The Weak Interaction in Nuclear, Particle and Astrophysics presents concepts of the weak interaction and its integration into modern gauge theories of particle physics, such as grand unification and supersymmetry. The book explores the close connections between micro (nuclear and particle) physics and macro physics (astrophysics and cosmology) induced by the weak interaction. Special attention is given to neutrinos, which have a key role in the understanding of elementary particle theories. In addition to the theoretical aspects, the book covers the important research topics of solar and galactic neutrinos and double beta decay. Assuming knowledge of elementary electrodynamics and quantum mechanics, this resource provides an insight into the diversity of the problem areas associated with the weak interaction and will encourage intensive study of particular themes.

This book provides insight into concept of the weak interaction and its integration into the conceptual structure of elementary particle physics. It exhibits the important role of the weak interaction in nuclear, particle and astrophysics together with the close connection between these areas.

The fourth edition includes new developments, in particular a new section on the double beta decay including a discussion of the possibility of a neutrinoless decay and its implications for the standard model.

Dramatic progress has been made in all branches of physics since the National Research Council's 1986 decadal survey of the field. The Physics in a New Era series explores these advances and looks ahead to future goals. The series includes assessments of the major subfields and reports on several smaller subfields, and preparation has begun on an overview volume on the unity of physics, its relationships to other fields, and its contributions to national needs. Nuclear Physics is the latest volume of the series. The book describes current activity in understanding nuclear structure and symmetries, the behavior of matter at extreme densities, the role of nuclear physics in astrophysics and cosmology, and the instrumentation and facilities used by the field. It makes recommendations on the resources needed for experimental and theoretical advances in the coming decade.

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

This book provides the first comprehensive historical account of the evolution of scientific traditions in astronomy, astrophysics, and the space sciences within the Max Planck Society. Structured with in-depth archival research, interviews with protagonists, unpublished photographs, and an extensive bibliography, it follows a unique history: from the post-war relaunch of physical sciences in West Germany, to the spectacular developments and successes of cosmic sciences in the second half of the 20th century, up to the emergence of multi-messenger astronomy. It reveals how the Society acquired national and international acclaim in becoming one of the world’s most productive research organizations in these fields.

This textbook gives a comprehensive summary of the gauge theories of the fundamental interactions. The authors stress the intimate connection between the basic experimental facts and the formulation of gauge theories of the strong and electroweak interaction. The concepts and technical tools of quantum field theory are presented. They are used to derive precision results of quantum chromodynamics and the standard model of the electroweak interaction of experiments in elementary particle physics. The book includes the latest experimental results and presents the actual status of the theory.