1st Edition
The Mathematical Theory of Cosmic Strings Cosmic Strings in the Wire Approximation
By M.R. Anderson
Copyright 2002
392 Pages
by
CRC Press
380 Pages
by
CRC Press
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This book is a comprehensive survey of the current state of knowledge about the dynamics and gravitational properties of cosmic strings treated in the idealized classical approximation as line singularities described by the Nambu-Goto action. The author's purpose is to provide a standard reference to all work that has been published since the mid-1970s and to link this work together in a single conceptual framework and a single notational formalism. A working knowledge of basic general relativity is assumed. The book will be essential reading for researchers and postgraduate students in mathematics, theoretical physics, and astronomy interested in cosmic strings.
Part I String dynamics in a fixed background: The elements of string dynamics. String dynamics in Minkowski Spacetime. A bestiary of known trajectories in Minkowski Spacetime. String dynamics in a Robertson-Walker metric. other background metrics. Part II The gravitational field of a cosmic spring: Infinite straight strings. Systems of straight strings and closed timelike curves. Traveling-wave solutions and the interaction of strings with gravitational waves. Circular cosmic strings. Part III Towards a self-consistent theory of string dynamics: The weak-field approximation. The gravitational field at small distances. Cosmic strings and black holes.
Biography
M.R. Anderson
"Anderson provides a comprehensive summary and review of the mathematical theory of cosmic strings. The subject is not in a state of rapid change so the book is up to date and it is likely to remain so for some time. Although the book is technical and requires a strong mathematical background and an interest in differential geometry, it is well written and reads easily … I found the later sections particularly interesting, especially the discussion of the infinite straight string and the associated singularity structure … This is a valuable reference work and compendium of results."
-D.R. Matravers, Contemporary Physics, 2003, 44/5