Description
Book SynopsisThis book offers a detailed and stimulating account of the Lagrangian, or variational, approach to general relativity and beyond. The approach more usually adopted when describing general relativity is to introduce the required concepts of differential geometry and derive the field and geodesic equations from purely geometrical properties. Demonstration of the physical meaning then requires the weak field approximation of these equations to recover their Newtonian counterparts. The potential downside of this approach is that it tends to suit the mathematical mind and requires the physicist to study and work in a completely unfamiliar environment. In contrast, the approach to general relativity described in this book will be especially suited to physics students. After an introduction to field theories and the variational approach, individual sections focus on the variational approach in relation to special relativity, general relativity, and alternative theories of gravity. Throughout the text, solved exercises and examples are presented. The book will meet the needs of both students specializing in theoretical physics and those seeking a better understanding of particular aspects of the subject.
Trade Review“The first impression is good, also because all the proposed exercises and examples are fully solved. … The author’s approach and writing is clear, straightforward, and with specific attention to the connection with the evolution of the physical principles that lie at the basis of gravitation. The book is appropriate for university students, as well as, for more specialists or practitioners of matter.” (Gabriella Bernardi, Astrocom et al., astrocometal.blogspot.de, July, 2017)
Table of ContentsPart I Introduction.- The character of a scientific theory.- Field Theories and Variational approach.- Fundamental Principles and Field Theories.- Exercises.- Part II Special Relativity.- Motivations.- Mathematical model.- Electromagnetism in SR.- Exercises.- Part III General Relativity.- Motivations.- Lagrangian formulation of GR.- Applications.- Exercises.- Part IV Beyond Relativity.- Motivations.- Theory and Experiments.- Exercises.
