Covering all aspects of gravitation in a contemporary style, this advanced textbook is ideal for graduate students and researchers in all areas of theoretical physics. The 'Foundation' section develops the formalism in six chapters, and uses it in the next four chapters to discuss four key applications - spherical spacetimes, black holes, gravitational waves and cosmology. The six chapters in the 'Frontier' section
describe cosmological perturbation theory, quantum fields in curved spacetime, and the Hamiltonian structure of general relativity, among several other advanced topics, some of which are covered in-depth for the first time in a textbook. The modular structure of the book allows different sections to be combined to suit a variety of courses. Over 200 exercises are included to test and develop the reader's understanding. There are also over 30 projects, which help readers make the transition from the book to their own original research.The modular structure of the book allows different sections to be combined to suit a variety of courses. Over 225 exercises are included to test and develop the readers' understanding. There are also over 30 projects, which help readers make the transition from the book to their own original research.
Read more... Abstract:
Covering all aspects of gravitation in a contemporary style, this advanced textbook is ideal for graduate students and researchers. Its modular structure allows different sections to be combined to suit a variety of courses. There are more than 200 exercises and over 30 in-depth projects. Read more...
Author(s): Padmanabhan, Thanu
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Year: 2010
Language: English
Pages: 700
City: Cambridge
Tags: Gravitation -- Textbooks.;Relativity (Physics) -- Textbooks.;Gravitation -- Problems, exercises, etc.;Gravitation;Relativity (Physics)
Content: 1. Special relativity
2. Scalar and electromagnetic fields in special relativity
3. Gravity and spacetime geometry: the inescapable connection
4. Metric tensor, geodesics and covariant derivative
5. Curvature of spacetime
6. Einstein's field equations and gravitational dynamics
7. Spherically symmetric geometry
8. Black holes
9. Gravitational waves
10. Relativistic cosmology
11. Differential forms and exterior calculus
12. Hamiltonian structure of general relativity
13. Evolution of cosmological perturbations
14. Quantum field theory in curved spacetime
15. Gravity in higher and lower dimensions
16. Gravity as an emergent phenomenon
Notes
Index
