The author presents the general methods of quantization of physical fields including Bose, Fermi, and gauge fields, and the methods for eliminating divergences arising in the modern theory of interacting fields are discussed in detail. The concept of quarks and gluons is used as a basis for formulating quantum chromodynamics, which represents a theory of the strong interactions of hadrons. The theory of electroweak interaction generalizes Fermi's theory of beta decay and unifies the theories of weak and electromagnetic interactions, and both Einstein's theory of gravitation and the theory of superfields are developed in terms of non-Abelian gauge fields. Fields and Fundamental Interactions is an indispensable reference for graduates and researchers in the fields of quantum theory, quantum electrodynamics and elementary particle physics.

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.

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 book is a short introduction to classical field theory, most suitable for undergraduate students who have had at least intermediate-level courses in electromagnetism and classical mechanics. The main theme of the book is showcasing role of fields in mediating action-at-a-distance interactions. Suitable technical machinery is developed to explore at least some aspect of each of the four known fundamental forces in nature. Beginning with the physically-motivated introduction to field theory, the text covers the relativistic formulation of electromagnetism in great detail so that aspects of gravity and the nuclear interaction not usually encountered at the undergraduate level can be covered by using analogies with familiar electromagentism. Special topics such as the behavior of gravity in extra, compactified dimensions, magnetic monopoles and electromagnetic duality, and the Higgs mechanism are also briefly considered.

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.

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."

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