An Introduction to General Relativity and Cosmology

Jerzy Plebanski, Andrzej Krasinski

560 pages, parution le 28/07/2006

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Résumé

General relativity is a cornerstone of modern physics, and is of major importance in its applications to cosmology. Plebanski and Krasinski are experts in the field and here they provide a thorough introduction to general relativity, guiding the reader through complete derivations of the most important results. Providing coverage from a unique viewpoint, geometrical, physical and astrophysical properties of inhomogeneous cosmological models are all systematically and clearly presented, allowing the reader to follow and verify all derivations. Many topics are included that are not found in other textbooks. For advanced undergraduates and graduates in physics and astronomy, this textbook will enable students to develop expertise in the mathematical techniques necessary to study general relativity.

A self-contained account of cosmology in general geometry
Contains exercises, with hints
No other textbook ever published has devoted so much attention to cosmology described by exact methods of relativity
The first ever presentation in textbook form of significant papers written in the 70s and 80s

Sommaire

How the theory of relativity came into being (a brief historical sketch)
Elements of Differential Geometry:
- A short sketch of two-dimensional differential geometries
- Tensors, tensor densities
- Covariant derivatives
- Parallel transport and geodesic lines
- Curvature of a manifold: flat manifolds
- Riemannian geometry
- Symmetries of Rieman spaces, invariance of tensors
- Methods to calculate the curvature quickly - Cartan forms and algebraic computer programs
- The spatially homogeneous Bianchi-type spacetimes
- The Petrov classification by the spinor method
The Gravitation Theory:
- The Einstein equations and the sources of a gravitational field
- The Maxwell - and Einstein-Maxwell equations and the Kaluza-Klein theory
- Spherically symmetric gravitational field of isolated objects
- Relativistic hydrodynamics and thermodynamics
- Relativistic cosmology I: general geometry
- Relativistic cosmology II: the Robertson-Walker geometry
- Relativistic cosmology III: the Lemaître-Tolman geometry
- Relativistic cosmology IV: generalisations of L-T and related geometries
- The Kerr solution
- Subjects omitted in this book

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Caractéristiques techniques

	PAPIER
Éditeur(s)	Cambridge University Press
Auteur(s)	Jerzy Plebanski, Andrzej Krasinski
Parution	28/07/2006
Nb. de pages	560
Format	18,5 x 25,5
Couverture	Relié
Poids	1240g
Intérieur	Noir et Blanc
EAN13	9780521856232
ISBN13	978-0-521-85623-2