Building on mathematical structures familiar from quantum mechanics, this book provides an introduction to quantization in a broad context before developing a framework for quantum geometry in Matrix Theory and string theory. Taking a physics-oriented approach to quantum geometry, this framework helps explain the physics of Yang-Mills-type matrix models, leading to a quantum theory of space-time and matter. This novel framework is then applied to Matrix Theory, which is defined through distinguished maximally supersymmetric matrix models related to string theory. A mechanism for gravity is discussed in depth, which emerges as a quantum effect on quantum space-time within Matrix Theory. Using explicit examples and exercises, readers will develop a physical intuition for the mathematical concepts and mechanisms. It will benefit advanced students and researchers in theoretical and mathematical physics, and is a useful resource for physicists and mathematicians interested in the geometrical aspects of quantization in a broader context.
ISBN: | 9781009440783 |
Publication date: | 11th April 2024 |
Author: | Harold C Steinacker |
Publisher: | Cambridge University Press |
Format: | Hardback |
Pagination: | 440 pages |
Genres: |
Mathematical physics Gravity Particle and high-energy physics Quantum physics (quantum mechanics and quantum field theory) |