Cosmology

This book is unique in the detailed, self-contained, and comprehensive treatment that it gives to the ideas and formulas that are used and tested in modern cosmological research. It divides into two parts, each of which provides enough material for a one-semester graduate course. The first part deals chiefly with the isotropic and homogeneous average universe; the second part concentrates on the departures from the average universe. Throughout the book the author presents detailed analytic calculations of cosmological phenomena, rather than just report results obtained elsewhere by numerical computation. The book is up to date, and gives detailed accounts of topics such as recombination, microwave background polarization, leptogenesis, gravitational lensing, structure formation, and multifield inflation, that are usually treated superficially if at all in treatises on cosmology. Copious references to current research literature are supplied. Appendices include a brief introduction to general relativity, and a detailed derivation of the Boltzmann equation for photons and neutrinos used in calculations of cosmological evolution. Also provided is an assortment of problems. This Is A Uniquely Comprehensive And Detailed Treatment Of The Theoretical And Observational Foundations Of Modern Cosmology, By A Nobel Laureate In Physics. It Gives Up-to-date And Self Contained Accounts Of The Theories And Observations That Have Made The Past Few Decades A Golden Age Of Cosmology. 1. The Expansion Of The Universe. Spacetime Geometry ; The Cosmological Redshift ; Distances At Small Redshift : The Hubble Constant ; Luminosity Distances And Angular Diameter Distances ; Dynamics Of Expansion ; Distances At Large Redshifts : Accelerated Expansion ; Cosmic Expansion Or Tired Light? ; Ages ; Masses ; Intergalactic Absorption ; Number Counts ; Quintessence ; Horizons -- 2. The Cosmic Microwave Radiation Background. Expectations And Discovery Of The Microwave Background ; The Equilibrium Era ; Recombination And Last Scattering ; The Dipole Anisotropy ; The Sunyaev-zel'dovich Effect ; Primary Fluctuations In The Microwave Background : A First Look -- 3. The Early Universe. Thermal History ; Cosmological Nucleosynthesis ; Baryonsynthesis And Leptonsynthesis ; Cold Dark Matter -- 4. Inflation. Three Puzzles ; Slow-roll Inflation ; Chaotic Inflation, Eternal Inflation -- 5. General Theory Of Small Fluctuations. Field Equations ; Fourier Decomposition And Stochastic Initial Conditions ; Choosing A Gauge ; Conservation Outside The Horizon -- 6. Evolution Of Cosmological Fluctuations, Scalar Perturbations : Kinetic Theory ; Scalar Perturbations : The Hydrodynamic Limit ; Scalar Perturbations : Long Wavelengths ; Scalar Perturbations : Short Wavelengths ; Scalar Perturbations : Interpolation & Transfer Functions ; Tensor Perturbations -- 7. Anisotropies In The Microwave Sky. General Formulas For The Temperature Flucations ; Temperature Multipole Coefficients : Scalar Modes ; Temperature Multipole Coefficients : Tensor Modes ; Polarization -- 8. The Growth Of Structure. Linear Perturbations After Recombination ; Nonlinear Growth ; Collapse Of Baryonic Matter -- 9. Gravitational Lenses. Lens Equation For Point Masses ; Magnification : Strong Lensing And Microlensing ; Extended Lenses ; Time Delay ; Weak Lensing ; Cosmic Strings -- 10. Inflation As The Origin Of Cosmological Fluctuations. Scalar Fluctuations During Inflation ; Tensor Fluctuations During Inflation ; Fluctuations During Inflation : The Slow-roll Approximation ; Multifield Inflation -- Appendices. A. Some Useful Numbers ; B. Review Of General Relativity ; C. Energy Transfer Between Radiation And Electrons ; D. The Ergodic Theorem ; E. Gaussian Distributions ; F. Newtonian Cosmology ; G. Photon Polarization ; H. The Relativistic Boltzmann Equation -- Glossary Of Symbols -- Assorted Problems. Steven Weinberg. Includes Bibliographical References And Indexes. "This book is unique in the detailed, self-contained, and comprehensive treatment that it gives to the ideas and formulas that are used and tested in modern cosmological research. It divides into two parts, each of which provides enough material for a one-semester graduate course. The first part deals chiefly with the isotropic and homogeneous average universe; the second part concentrates on the departures from the average universe. Throughout the book the author presents detailed analytic calculations of cosmological phenomena, rather than just report results obtained elsewhere by numerical computation. The book is up to date, and gives detailed accounts of topics such as recombination, microwave background polarization, leptogenesis, gravitational lensing, structure formation, and multifield inflation, that are often treated superficially if at all in treatises on cosmology. Copious references to current research literature are supplied. Appendices include a brief introduction to general relativity, and a detailed derivation of the Boltzmann equation for photons and neutrinos used in calculations of cosmological evolution. Also provided is an assortment of problems."--[Memento] This is a uniquely comprehensive and detailed treatment of the theoretical and observational foundations of modern cosmology, by a Nobel Laureate in Physics. It gives up-to-date and self contained accounts of the theories and observations that have made the past few decades a golden age of cosmology. - ;This book is unique in the detailed, self-contained, and comprehensive treatment that it gives to the ideas and formulas that are used and tested in modern cosmological research. It divides into two parts, each of which provides enough material for a one-semester graduate course. The first part