Spinors and Space-Time: Volume 2, Spinor and Twistor Methods in Space-Time Geometry

by Roger Penrose, Wolfgang Rindler

Overview

Spinor and Twistor Methods in Space-Time Geometry introduces the theory of twistors, and studies in detail how the theory of twistors and 2-spinors can be applied to the study of space-time. Twistors have, in recent years, attracted increasing attention as a mathematical tool and as a means of gaining new insights into the structure of physical laws. This volume also includes a comprehensive treatment of the conformal approach to space-time infinity with results on general-relativistic mass and angular momentum, a detailed spinorial classification of the full space-time curvature tensor, and an account of the geometry of null geodesics.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521347860
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	04/07/1988
Series:	Cambridge Monographs on Mathematical Physics , #2
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	512
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 8.98(h) x 1.26(d)

Table of Contents

Preface; Summary of volume 1; 6. Twistors; 7. Null congruences; 8. Classification of curvature tensors; 9. Conformal infinity; Appendix; References; Subject and author index; Index of symbols.

Editorial Reviews

"Topics covered include massless fields, the geometry of light rays, and the conformal structure of infinity. Twistorial applications abound and are presented in great detail. The approach here is to show how problems with the standard physical framework may be solved using new twistorial techniques." American Mathematics Monthly

From the Publisher