Scattering Amplitudes in Gauge Theory and Gravity

This book provides a comprehensive, pedagogical introduction to scattering amplitudes in gauge theory and gravity for graduate students.

Henriette Elvang (Author), Yu-tin Huang (Author)

9781107069251, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 5 February 2015

323 pages, 137 b/w illus. 153 exercises
25.5 x 19.5 x 2 cm, 0.89 kg

'This book provides a much-needed text covering modern techniques that have given radical new insights into the structure of quantum field theory. It gathers together a very large body of recent literature and presents it in a coherent style. The book should appeal to the wide body of researchers who wish to use quantum field theory as a tool for describing physical phenomena or who are intending to gain insight by studying its mathematical structure.' Michael B. Green, University of Cambridge

Providing a comprehensive, pedagogical introduction to scattering amplitudes in gauge theory and gravity, this book is ideal for graduate students and researchers. It offers a smooth transition from basic knowledge of quantum field theory to the frontier of modern research. Building on basic quantum field theory, the book starts with an introduction to the spinor helicity formalism in the context of Feynman rules for tree-level amplitudes. The material covered includes on-shell recursion relations, superamplitudes, symmetries of N=4 super Yang–Mills theory, twistors and momentum twistors, Grassmannians, and polytopes. The presentation also covers amplitudes in perturbative supergravity, 3D Chern–Simons matter theories, and color-kinematics duality and its connection to 'gravity=(gauge theory)x(gauge theory)'. Basic knowledge of Feynman rules in scalar field theory and quantum electrodynamics is assumed, but all other tools are introduced as needed. Worked examples demonstrate the techniques discussed, and over 150 exercises help readers absorb and master the material.

Preface
1. Introduction
Part I. Trees: 2. Spinor helicity formalism
3. On-shell recursion relations at tree-level
4. Supersymmetry
5. Symmetries of N = 4 SYM
Part II. Loops: 6. Loop amplitudes and generalized unitarity
7. BCFW recursion for loops
8. Leading singularities and on-shell diagrams
Part III. Topics: 9. Grassmannia
10. Polytopes
11. Amplitudes beyond four dimensions
12. Supergravity amplitudes
13. A colorful duality
14. Further reading
Appendix
References
Index.

Subject Areas: Particle & high-energy physics [PHP], Physics [PH], Mathematics & science [P]