Classical Covariant Fields /

This 2002 book discusses the classical foundations of field theory, using the language of variational methods and covariance. It explores the limits of what can be achieved with purely classical notions, and shows how these have a deep and important connection with the second quantized field theory,...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Burgess, Mark (Author)
Corporate Author: Cambridge University Press
Format: eBook
Language:English
Published: Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2022.
Series:Cambridge monographs on mathematical physics.
Subjects:
Online Access:Connect to the full text of this electronic book
Table of Contents:
  • Foreword; Part I. Fields: 1. Introduction; 2. The electromagnetic field; 3. Field parameters; 4. The action principle; 5. Classical field dynamics; 6. Statistical interpretation of the field; 7. Examples and applications; Part II. Groups and Fields: 8. Field transformations; 9. Spacetime transformations; 10. Kinematical and dynamical transformations; 11. Position and momentum; 12. Charge and current; 13. The non-relativistic limit; 14. Unified kinematics and dynamics; 15. Epilogue: quantum field theory; Part III. Reference: A Compendium of Fields: 16. Gallery of definitions; 17. The Schroedinger field; 18. The real Klein Gordon field; 19. The complex Klein Gordon field; 20. The Dirac field; 21. The Maxwell radiation field; 22. The massive Proca field; 23. Non-Abelian fields; 24. Chern-Simons theories; 25. Gravity as a field theory; Part IV. Appendices.