Contributions to Group Theory


Book Description

Contains five short articles about Roger Lyndon and his contributions to mathematics, as well as twenty-seven invited research papers in combinatorial group theory and closely related areas. Several of the articles featured in this work fall into subfields of combinatorial group theory, areas in which much of the initial work was done by Lyndon.




Complexity and Randomness in Group Theory


Book Description

Detailed Description




The Genesis of the Abstract Group Concept


Book Description

"It is a pleasure to turn to Wussing's book, a sound presentation of history," declared the Bulletin of the American Mathematical Society. The author, Director of the Institute for the History of Medicine and Science at Leipzig University, traces the axiomatic formulation of the abstract notion of group. 1984 edition.




The History of Combinatorial Group Theory


Book Description

One of the pervasive phenomena in the history of science is the development of independent disciplines from the solution or attempted solutions of problems in other areas of science. In the Twentieth Century, the creation of specialties witqin the sciences has accelerated to the point where a large number of scientists in any major branch of science cannot understand the work of a colleague in another subdiscipline of his own science. Despite this fragmentation, the development of techniques or solutions of problems in one area very often contribute fundamentally to solutions of problems in a seemingly unrelated field. Therefore, an examination of this phenomenon of the formation of independent disciplines within the sciences would contrib ute to the understanding of their evolution in modern times. We believe that in this context the history of combinatorial group theory in the late Nineteenth Century and the Twentieth Century can be used effectively as a case study. It is a reasonably well-defined independent specialty, and yet it is closely related to other mathematical disciplines. The fact that combinatorial group theory has, so far, not been influenced by the practical needs of science and technology makes it possible for us to use combinatorial group theory to exhibit the role of the intellectual aspects of the development of mathematics in a clearcut manner. There are other features of combinatorial group theory which appear to make it a reasona ble choice as the object of a historical study.




Finite Group Theory


Book Description

During the last 40 years the theory of finite groups has developed dramatically. The finite simple groups have been classified and are becoming better understood. Tools exist to reduce many questions about arbitrary finite groups to similar questions about simple groups. Since the classification there have been numerous applications of this theory in other branches of mathematics. Finite Group Theory develops the foundations of the theory of finite groups. It can serve as a text for a course on finite groups for students already exposed to a first course in algebra. It could supply the background necessary to begin reading journal articles in the field. For specialists it also provides a reference on the foundations of the subject. This second edition has been considerably improved with a completely rewritten Chapter 15 considering the 2-Signalizer Functor Theorem, and the addition of an appendix containing solutions to exercises.




Group Theory in a Nutshell for Physicists


Book Description

A concise, modern textbook on group theory written especially for physicists Although group theory is a mathematical subject, it is indispensable to many areas of modern theoretical physics, from atomic physics to condensed matter physics, particle physics to string theory. In particular, it is essential for an understanding of the fundamental forces. Yet until now, what has been missing is a modern, accessible, and self-contained textbook on the subject written especially for physicists. Group Theory in a Nutshell for Physicists fills this gap, providing a user-friendly and classroom-tested text that focuses on those aspects of group theory physicists most need to know. From the basic intuitive notion of a group, A. Zee takes readers all the way up to how theories based on gauge groups could unify three of the four fundamental forces. He also includes a concise review of the linear algebra needed for group theory, making the book ideal for self-study. Provides physicists with a modern and accessible introduction to group theory Covers applications to various areas of physics, including field theory, particle physics, relativity, and much more Topics include finite group and character tables; real, pseudoreal, and complex representations; Weyl, Dirac, and Majorana equations; the expanding universe and group theory; grand unification; and much more The essential textbook for students and an invaluable resource for researchers Features a brief, self-contained treatment of linear algebra An online illustration package is available to professors Solutions manual (available only to professors)




Theory of Lie Groups (PMS-8), Volume 8


Book Description

This famous book was the first treatise on Lie groups in which a modern point of view was adopted systematically, namely, that a continuous group can be regarded as a global object. To develop this idea to its fullest extent, Chevalley incorporated a broad range of topics, such as the covering spaces of topological spaces, analytic manifolds, integration of complete systems of differential equations on a manifold, and the calculus of exterior differential forms. The book opens with a short description of the classical groups: unitary groups, orthogonal groups, symplectic groups, etc. These special groups are then used to illustrate the general properties of Lie groups, which are considered later. The general notion of a Lie group is defined and correlated with the algebraic notion of a Lie algebra; the subgroups, factor groups, and homomorphisms of Lie groups are studied by making use of the Lie algebra. The last chapter is concerned with the theory of compact groups, culminating in Peter-Weyl's theorem on the existence of representations. Given a compact group, it is shown how one can construct algebraically the corresponding Lie group with complex parameters which appears in the form of a certain algebraic variety (associated algebraic group). This construction is intimately related to the proof of the generalization given by Tannaka of Pontrjagin's duality theorem for Abelian groups. The continued importance of Lie groups in mathematics and theoretical physics make this an indispensable volume for researchers in both fields.




The Finite Simple Groups


Book Description

Thisbookisintendedasanintroductiontoallthe?nitesimplegroups.During themonumentalstruggletoclassifythe?nitesimplegroups(andindeedsince), a huge amount of information about these groups has been accumulated. Conveyingthisinformationtothenextgenerationofstudentsandresearchers, not to mention those who might wish to apply this knowledge, has become a major challenge. With the publication of the two volumes by Aschbacher and Smith [12, 13] in 2004 we can reasonably regard the proof of the Classi?cation Theorem for Finite Simple Groups (usually abbreviated CFSG) as complete. Thus it is timely to attempt an overview of all the (non-abelian) ?nite simple groups in one volume. For expository purposes it is convenient to divide them into four basic types, namely the alternating, classical, exceptional and sporadic groups. The study of alternating groups soon develops into the theory of per- tation groups, which is well served by the classic text of Wielandt [170]and more modern treatments such as the comprehensive introduction by Dixon and Mortimer [53] and more specialised texts such as that of Cameron [19].




An Introduction to the Theory of Groups


Book Description

This introductory exposition of group theory by an eminent Russian mathematician is particularly suited to undergraduates. Includes a wealth of simple examples, primarily geometrical, and end-of-chapter exercises. 1959 edition.




Group Theory


Book Description

If classical Lie groups preserve bilinear vector norms, what Lie groups preserve trilinear, quadrilinear, and higher order invariants? Answering this question from a fresh and original perspective, Predrag Cvitanovic takes the reader on the amazing, four-thousand-diagram journey through the theory of Lie groups. This book is the first to systematically develop, explain, and apply diagrammatic projection operators to construct all semi-simple Lie algebras, both classical and exceptional. The invariant tensors are presented in a somewhat unconventional, but in recent years widely used, "birdtracks" notation inspired by the Feynman diagrams of quantum field theory. Notably, invariant tensor diagrams replace algebraic reasoning in carrying out all group-theoretic computations. The diagrammatic approach is particularly effective in evaluating complicated coefficients and group weights, and revealing symmetries hidden by conventional algebraic or index notations. The book covers most topics needed in applications from this new perspective: permutations, Young projection operators, spinorial representations, Casimir operators, and Dynkin indices. Beyond this well-traveled territory, more exotic vistas open up, such as "negative dimensional" relations between various groups and their representations. The most intriguing result of classifying primitive invariants is the emergence of all exceptional Lie groups in a single family, and the attendant pattern of exceptional and classical Lie groups, the so-called Magic Triangle. Written in a lively and personable style, the book is aimed at researchers and graduate students in theoretical physics and mathematics.