Advanced Concepts in Quantum Field Theory: With Exercises

✍ Scribed by James M. Cline

• Publisher: Springer International Publishing;Springer
• Year: 2020
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 158
• Series: SpringerBriefs in Physics
• Edition: 1st ed.
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

This book comprises the second half of a quantum field theory (QFT) course for graduate students. It gives a concise introduction to advanced concepts that are important for research in elementary particle theory. Topics include the path integral, loop expansion, Feynman rules, various regularization methods, renormalization, running couplings and the renormalization group, fixed points and asymptotic freedom, effective action, Coleman-Weinberg effective potential, fermions, the axial anomaly, QED, gauge fixing, nonabelian gauge theories, unitarity, optical theorem, Slavnov-Taylor identities, beta function of Yang-Mills theory, a heuristic derivation of asymptotic freedom, instantons in SU(N) gauge theory, theta vacua and the strong CP problem. Exercises are included and are intended for advanced graduate students or postdocs seeking to deepen their understanding of QFT.

✦ Table of Contents

Front Matter ....Pages i-x
Introduction (James M. Cline)....Pages 1-6
The Loop Expansion (James M. Cline)....Pages 7-9
The Feynman Rules (James M. Cline)....Pages 11-12
Evaluation of Diagrams; Regularization (James M. Cline)....Pages 13-15
Renormalization (James M. Cline)....Pages 17-28
Running Couplings and the Renormalization Group (James M. Cline)....Pages 29-36
Other Regulators (James M. Cline)....Pages 37-44
Fixed Points and Asymptotic Freedom (James M. Cline)....Pages 45-49
The Quantum Effective Action (James M. Cline)....Pages 51-64
Fermions (James M. Cline)....Pages 65-78
The Axial Anomaly (James M. Cline)....Pages 79-86
Abelian Gauge Theories: QED (James M. Cline)....Pages 87-106
Nonabelian Gauge Theories (James M. Cline)....Pages 107-130
Nonperturbative Aspects of SU(N) Gauge Theory (James M. Cline)....Pages 131-144
Exercises (James M. Cline)....Pages 145-151
Back Matter ....Pages 153-153

✦ Subjects

Physics; Elementary Particles, Quantum Field Theory