Relativity in Curved Spacetime

Relativity in Curved Spacetime
Author: Eric Baird
Publisher: Chocolate Tree Books
Total Pages: 396
Release: 2007
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0955706807

Relativity theory has become one of the icons of Twentieth Century science. It's reckoned to be a difficult subject, taught as a layered series of increasingly difficult mathematics and increasingly abstract concepts. We're told that relativity theory is supposed to be this complicated and counter-intuitive. But how much of this historical complexity is really necessary? Can we bypass the interpretations and paradoxes and pseudoparadoxes of Einstein's special theory and jump directly to a deeper and more intuitive description of reality? What if curvature is a fundamental part of physics, and a final theory of relativity shouldn't reduce to Einstein's "flat" 1905 theory //on principle//? "Relativity..." takes us on a whistlestop tour of Twentieth Century physics - from black holes, quantum mechanics, wormholes and the Big Bang to the workings of the human mind, and asks: what would physics look like without special relativity? 394 printed pages, 234156 mm, 200 figures and illustrations, includes bibliography and index www.relativitybook.com

Flat and Curved Space-times

Flat and Curved Space-times
Author: George Francis Rayner Ellis
Publisher: Clarendon Press
Total Pages: 394
Release: 2000
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 9780198506560

This text explains special relativity and the basics of general relativity from a geometric viewpoint. Space-time geometry is emphasised throughout, and up-to-date information is provided on black holes, gravitational collapse, and cosmology.

The Geometry of Spacetime

The Geometry of Spacetime
Author: James J. Callahan
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 474
Release: 2013-03-09
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1475767366

Hermann Minkowski recast special relativity as essentially a new geometric structure for spacetime. This book looks at the ideas of both Einstein and Minkowski, and then introduces the theory of frames, surfaces and intrinsic geometry, developing the main implications of Einstein's general relativity theory.

Aspects of Quantum Field Theory in Curved Spacetime

Aspects of Quantum Field Theory in Curved Spacetime
Author: Stephen A. Fulling
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 332
Release: 1989-08-24
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 9780521377683

The theory of quantum fields on curved spacetimes has attracted great attention since the discovery, by Stephen Hawking, of black-hole evaporation. It remains an important subject for the understanding of such contemporary topics as inflationary cosmology, quantum gravity and superstring theory. This book provides, for mathematicians, an introduction to this field of physics in a language and from a viewpoint which such a reader should find congenial. Physicists should also gain from reading this book a sound grasp of various aspects of the theory, some of which have not been particularly emphasised in the existing review literature. The topics covered include normal-mode expansions for a general elliptic operator, Fock space, the Casimir effect, the 'Klein' paradox, particle definition and particle creation in expanding universes, asymptotic expansion of Green's functions and heat kernels, and renormalisation of the stress tensor. The style is pedagogic rather than formal; some knowledge of general relativity and differential geometry is assumed, but the author does supply background material on functional analysis and quantum field theory as required. The book arose from a course taught to graduate students and could be used for self-study or for advanced courses in relativity and quantum field theory.

Spacetime and Geometry

Spacetime and Geometry
Author: Sean M. Carroll
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 529
Release: 2019-08-08
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1108488390

An accessible introductory textbook on general relativity, covering the theory's foundations, mathematical formalism and major applications.

The Wave Equation on a Curved Space-Time

The Wave Equation on a Curved Space-Time
Author: F. G. Friedlander
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 298
Release: 1975
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0521205670

This book gives a rigourous discussion of the local effects of curvature on the behaviour of waves. In the course of this discussion many techniques are developed which are also needed for a study of more general problems, in which the gravitational field itself plays a dynamical role.

Classical Measurements in Curved Space-Times

Classical Measurements in Curved Space-Times
Author: Fernando de Felice
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 326
Release: 2010-07-29
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1139491598

The theory of relativity describes the laws of physics in a given space-time. However, a physical theory must provide observational predictions expressed in terms of measurements, which are the outcome of practical experiments and observations. Ideal for readers with a mathematical background and a basic knowledge of relativity, this book will help readers understand the physics behind the mathematical formalism of the theory of relativity. It explores the informative power of the theory of relativity, and highlights its uses in space physics, astrophysics and cosmology. Readers are given the tools to pick out from the mathematical formalism those quantities that have physical meaning and which can therefore be the result of a measurement. The book considers the complications that arise through the interpretation of a measurement, which is dependent on the observer who performs it. Specific examples of this are given to highlight the awkwardness of the problem.

Relativity on Curved Manifolds

Relativity on Curved Manifolds
Author: F. de Felice
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 466
Release: 1992-03-27
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 9780521429085

This is a self-contained exposition of general relativity with emphasis given to tetrad and spinor structures and physical measurement on curved manifolds.

Quantum Field Theory in Curved Spacetime

Quantum Field Theory in Curved Spacetime
Author: Leonard Parker
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 472
Release: 2009-08-20
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1139480855

Quantum field theory in curved spacetime has been remarkably fruitful. It can be used to explain how the large-scale structure of the universe and the anisotropies of the cosmic background radiation that we observe today first arose. Similarly, it provides a deep connection between general relativity, thermodynamics, and quantum field theory. This book develops quantum field theory in curved spacetime in a pedagogical style, suitable for graduate students. The authors present detailed, physically motivated, derivations of cosmological and black hole processes in which curved spacetime plays a key role. They explain how such processes in the rapidly expanding early universe leave observable consequences today, and how in the context of evaporating black holes, these processes uncover deep connections between gravitation and elementary particles. The authors also lucidly describe many other aspects of free and interacting quantized fields in curved spacetime.

Relativity Visualized

Relativity Visualized
Author:
Publisher: Insight Press, Incorporated
Total Pages: 256
Release: 1985
Genre: Science
ISBN:

Perfect for those interested in physics but who are not physicists or mathematicians, this book makes relativity so simple that a child can understand it. By replacing equations with diagrams, the book allows non-specialist readers to fully understand the concepts in relativity without the slow, painful progress so often associated with a complicated scientific subject. It allows readers not only to know how relativity works, but also to intuitively understand it.