begins with an introductory chapter devoted to multivectors and Clifford algebra for the three-dimensional space. In a later chapter modifications are presented necessary for higher dimension and for the pseudoeuclidean metric of the Minkowski space.Among other advantages one is worth mentioning: Due to a bivectorial description of the magnetic field a notion of force surfaces naturally emerges, which reveals an intimate link between the magnetic field and the electric currents as its sources. Because of the elementary level of presentation, this book can be treated as an introductory course to electromagnetic theory. Numerous illustrations are helpful in visualizing the exposition. Furthermore, each chapter ends with a list of problems which amplify or further illustrate the fundamental arguments.
Introduced 160 years ago as an attempt to generalize complex numbers to higher dimensions, quaternions are now recognized as one of the most important concepts in modern computer graphics. They offer a powerful way to represent rotations and compared to rotation matrices they use less memory, compose faster, and are naturally suited for efficient interpolation of rotations. Despite this, many practitioners have avoided quaternions because of the mathematics used to understand them, hoping that some day a more intuitive description will be available.The wait is over. Andrew Hanson's new book is a fresh perspective on quaternions. The first part of the book focuses on visualizing quaternions to provide the intuition necessary to use them, and includes many illustrative examples to motivate why they are important—a beautiful introduction to those wanting to explore quaternions unencumbered by their mathematical aspects. The second part covers the all-important advanced applications, including quaternion curves, surfaces, and volumes. Finally, for those wanting the full story of the mathematics behind quaternions, there is a gentle introduction to their four-dimensional nature and to Clifford Algebras, the all-encompassing framework for vectors and quaternions. - Richly illustrated introduction for the developer, scientist, engineer, or student in computer graphics, visualization, or entertainment computing. - Covers both non-mathematical and mathematical approaches to quaternions.
Ever since the Irish mathematician William Rowan Hamilton introduced quaternions in the nineteenth century--a feat he celebrated by carving the founding equations into a stone bridge--mathematicians and engineers have been fascinated by these mathematical objects. Today, they are used in applications as various as describing the geometry of spacetime, guiding the Space Shuttle, and developing computer applications in virtual reality. In this book, J. B. Kuipers introduces quaternions for scientists and engineers who have not encountered them before and shows how they can be used in a variety of practical situations. The book is primarily an exposition of the quaternion, a 4-tuple, and its primary application in a rotation operator. But Kuipers also presents the more conventional and familiar 3 x 3 (9-element) matrix rotation operator. These parallel presentations allow the reader to judge which approaches are preferable for specific applications. The volume is divided into three main parts. The opening chapters present introductory material and establish the book's terminology and notation. The next part presents the mathematical properties of quaternions, including quaternion algebra and geometry. It includes more advanced special topics in spherical trigonometry, along with an introduction to quaternion calculus and perturbation theory, required in many situations involving dynamics and kinematics. In the final section, Kuipers discusses state-of-the-art applications. He presents a six degree-of-freedom electromagnetic position and orientation transducer and concludes by discussing the computer graphics necessary for the development of applications in virtual reality.
Real quaternion analysis is a multi-faceted subject. Created to describe phenomena in special relativity, electrodynamics, spin etc., it has developed into a body of material that interacts with many branches of mathematics, such as complex analysis, harmonic analysis, differential geometry, and differential equations. It is also a ubiquitous factor in the description and elucidation of problems in mathematical physics. In the meantime real quaternion analysis has become a well established branch in mathematics and has been greatly successful in many different directions. This book is based on concrete examples and exercises rather than general theorems, thus making it suitable for an introductory one- or two-semester undergraduate course on some of the major aspects of real quaternion analysis in exercises. Alternatively, it may be used for beginning graduate level courses and as a reference work. With exercises at the end of each chapter and its straightforward writing style the book addresses readers who have no prior knowledge on this subject but have a basic background in graduate mathematics courses, such as real and complex analysis, ordinary differential equations, partial differential equations, and theory of distributions.
