Mathematical Physics of Symmetries Under Rotations and Reflections

Looking at the role of symmetry in physical theory, this text incorporates new advances in mathematical physics, including the Wigner and Racah algebras, and their applications to various symmetry groups. Research on non-variance groups is covered, and there are problems for homework assignments. This text focuses on the physics of symmetries, developing symmetries and transformations through concrete physical examples and contexts rather than presenting the information axiomatically, mathematically, and abstractly. Readers are introduced gradually to advanced mathematical procedures, including the Wigner and Racah algebras and their applications to various symmetry groups. The book also includes some of the latest research on the use of non-invariance and non-compact groups in the consideration of relativistic and many-particle problems of atoms and nuclei. This book is an updated replacement for the text Irreducible Tensorial Sets (Academic Press, 1959). Parts A and B of the present book grew out of occasional lectures in the intervening decades at the University of Chicago, where it became neccessary to update or elaborate upon certain points. Part C has been built more recently to deal with innovations and new information in the field of mathematical physics. The book as a whole develops the subject of symmetry from a physical point of view, allowing students and researchers to gain new insight on their subject. This book can be used both as a text and as a reference by students and scientists in the field.