| Module code | PHY 717 |
| Qualification | Postgraduate |
| Faculty | Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences |
| Module content | Special relativity. Representation of transformations in quantum physics. Canonical quantisation of free scalar fields. Interactions, scattering and the reduction formula. Path integrals in quantum mechanics; the harmonic oscillator. Free fields. Interacting fields, perturbation theory and Feynman diagrams. Scattering amplitudes and the Feynman rules. Renormalisation: Dimensional analysis, the exact propagator, the exact three point vertex, higher order corrections and perturbation theory to all orders. Symmetry: Continuous symmetries and conserved currents, discrete symmetries. The renormalisation group: Infrared divergences, different renormalisation schemes and asymptotic freeness, the renormalisation group. Spontaneous symmetry breaking: A discrete example, a continous example, the Goldstone boson. |
| Module credits | 10.00 |
| Programmes |
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| Prerequisites | Admission only by permission of the Head of the Department of Physics |
| Contact time | 2 lectures per week |
| Language of tuition | English |
| Academic organisation | Physics |
| Period of presentation | Semester 2 |
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