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Large Gauge Transformation
Given a topological space ''M'', a topological group ''G'' and a principal G-bundle over ''M'', a global section of that principal bundle is a gauge fixing and the process of replacing one section by another is a gauge transformation. If a gauge transformation isn't homotopic to the identity, it is called a large gauge transformation. In theoretical physics, ''M'' often is a manifold and ''G'' is a Lie group. See also *Large diffeomorphism *Global anomaly Primary Examples In theoretical physics, a global anomaly is a type of anomaly: in this particular case, it is a quantum effect that invalidates a large gauge transformation that would otherwise be preserved in the classical theory. This lea ... References {{differential-geometry-stub Gauge theories Anomalies (physics) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Topological Space
In mathematics, a topological space is, roughly speaking, a Geometry, geometrical space in which Closeness (mathematics), closeness is defined but cannot necessarily be measured by a numeric Distance (mathematics), distance. More specifically, a topological space is a Set (mathematics), set whose elements are called Point (geometry), points, along with an additional structure called a topology, which can be defined as a set of Neighbourhood (mathematics), neighbourhoods for each point that satisfy some Axiom#Non-logical axioms, axioms formalizing the concept of closeness. There are several equivalent definitions of a topology, the most commonly used of which is the definition through open sets, which is easier than the others to manipulate. A topological space is the most general type of a space (mathematics), mathematical space that allows for the definition of Limit (mathematics), limits, Continuous function (topology), continuity, and Connected space, connectedness. Common types ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Topological Group
In mathematics, topological groups are the combination of groups and topological spaces, i.e. they are groups and topological spaces at the same time, such that the continuity condition for the group operations connects these two structures together and consequently they are not independent from each other. Topological groups were studied extensively in the period of 1925 to 1940. Haar and Weil (respectively in 1933 and 1940) showed that the integrals and Fourier series are special cases of a construct that can be defined on a very wide class of topological groups. Topological groups, along with continuous group actions, are used to study continuous symmetries, which have many applications, for example, in physics. In functional analysis, every topological vector space is an additive topological group with the additional property that scalar multiplication is continuous; consequently, many results from the theory of topological groups can be applied to functional anal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Principal Bundle
In mathematics, a principal bundle is a mathematical object that formalizes some of the essential features of the Cartesian product X \times G of a space X with a group G. In the same way as with the Cartesian product, a principal bundle P is equipped with # An action of G on P, analogous to (x, g)h = (x, gh) for a product space (where (x, g) is an element of P and h is the group element from G; the group action is conventionally a right action). # A projection onto X. For a product space, this is just the projection onto the first factor, (x,g) \mapsto x. Unless it is the product space X \times G, a principal bundle lacks a preferred choice of identity cross-section; it has no preferred analog of x \mapsto (x,e). Likewise, there is not generally a projection onto G generalizing the projection onto the second factor, X \times G \to G that exists for the Cartesian product. They may also have a complicated topology that prevents them from being realized as a product space even if a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Global Section
In mathematics, a sheaf (: sheaves) is a tool for systematically tracking data (such as Set (mathematics), sets, abelian groups, Ring (mathematics), rings) attached to the open sets of a topological space and defined locally with regard to them. For example, for each open set, the data could be the ring of continuous function, continuous function (mathematics), functions defined on that open set. Such data are well-behaved in that they can be restricted to smaller open sets, and also the data assigned to an open set are equivalent to all collections of compatible data assigned to collections of smaller open sets cover (topology), covering the original open set (intuitively, every datum is the sum of its constituent data). The field of mathematics that studies sheaves is called sheaf theory. Sheaves are understood conceptually as general and abstract Mathematical object, objects. Their precise definition is rather technical. They are specifically defined as sheaves of sets or as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gauge Fixing
In the physics of gauge theories, gauge fixing (also called choosing a gauge) denotes a mathematical procedure for coping with redundant degrees of freedom in field variables. By definition, a gauge theory represents each physically distinct configuration of the system as an equivalence class of detailed local field configurations. Any two detailed configurations in the same equivalence class are related by a certain transformation, equivalent to a shear along unphysical axes in configuration space. Most of the quantitative physical predictions of a gauge theory can only be obtained under a coherent prescription for suppressing or ignoring these unphysical degrees of freedom. Although the unphysical axes in the space of detailed configurations are a fundamental property of the physical model, there is no special set of directions "perpendicular" to them. Hence there is an enormous amount of freedom involved in taking a "cross section" representing each physical configuration ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gauge Transformation
In the physics of gauge theory, gauge theories, gauge fixing (also called choosing a gauge) denotes a mathematical procedure for coping with redundant Degrees of freedom (physics and chemistry), degrees of freedom in field (physics), field variables. By definition, a gauge theory represents each physically distinct configuration of the system as an equivalence class of detailed local field configurations. Any two detailed configurations in the same equivalence class are related by a certain transformation, equivalent to a symmetry transformation, shear along unphysical axes in configuration space. Most of the quantitative physical predictions of a gauge theory can only be obtained under a coherent prescription for suppressing or ignoring these unphysical degrees of freedom. Although the unphysical axes in the space of detailed configurations are a fundamental property of the physical model, there is no special set of directions "perpendicular" to them. Hence there is an enormo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Homotopic
In topology, two continuous functions from one topological space to another are called homotopic (from and ) if one can be "continuously deformed" into the other, such a deformation being called a homotopy ( ; ) between the two functions. A notable use of homotopy is the definition of homotopy groups and cohomotopy groups, important invariants in algebraic topology. In practice, there are technical difficulties in using homotopies with certain spaces. Algebraic topologists work with compactly generated spaces, CW complexes, or spectra. Formal definition Formally, a homotopy between two continuous functions ''f'' and ''g'' from a topological space ''X'' to a topological space ''Y'' is defined to be a continuous function H: X \times ,1\to Y from the product of the space ''X'' with the unit interval , 1to ''Y'' such that H(x,0) = f(x) and H(x,1) = g(x) for all x \in X. If we think of the second parameter of ''H'' as time then ''H'' describes a ''continuous d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theoretical Physics
Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain, and predict List of natural phenomena, natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental physics, which uses experimental tools to probe these phenomena. The advancement of science generally depends on the interplay between experimental studies and theory. In some cases, theoretical physics adheres to standards of mathematical rigour while giving little weight to experiments and observations.There is some debate as to whether or not theoretical physics uses mathematics to build intuition and illustrativeness to extract physical insight (especially when normal experience fails), rather than as a tool in formalizing theories. This links to the question of it using mathematics in a less formally rigorous, and more intuitive or heuristic way than, say, mathematical physics. For example, while developing special relativity, Albert E ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manifold
In mathematics, a manifold is a topological space that locally resembles Euclidean space near each point. More precisely, an n-dimensional manifold, or ''n-manifold'' for short, is a topological space with the property that each point has a Neighbourhood (mathematics), neighborhood that is homeomorphic to an open (topology), open subset of n-dimensional Euclidean space. One-dimensional manifolds include Line (geometry), lines and circles, but not Lemniscate, self-crossing curves such as a figure 8. Two-dimensional manifolds are also called Surface (topology), surfaces. Examples include the Plane (geometry), plane, the sphere, and the torus, and also the Klein bottle and real projective plane. The concept of a manifold is central to many parts of geometry and modern mathematical physics because it allows complicated structures to be described in terms of well-understood topological properties of simpler spaces. Manifolds naturally arise as solution sets of systems of equations ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lie Group
In mathematics, a Lie group (pronounced ) is a group (mathematics), group that is also a differentiable manifold, such that group multiplication and taking inverses are both differentiable. A manifold is a space that locally resembles Euclidean space, whereas groups define the abstract concept of a binary operation along with the additional properties it must have to be thought of as a "transformation" in the abstract sense, for instance multiplication and the taking of inverses (to allow division), or equivalently, the concept of addition and subtraction. Combining these two ideas, one obtains a continuous group where multiplying points and their inverses is continuous. If the multiplication and taking of inverses are smoothness, smooth (differentiable) as well, one obtains a Lie group. Lie groups provide a natural model for the concept of continuous symmetry, a celebrated example of which is the circle group. Rotating a circle is an example of a continuous symmetry. For an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Studies In History And Philosophy Of Science
''Studies in History and Philosophy of Science'' is a series of three peer-reviewed academic journals published by Elsevier. It was established in 1970 as a single journal, and was split into two sections–''Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part A'' and ''Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part B: Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics''–in 1995. In 1998, a third section, ''Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part C: Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences'', was created. In January 2021, all three sections were merged back into Part A, ''Studies in History and Philosophy of Science''. Part A ''Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part A'' was established in 1970 and is published 7 times per year. It covers the philosophy and history of science. The editor-in-chief is Darrell P. Rowbottom (Lingnan University). According to the ''Journal Citation Reports'', the journal has a 2017 impact factor of 0 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Large Diffeomorphism
In mathematics and theoretical physics, a large diffeomorphism is an equivalence class of diffeomorphisms under the equivalence relation where diffeomorphisms that can be continuously connected to each other are in the same equivalence class. For example, a two-dimensional real torus has a SL(2,Z) group of large diffeomorphisms by which the 1-cycles a,b of the torus are transformed into their integer linear combinations. This group of large diffeomorphisms is called the modular group. More generally, for a surface ''S'', the structure of self-homeomorphisms up to homotopy is known as the mapping class group. It is known (for compact, orientable ''S'') that this is isomorphic with the automorphism group of the fundamental group of ''S''. This is consistent with the genus 1 case, stated above, if one takes into account that then the fundamental group is ''Z''2, on which the modular group acts as automorphisms (as a subgroup of index Index (: indexes or indices) may refer to: ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
