Conformal Field Theory PDF Download

Author: Yavuz Nutku
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 042998250X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 342

View

Book Description
This book provides an understanding of conformal field theory and its importance to both statistical mechanics and string theory. It introduces the Wess-Zumino-Novokov-Witten (WZNW) models and their current algebras, the affine Kac-Moody algebras.

Author: Sergei V Ketov
Publisher: World Scientific
ISBN: 9814502529
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 502

View

Book Description
Conformal field theory is an elegant and powerful theory in the field of high energy physics and statistics. In fact, it can be said to be one of the greatest achievements in the development of this field. Presented in two dimensions, this book is designed for students who already have a basic knowledge of quantum mechanics, field theory and general relativity. The main idea used throughout the book is that conformal symmetry causes both classical and quantum integrability. Instead of concentrating on the numerous applications of the theory, the author puts forward a discussion of the general methods of conformal field theory as a physical theory. Hence the book provides in a self-contained way the necessary knowledge and “conformal” intuition which underline the various applications of conformal field theory. It is aimed to assist students and professionals in the study of the theory from its first principles and in applying the methods in their own research. The first of its kind, this book promises to give a detailed and comprehensive insight into the workings of conformal field theory.

Author: Marc Gillioz
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 303127086X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 93

View

Book Description
This book is a set of introductory lecture notes on Conformal Field Theory (CFT). Unlike most existing reviews on the subject, CFT is presented here from the perspective of a unitary quantum field theory in Minkowski space-time. The book starts with a non-perturbative formulation of quantum field theory (Wightman axioms) and then, gradually, focuses on the implications of scale and special conformal symmetry, all the way to the modern conformal bootstrap. This approach includes topics such as subtleties of conformal transformations in Minkowski space-time, the construction of Wightman functions and time-ordered correlators both in position- and momentum-space, unitarity bounds derived from the spectral representation, and the appearance of UV and IR divergences. In each chapter, the reader finds useful exercises to master the subject. This book is meant for graduate students in theoretical physics and for more advanced researchers working in high-energy physics who are not necessarily familiar with the concepts of conformal field theory. Prior knowledge of quantum field theory is needed to master the arguments.

Author: Ralph Blumenhagen
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3642004504
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 270

View

Book Description
Based on class-tested notes, this text offers an introduction to Conformal Field Theory with a special emphasis on computational techniques of relevance for String Theory. It introduces Conformal Field Theory at a basic level, Kac-Moody algebras, one-loop partition functions, Superconformal Field Theories, Gepner Models and Boundary Conformal Field Theory. Eventually, the concept of orientifold constructions is explained in detail for the example of the bosonic string. In providing many detailed CFT calculations, this book is ideal for students and scientists intending to become acquainted with CFT techniques relevant for string theory but also for students and non-specialists from related fields.

Author: Martin Schottenloher
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3540706909
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 153

View

Book Description
Part I gives a detailed, self-contained and mathematically rigorous exposition of classical conformal symmetry in n dimensions and its quantization in two dimensions. The conformal groups are determined and the appearence of the Virasoro algebra in the context of the quantization of two-dimensional conformal symmetry is explained via the classification of central extensions of Lie algebras and groups. Part II surveys more advanced topics of conformal field theory such as the representation theory of the Virasoro algebra, conformal symmetry within string theory, an axiomatic approach to Euclidean conformally covariant quantum field theory and a mathematical interpretation of the Verlinde formula in the context of moduli spaces of holomorphic vector bundles on a Riemann surface.

Author: Yitzhak Frishman
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139486489
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 455

View

Book Description
Providing a new perspective on quantum field theory, this book is useful for graduate students and researchers within and outside the field. It describes non-perturbative methods, and explores two-dimensional and four-dimensional gauge dynamics using those methods. Applications are thoroughly described.

Author: Gerald B. Folland
Publisher: American Mathematical Soc.
ISBN: 1470464837
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 325

View

Book Description
Quantum field theory has been a great success for physics, but it is difficult for mathematicians to learn because it is mathematically incomplete. Folland, who is a mathematician, has spent considerable time digesting the physical theory and sorting out the mathematical issues in it. Fortunately for mathematicians, Folland is a gifted expositor. The purpose of this book is to present the elements of quantum field theory, with the goal of understanding the behavior of elementary particles rather than building formal mathematical structures, in a form that will be comprehensible to mathematicians. Rigorous definitions and arguments are presented as far as they are available, but the text proceeds on a more informal level when necessary, with due care in identifying the difficulties. The book begins with a review of classical physics and quantum mechanics, then proceeds through the construction of free quantum fields to the perturbation-theoretic development of interacting field theory and renormalization theory, with emphasis on quantum electrodynamics. The final two chapters present the functional integral approach and the elements of gauge field theory, including the Salam–Weinberg model of electromagnetic and weak interactions.

Author: Ulrike Luise Tillmann
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521540490
Category : Mathematics
Languages : en
Pages : 596

View

Book Description
The symposium held in honour of the 60th birthday of Graeme Segal brought together leading physicists and mathematicians. Its topics were centred around string theory, M-theory, and quantum gravity on the one hand, and K-theory, elliptic cohomology, quantum cohomology and string topology on the other. Geometry and quantum physics developed in parallel since the recognition of the central role of non-abelian gauge theory in elementary particle physics in the late seventies and the emerging study of super-symmetry and string theory. With its selection of survey and research articles these proceedings fulfil the dual role of reporting on developments in the field and defining directions for future research. For the first time Graeme Segal's manuscript 'The definition of Conformal Field Theory' is published, which has been greatly influential over more than ten years. An introduction by the author puts it into the present context.

Author: Andreas Recknagel
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107511801
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 349

View

Book Description
Boundary conformal field theory is concerned with a class of two-dimensional quantum field theories which display a rich mathematical structure and have many applications ranging from string theory to condensed matter physics. In particular, the framework allows discussion of strings and branes directly at the quantum level. Written by internationally renowned experts, this comprehensive introduction to boundary conformal field theory reaches from theoretical foundations to recent developments, with an emphasis on the algebraic treatment of string backgrounds. Topics covered include basic concepts in conformal field theory with and without boundaries, the mathematical description of strings and D-branes, and the geometry of strongly curved spacetime. The book offers insights into string geometry that go beyond classical notions. Describing the theory from basic concepts, and providing numerous worked examples from conformal field theory and string theory, this reference is of interest to graduate students and researchers in physics and mathematics.

Author: Eduardo Fradkin
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691189552
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 760

View

Book Description
The only graduate-level textbook on quantum field theory that fully integrates perspectives from high-energy, condensed-matter, and statistical physics Quantum field theory was originally developed to describe quantum electrodynamics and other fundamental problems in high-energy physics, but today has become an invaluable conceptual and mathematical framework for addressing problems across physics, including in condensed-matter and statistical physics. With this expansion of applications has come a new and deeper understanding of quantum field theory—yet this perspective is still rarely reflected in teaching and textbooks on the subject. Developed from a year-long graduate course Eduardo Fradkin has taught for years to students of high-energy, condensed-matter, and statistical physics, this comprehensive textbook provides a fully "multicultural" approach to quantum field theory, covering the full breadth of its applications in one volume. Brings together perspectives from high-energy, condensed-matter, and statistical physics in both the main text and exercises Takes students from basic techniques to the frontiers of physics Pays special attention to the relation between measurements and propagators and the computation of cross sections and response functions Focuses on renormalization and the renormalization group, with an emphasis on fixed points, scale invariance, and their role in quantum field theory and phase transitions Other topics include non-perturbative phenomena, anomalies, and conformal invariance Features numerous examples and extensive problem sets Also serves as an invaluable resource for researchers