Cosmology: The Origin and Evolution of Cosmic Structure

ISBN-13: 9780471489092 / Angielski / Twarda / 2002 / 512 str.

Coles

Opis

This is the 2nd edition of a highly successful title on this fascinating and complex subject. Concentrating primarily on the theory behind the origin and the evolution of the universe, and where appropriate relating it to observation, the new features of the this addition include:

• An overall introduction to the book
• Two new chapters: Gravitational Lensing and Gravitational Waves
• Each part has a collection of exercises with solutions to numerical parts at the end of the book
• Contains a table of physical constants
• The addition of a consolidated bibilography

Spis treści

Preface.

Introduction.

PART 1: COSMOLOGICAL MODELS.

First Principles.

The Friedmann Models.

Alternative Cosmologies.

Observational Properties of the Universe.

PART 2: THE HOT BIG BANG MODEL.

Thermal History of the Hot Big Bang Model.

The Very Early Universe.

Phase Transitions and Inflation.

The Lepton Era.

The Plasma Era.

PART 3: THEORY OF STRUCTURE FORMATION.

Introduction to Jeans Theory.

Gravitational Instability of Baryonic Matter.

Non–Baryonic Matter.

Cosmological Perturbations.

Non–Linear Evolution.

Models of Structure Formation

PART 4: OBSERVATIONAL TESTS.

Statistics of Galaxy Clustering.

The Cosmic Microwave Background.

Peculiar Motions of Galaxies.

Gravitational Lensing.

The High–Redshift Universe.

A Forward Look.

Appendices

References.

Index.

Blurb

Cosmology: The Origin and Evolution of Cosmic Structures, Second Edition, is a modern introduction to this fascinating and fast developing subject. The book provides a unique bridge between introductory and advanced material, starting with the elementary foundations of basic cosmological theory, to ′state–of–the–art′ frontier research. Extensively revised and updated, the Second Edition includes the latest observational and theoretical developments. The book is fully illustrated throughout with completely updated references.

Features:
∗ Recent observational breakthroughs including high redshift supernovae, CMB measurements, gravitational lensing and galaxy studies.

∗ The latest theoretical developments, such as supercomputer simulations and semi–analytical galaxy formation

∗ Around 100 graded problems, ranging from basic cosmology to advanced topics.
This book will be invaluable to advanced undergraduates and postgraduates taking cosmology courses and will also be a useful reference for researchers in the field.