Tristan Hübsch

This book provides a unified overview of “modern physics” — combining its foundational pillars: relativity, quantum physics and gravity — and takes the reader on a tour of fundamental physics, through structural, historical and biographical perspectives. The book presents a “big picture” of physics, as well as its completion in terms of a new vision of the quantum theory of space, time, matter and energy. Chapters explore the overarching and unfinished structure of fundamental physics, defined via the three fundamental constants of physics (the velocity of light, the gravitational constant and the Planck constant). The book also celebrates the centenary of quantum mechanics, and the apparent conceptual conflict between quantum theory and the deepest theory of spacetime physics, Einstein’s general theory of relativity, and the resolution of that conflict in a new (“gravitized quantum”) view of the problem of quantum gravity. This book will be of interest to undergraduate and graduate students of physics, professional physicists and scientists from other disciplines, as well as a general audience of non-professionals interested in the topic. Key features: · Presents a cohesive and accessible overview of fundamental physics and its worldview · Intertwines historical and biographical perspectives with scientific aspects. · Discusses a timely and cutting-edge topic at the forefront of research and discussion

This book provides a unified overview of “modern physics” — combining its foundational pillars: relativity, quantum physics and gravity — and takes the reader on a tour of fundamental physics, through structural, historical and biographical perspectives. The book presents a “big picture” of physics, as well as its completion in terms of a new vision of the quantum theory of space, time, matter and energy. Chapters explore the overarching and unfinished structure of fundamental physics, defined via the three fundamental constants of physics (the velocity of light, the gravitational constant and the Planck constant). The book also celebrates the centenary of quantum mechanics, and the apparent conceptual conflict between quantum theory and the deepest theory of spacetime physics, Einstein’s general theory of relativity, and the resolution of that conflict in a new (“gravitized quantum”) view of the problem of quantum gravity. This book will be of interest to undergraduate and graduate students of physics, professional physicists and scientists from other disciplines, as well as a general audience of non-professionals interested in the topic. Key features: · Presents a cohesive and accessible overview of fundamental physics and its worldview · Intertwines historical and biographical perspectives with scientific aspects. · Discusses a timely and cutting-edge topic at the forefront of research and discussion

Calabi-Yau spaces are complex spaces with a vanishing first Chern class, or, equivalently, with a trivial canonical bundle (sheaf), so they admit a Ricci-flat Kähler metric that satisfies the vacuum Einstein equations. Used to construct possibly realistic (super)string models, they are being studied vigorously by physicists and mathematicians alike. Calabi-Yau spaces have also turned up in computations of probability amplitudes in quantum field theory. This book collects and reviews relevant results on several major techniques of (1) constructing such spaces and (2) computing physically relevant quantities such as spectra of massless fields and their Yukawa interactions. These are amended by (3) stringy corrections and (4) results about the moduli space and its geometry, including a preliminary discussion of the still conjectural universal deformation space. It also contains a lexicon of assorted terms and important results and theorems, which can be used independently. The first edition of Calabi-Yau Manifolds: A Bestiary for Physicists was the first systematic book covering Calabi-Yau spaces, related mathematics, and their application in physics. Thirty years on, this new edition explores the intense development in the field since 1992, providing an additional 400 references. It also addresses advances in machine learning and other computer-aided methods that have recently made physically relevant computations feasible, opened new avenues in the field, and begun to deliver concretely on the now 40-year-old promise of string theory. The presentation of ideas, results, and computational methods is complemented by detailed models and sample computations throughout. This second edition also contains a new closing section, outlining the staggering advances of the past three decades and providing suggestions for future reading.

Uniting the usually distinct areas of particle physics and quantum field theory, gravity and general relativity, this expansive and comprehensive textbook of fundamental and theoretical physics describes the quest to consolidate the elementary particles that are the basic building blocks of nature. Designed for advanced undergraduates and graduate students and abounding in worked examples and detailed derivations, as well as historical anecdotes and philosophical and methodological perspectives, this textbook provides students with a unified understanding of all matter at the fundamental level. Topics range from gauge principles, particle decay and scattering cross-sections, the Higgs mechanism and mass generation, to spacetime geometries and supersymmetry. By combining historically separate areas of study and presenting them in a logically consistent manner, students will appreciate the underlying similarities and conceptual connections across these fields. This title, first published in 2015, has been reissued as an Open Access publication on Cambridge Core.

Uniting the usually distinct areas of particle physics and quantum field theory, gravity and general relativity, this expansive and comprehensive textbook of fundamental and theoretical physics describes the quest to consolidate the elementary particles that are the basic building blocks of nature. Designed for advanced undergraduates and graduate students and abounding in worked examples and detailed derivations, as well as historical anecdotes and philosophical and methodological perspectives, this textbook provides students with a unified understanding of all matter at the fundamental level. Topics range from gauge principles, particle decay and scattering cross-sections, the Higgs mechanism and mass generation, to spacetime geometries and supersymmetry. By combining historically separate areas of study and presenting them in a logically consistent manner, students will appreciate the underlying similarities and conceptual connections across these fields. This title, first published in 2015, has been reissued as an Open Access publication on Cambridge Core.

Uniting the usually distinct areas of particle physics and quantum field theory, gravity and general relativity, this expansive and comprehensive textbook of fundamental and theoretical physics describes the quest to consolidate the basic building blocks of nature, by journeying through contemporary discoveries in the field, and analysing elementary particles and their interactions. Designed for advanced undergraduates and graduate students and abounding in worked examples and detailed derivations, as well as including historical anecdotes and philosophical and methodological perspectives, this textbook provides students with a unified understanding of all matter at the fundamental level. Topics range from gauge principles, particle decay and scattering cross-sections, the Higgs mechanism and mass generation, to spacetime geometries and supersymmetry. By combining historically separate areas of study and presenting them in a logically consistent manner, students will appreciate the underlying similarities and conceptual connections to be made in these fields.

Calabi-Yau spaces are complex spaces with a vanishing first Chern class, or equivalently, with trivial canonical bundle (canonical class). They are used to construct possibly realistic (super)string models and are thus being studied vigorously in the recent physics literature. In the main part of the Book, collected and reviewed are relevant results on (1) several major techniques of constructing such spaces and (2) computation of physically relevant quantities such as massless field spectra and their Yukawa interactions. Issues of (3) stringy corrections and (4) moduli space and its geometry are still in the stage of rapid and continuing development, whence there is more emphasis on open problems here. Also is included a preliminary discussion of the conjectured universal moduli space and related open problems. Finally, several detailed models and sample computations are included throughout the Book to exemplify the techniques and the general discussion. The Book also contains a Lexicon (28 pages) of 150 assorted terms, key-words and main results and theorems, well suited for a handy reference. Although cross-referenced with the main part of the Book, the Lexicon can also be used independently. The level of mathematics is guided and developed between that of the popular Physics Reports of Eguchi, Gilkey and Hanson and the book Superstrings (Vol. 2) by Green, Schwarz and Witten on one end and Principles of Algebraic Geometry of Griffiths and Harris on the other. This is the first systematic exposition in book form of the material on Calabi-Yau spaces, related mathematics and the physics application, otherwise scattered through research articles in journals and conference proceedings.

Calabi-Yau spaces are complex spaces with a vanishing first Chern class, or equivalently, with trivial canonical bundle (canonical class). They are used to construct possibly realistic (super)string models and are thus being studied vigorously in the recent physics literature. In the main part of the Book, collected and reviewed are relevant results on (1) several major techniques of constructing such spaces and (2) computation of physically relevant quantities such as massless field spectra and their Yukawa interactions. Issues of (3) stringy corrections and (4) moduli space and its geometry are still in the stage of rapid and continuing development, whence there is more emphasis on open problems here. Also is included a preliminary discussion of the conjectured universal moduli space and related open problems. Finally, several detailed models and sample computations are included throughout the Book to exemplify the techniques and the general discussion. The Book also contains a Lexicon (28 pages) of 150 assorted terms, key-words and main results and theorems, well suited for a handy reference. Although cross-referenced with the main part of the Book, the Lexicon can also be used independently. The level of mathematics is guided and developed between that of the popular Physics Reports of Eguchi, Gilkey and Hanson and the book Superstrings (Vol. 2) by Green, Schwarz and Witten on one end and Principles of Algebraic Geometry of Griffiths and Harris on the other. This is the first systematic exposition in book form of the material on Calabi-Yau spaces, related mathematics and the physics application, otherwise scattered through research articles in journals and conference proceedings.