Having the right answer doesn't guarantee understanding. This book helps physics students learn to take an informed and intuitive approach to solving problems. It assists undergraduates in developing their skills and provides them with grounding in important mathematical methods.Starting with a review of basic mathematics, the author presents a thorough analysis of infinite series, complex algebra, differential equations, and Fourier series. Succeeding chapters explore vector spaces, operators and matrices, multi-variable and vector calculus, partial differential equations, numerical and complex analysis, and tensors. Additional topics include complex variables, Fourier analysis, the calculus of variations, and densities and distributions. An excellent math reference guide, this volume is also a helpful companion for physics students as they work through their assignments.

The new edition is significantly updated and expanded. This unique collection of review articles, ranging from fundamental concepts up to latest applications, contains individual contributions written by renowned experts in the relevant fields. Much attention is paid to ensuring fast access to the information, with each carefully reviewed article featuring cross-referencing, references to the most relevant publications in the field, and suggestions for further reading, both introductory as well as more specialized. While the chapters on group theory, integral transforms, Monte Carlo methods, numerical analysis, perturbation theory, and special functions are thoroughly rewritten, completely new content includes sections on commutative algebra, computational algebraic topology, differential geometry, dynamical systems, functional analysis, graph and network theory, PDEs of mathematical physics, probability theory, stochastic differential equations, and variational methods.

This graduate-level textbook is a detailed exposition of key mathematical tools in analysis aimed at students, researchers, and practitioners across science and engineering. Every topic covered has been specifically chosen because it plays a key role outside the field of pure mathematics. Although the treatment of each topic is mathematical in nature, and concrete applications are not delineated, the principles and tools presented are fundamental to exploring the computational aspects of physics and engineering. Readers are expected to have a solid understanding of linear algebra, in Rn and in general vector spaces. Familiarity with the basic concepts of calculus and real analysis, including Riemann integrals and infinite series of real or complex numbers, is also required.

This mathematical reference for theoretical physics employs common techniques and concepts to link classical and modern physics. It provides the necessary mathematics to solve most of the problems. Topics include the vibrating string, linear vector spaces, the potential equation, problems of diffusion and attenuation, probability and stochastic processes, and much more. 1972 edition.

An engagingly-written account of mathematical tools and ideas, this book provides a graduate-level introduction to the mathematics used in research in physics. The first half of the book focuses on the traditional mathematical methods of physics – differential and integral equations, Fourier series and the calculus of variations. The second half contains an introduction to more advanced subjects, including differential geometry, topology and complex variables. The authors' exposition avoids excess rigor whilst explaining subtle but important points often glossed over in more elementary texts. The topics are illustrated at every stage by carefully chosen examples, exercises and problems drawn from realistic physics settings. These make it useful both as a textbook in advanced courses and for self-study. Password-protected solutions to the exercises are available to instructors at www.cambridge.org/9780521854030.

This unique book complements traditional textbooks by providing a visual yet rigorous survey of the mathematics used in theoretical physics beyond that typically covered in undergraduate math and physics courses. The exposition is pedagogical but compact, and the emphasis is on defining and visualizing concepts and relationships between them, as well as listing common confusions, alternative notations and jargon, and relevant facts and theorems. Special attention is given to detailed figures and geometric viewpoints. Certain topics which are well covered in textbooks, such as historical motivations, proofs and derivations, and tools for practical calculations, are avoided. The primary physical models targeted are general relativity, spinors, and gauge theories, with notable chapters on Riemannian geometry, Clifford algebras, and fiber bundles.

Useful treatment of classical mechanics, electromagnetic theory, and relativity includes explanations of function theory, vectors, matrices, dyadics, tensors, partial differential equations, other advanced mathematical techniques. Nearly 200 problems with answers.