PHY880 - Fall 2011
Quantum Field Theory II
Professor:
Simon Catterall,
309 Physics Building, 443-5978,
smc@physics.syr.edu.
105 Physics Tues, Thurs 12:30-1:50 pm
Syllabus
The following is a list of topics I would like to cover.
- Review of the basics: path integrals, Greens functions
and perturbation theory for scalar fields and fermions
- Spin 1 fields and gauge invariance. QED
- Non abelian gauge theories
- Perturbation theory for non-abelian theories. BRST gauge fixing
- Renormalization: beta function and asymptotic freedom
- Chiral gauge theories and anomalies
- Instantons and topological field configurations
- Symmetry breaking
- Standard Model
- Grand Unified theories
I will set (small) homework exercises every two weeks or so but will
additionally
require students to undertake a substantial project in
the second half of
the semester. I will take material primarily from Mark Srednicki's and
Tony Zee's books.
Please choose a term paper/presentation topic and email or talk to me
about it.
Expect to present your work on the blackboard in the last 2/3 classes
Possible project suggestions
- Supersymmetry
- Lattice gauge theory
- Dynamical electroweak symmetry breaking
- Quantum gravity
- String theory
- Anomalies: chiral, gravitational and parity
- Grand unified theories
- Topological field theories
- ...
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from academic dishonesty of any sort.
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This page maintained by Simon Catterall, last updated 25 August, 2011.