Fundamental Interactions In Physics

The book provides theoretical and phenomenological insights on the structure of matter, presenting concepts and features of elementary particle physics and fundamental aspects of nuclear physics. Starting with the basics (nomenclature, classification, acceleration techniques, detection of elementary particles), the properties of fundamental interactions (electromagnetic, weak and strong) are introduced with a mathematical formalism suited to undergraduate students. Some experimental results (the discovery of neutral currents and of the W± and Z0 bosons; the quark structure observed using deep inelastic scattering experiments) show the necessity of an evolution of the formalism. This motivates a more detailed description of the weak and strong interactions, of the Standard Model of the microcosm with its experimental tests, and of the Higgs mechanism. The open problems in the Standard Model of the microcosm and macrocosm are presented at the end of the book. For example, the CP violation currently measured does not explain the matter-antimatter asymmetry of the observable universe; the neutrino oscillations and the estimated amount of cosmological dark matter seem to require new physics beyond the Standard Model. A list of other introductory texts, work reviews and some specialized publications is reported in the bibliography. Translation from the Italian Language Edition "Particelle e interazioni fondamentali" by Sylvie Braibant, Giorgio Giacomelli, and Maurizio Spurio Copyright © Springer-Verlag Italia, 2009 Springer-Verlag Italia is part of Springer Science+Business Media All Rights Reserved

The Yang-Mills theory of gauge interactions is a prime example of interdisciplinary mathematics and advanced physics. Its historical development is a fascinating window into the ongoing struggle of mankind to understand nature. The discovery of gauge fields and their properties is the most formidable landmark of modern physics. The expression of the gauge field strength as the curvature associated to a given connection, places quantum field theory in the same geometrical footing as the gravitational field of general relativity which is naturally written in geometrical terms. The understanding of such geometrical property may help one day to write a unified field theory starting from symmetry principles. Of course, there are remarkable differences between the standard gauge fields and the gravitational field, which must be understood by mathematicians and physicists before attempting such unification. In particular, it is important to understand why gravitation is not a standard gauge field. This book presents an account of the geometrical properties of gauge field theory, while trying to keep the equilibrium between mathematics and physics. At the end we will introduce a similar approach to the gravitational field.

The book provides theoretical and phenomenological insights on the structure of matter, presenting concepts and features of elementary particle physics and fundamental aspects of nuclear physics. Starting with the basics (nomenclature, classification, acceleration techniques, detection of elementary particles), the properties of fundamental interactions (electromagnetic, weak and strong) are introduced with a mathematical formalism suited to undergraduate students. Some experimental results (the discovery of neutral currents and of the W± and Z0 bosons; the quark structure observed using deep inelastic scattering experiments) show the necessity of an evolution of the formalism. This motivates a more detailed description of the weak and strong interactions, of the Standard Model of the microcosm with its experimental tests, and of the Higgs mechanism. The open problems in the Standard Model of the microcosm and macrocosm are presented at the end of the book.

The Center for Theoretical Studies of the University of Miami has been the host of annual winter conferences whose content has expanded from the particular topic of symmetry principles in high energy physics to encompass the bases and relationships of many branches of know ledge. The scope of the Tenth Coral Gables Conference on Fundamental Interactions included astrophysics, atomic and molecular physics, fundamental theories of gravi tation, of electromagnetism, and of hadrons, gauge theories of weak and electromagnetic interactions, high energy physics, liquid helium physics, and theoretical biology. The range of topics is partially represented by the scientific talks which form this book. The tangible fruits of the conference are these papers; the intangible ones are the changes of outlook which the participants experienced and the new appreciation they gained of the basic unity of all knowledge. Historically, the early Coral Gables Conferences witnessed the introduction of the concept of the quark and the attempts to formulate a unification of the in ternal and space-time symmetries of the elementary particles, while later ones were the initial forums for new unified theories of interactions and for the ideas of scaling, light-cone dominance, and partons.

This volume is an exercises and solutions manual that complements the book "Particles and Fundamental Interactions" by Sylvie Braibant, Giorgio Giacomelli, and Maurizio Spurio. It aims to give additional intellectual stimulation for students in experimental particle physics. It will be a helpful companion in the preparation of a written examination, but also it provides a means to gaining a deeper understanding of high energy physics. The problems proposed are sometimes true and important research questions, which are described and solved in a step-by-step manner. In addition to the problems and solutions, this book offers fifteen Supplements that give further insight into topical subjects related to particle accelerators, signal and data acquisition systems and computational methods to treat them.

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.

Gauge fields are the messengers carrying signals between elementary particles, enabling them to interact with each other. Originating at the level of quarks, these basic interactions percolate upwards, through nuclear and atomic physics, through chemical and solid state physics, to make our everyday world go round. This book tells the story of gauge fields, from Maxwell's 1860 theory of electromagnetism to the 1954 theory of Yang and Mills that underlies the Standard Model of elementary particle theory. In the course of the narration, the author introduces people and events in experimental and theoretical physics that contribute to ideas that have shaped our conception of the physical world.

This memorial volume on the work of Wolfgang Kummer brings together articles devoted to the history of high energy physics with detailed coverage on the scientific concepts and scientific institutions, in particular CERN OCo and the underlying physics involved. Covering recent advances and developments as well as giving a reminiscent overview in two rapidly evolving fields of high energy/particle physics, and gravitational physics, the commemorative volume contains more than 20 original invited paper contributions OCo which will appear for the first time in print OCo from eminent and renowned physicists who interacted and collaborated with Wolfgang Kummer, including Physics Nobel Laureate Jack Steinberger. Wolfgang Kummer was president of the CERN council from 1985 to 1987, among his numerous eminent academic and administrative positions which he held during his illustrious career. This volume also aims to demonstrate and highlight Wolfgang Kummer''s significant contribution to the foundational work in gauge field theory, particle physics, and quantum gravity, and the tremendous impact leading to cutting-edge findings and advances at LHC. Sample Chapter(s). Foreword (155 KB). Chapter 1: Noncovariant Gauges at Zero and Nonzero Temperature (215 KB). Contents: Gauge Field Theory and Particle Physics: Noncovariant Gauges at Zero and Nonzero Temperature (P V Landshoff); Non-Relativistic Bound States: The Long Way Back from the BetheOCoSalpeter to the SchrAdinger Equation (A Vairo); Distended/Diminished Topologically Massive Electrodynamics (S Deser); Dynamical Spin (P G O Freund); Quantum Corrections to Solitons and BPS Saturation (A Rebhan et al.); Gauging Noncommutative Theories (H Grosse & M Wohlgenannt); Topological Phases and Contextuality Effects in Neutron Quantum Optics (H Rauch); First Class Constrained Systems and Twisting of Courant Algebroids by a Closed 4-Form (M Hansen & T Strobl); Some Local and Global Aspects of the Gauge Fixing in YangOCoMills-Theories (D N Blaschke et al.); Frozen Ghosts in Thermal Gauge Field Theory (P V Landshoff & A Rebhan); Classical and Quantum Gravity: Wolfgang Kummer and the Vienna School of Dilaton (Super-)Gravity (L Bergamin & R Meyer); Order and Chaos in Two Dimensional Gravity (R B Mann); 2-D Midisuperspace Models for Quantum Black Holes (J Gegenberg & G Kunstatter); Global Solutions in Gravity. Euclidean Signature (M O Katanaev); Thoughts on the Cosmological Principle (D J Schwarz); When Time Emerges (C Faustmann et al.); Towards Noncommutative Gravity (D V Vassilevich); Superembedding Approach to Superstring in AdS 5 X S 5 Superspace (I A Bandos); Heterotic (0,2) Gepner Models and Related Geometries (M Kreuzer); Canonical Analysis of Cosmological Topologically Massive Gravity at the Chiral Point (D Grumiller et al.); Wolfgang Kummer and the Physics Community: Wolfgang Kummer at CERN (H Schopper); Wolfgang Kummer and the Little Lost Lane Boy (K Lane); Mitigation of Fossil Fuel Consumption and Global Warming by Thermal Solar Electric Power Production in the World''s Deserts (J Steinberger); (My) Life with Wolfgang Kummer (M Schweda); Schubert in Stony Brook and Kinks in Vienna (P van Nieuwenhuizen). Readership: Scientists, researchers, graduates and undergraduates interested in high energy, particle or gravitational physics."

In this book, the author leads the reader, step by step and without any advanced mathematics, to a clear understanding of the foundations of modern elementary particle physics and cosmology. He also addresses current and controversial questions on topics such as string theory. The book contains gentle introductions to the theories of special and general relativity, and also classical and quantum field theory. The essential aspects of these concepts are understood with the help of simple calculations; for example, the force of gravity as a consequence of the curvature of the space-time. Also treated are the Big Bang, dark matter and dark energy, as well as the presently known interactions of elementary particles: electrodynamics, the strong and the weak interactions including the Higgs boson. Finally, the book sketches as yet speculative theories: Grand Unification theories, supersymmetry, string theory and the idea of additional dimensions of space-time. Since no higher mathematical or physics expertise is required, the book is also suitable for college and university students at the beginning of their studies. Hobby astronomers and other science enthusiasts seeking a deeper insight than can be found in popular treatments will also appreciate this unique book.

Understanding modern physics doesn’t have to be confusing and hard What if there was an intuitive way to understand how nature fundamentally works? What if there was a book that allowed you to see the whole picture and not just tiny parts of it? Thoughts like this are the reason that Physics from Finance now exists. What will you learn from this book? Get to know all fundamental interactions —Grasp how we can describe electromagnetic interactions, weak interactions, strong interactions and gravity using the same key ideas.Learn how to describe modern physics mathematically — Understand the meaning and origin of the Einstein equation, Maxwell’s equations, and the Schrödinger equation.Develop an intuitive understanding of key concepts — Read how we can understand abstract ideas like Gauge Symmetry, Internal Spaces, Gauge Fields, Connections and Curvature using a simple toy model of the financial market.Get an understanding you can be proud of — Learn why fiber bundles and group theory provide a unified framework for all modern theories of physics. Physics from Finance is the most reader-friendly book on the geometry of modern physics ever written. Here’s why. First of all, it's is nothing like a formal university lecture. Instead, it’s like a casual conservation with a more experienced student. This also means that nothing is assumed to be “obvious” or “easy to see”.Each chapter, each section, and each page focusses solely on the goal to help you understand. Nothing is introduced without a thorough motivation and it is always clear where each formula comes from.The book contains no fluff since unnecessary content quickly leads to confusion. Instead, it ruthlessly focusses on the fundamentals and makes sure you’ll understand them in detail. The primary focus on the readers’ needs is also visible in dozens of small features that you won’t find in any other textbook In total, the book contains more than 100 illustrations that help you understand the most important concepts visually.Whenever a concept is used which was already introduced previously, there is a short sidenote that reminds you where it was first introduced and often recites the main points. In addition, helpful diagrams make sure you won’t get lost.