Quantum Theory of Fields

by Gregor Wentzel

Overview

A prominent figure in twentieth-century physics, Gregor Wentzel made major contributions to the development of quantum field theory, first in Europe and later at the University of Chicago. His Quantum Theory of Fields offers a knowledgeable view of the original literature of elementary quantum mechanics and helps make these works accessible to interested readers.
An introductory volume rather than an all-inclusive account, the text opens with an examination of general principles, without specification of the field equations of the Lagrange function. The following chapters deal with particular field types that, by means of quantization, are associated with particles of various spin, charge, and mass values. Topics include scalar fields, the vector meson field, quantum electrodynamics, and the quantization of the electron wave field according to the exclusion principle.
Clear and coherent, this text presumes a familiarity with the fundamentals of elementary quantum mechanics, and particularly with Dirac’s wave mechanics of spin-electrons.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780486174495
Publisher:	Dover Publications
Publication date:	02/08/2014
Series:	Dover Books on Physics
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
File size:	22 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

Table of Contents

	Preface	v
	Preface to the English Edition	vii
Chapter I	General Principles
1.	The Canonical Formalism	1
2.	Conservation Laws for Energy, Momentum and Angular Momentum	8
3.	Complex Field Functions, Conservation of Charge	12
4.	Lorentz Invariance. Time-Dependent Field Operators and Their Commutation Relations	15
5.	Introduction of the Momentum Space	27
Chapter II	Scalar Fields
6.	Real Field in Vacuum	29
7.	Real Field with Sources	37
8.	Complex Vacuum Field	48
9.	Complex Field in Interaction with Protons and Neutrons	53
10.	Combined Charged and Neutral Field	63
11.	Charged Particles in an Electromagnetic Field	66
Chapter III	The Vector Meson Field
12.	Complex Field in Vacuum	75
13.	Vector Mesons in the Electromagnetic Field	90
14.	Nuclear Interactions	97
15.	Meson Theory and Nuclear Forces	104
Chapter IV	Quantum Electrodynamics
16.	The Electromagnetic Field in Vacuum	111
17.	Interaction with Electrons	124
18.	Multiple-Time Formalism	138
19.	Remarks on the Self-Energy Problem	152
Chapter V	The Quantization of the Electron Wave Field According to the Exclusion Principle
20.	Force-Free Electrons	167
21.	Electrons in the Electromagnetic Field	188
Chapter VI	Supplementary Remarks
22.	Particles with Higher Spin. Spin and Statistics	203
23.	Outlook	212
Appendix I.	The Symmetrization of the Canonical Energy-Momentum Tensor	217
	Index	221