Undergraduate Course: Geometry of General Relativity (MATH11138)
Course Outline
| School | School of Mathematics |
College | College of Science and Engineering |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Year 5 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 10 |
ECTS Credits | 5 |
| Summary | Einstein's theory of General Relativity is a geometric theory of gravitation. This course is a modern introduction to this cornerstone of mathematical physics, formulated in the language of differential geometry.
There are two lectures a week and a workshop every two weeks. There are biweekly assignments and a closed-book exam. |
| Course description |
This course assumes familiarity with the language of differentiable manifolds, but develops the theory of affine connections and enough pseudo-riemannian geometry (metric tensor, curvature) in order to describe the theory of General Relativity. This is done via the postulates of General Relativity and the Einstein field equations. The course then explores solutions of the Einstein field equations,including the famous Schwarzschild black hole and the cosmological solutions, which introduces the geometric notions of homogeneity andisotropy.
Syllabus:
- Affine connections: covariant derivative, torsion, curvature, parallel transport, geodesics, geodesic deviation.
- Riemannian geometry: metric tensors, Lorentzian metrics, Levi-Civita connection, curvature tensors, moving frames, Cartan structure equations, isometries, Killing vector fields.
- General Relativity: special relativity and Minkowski spacetime, Maxwell's equations, postulates of General Relativity, spacetime, general covariance, energy-momentum tensor, Einstein equations.
- Causal structure and Penrose diagram for Minkowski spacetime.
- Schwarzschild solution: static and spherically symmetric spacetimes, black hole, Kruskal extension, causal structure and Penrose diagram.
- Cosmological models: homogeneity and isotropy, the Friedmann¿Lemaître¿Robertson¿Walker metric.
Pre-requisites
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Students MUST have passed: Differentiable Manifolds (MATH10088)
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
Students MUST have passed:
Differentiable Manifolds (MATH10088)
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Visiting students are advised to check that they have studied the material covered in the syllabus of each prerequisite course before enrolling
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| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2019/20, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
100
(
Lecture Hours 22,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 5,
Summative Assessment Hours 2,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 2,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
69 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
95 %,
Coursework
5 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Coursework 5%, Examination 95% |
| Feedback |
Not entered |
| Exam Information |
| Exam Diet |
Paper Name |
Hours & Minutes |
|
| Main Exam Diet S2 (April/May) | Geometry of General Relativity (MATH11138) | 2:00 | |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- State definitions and theorems and present standard proofs accurately without access to notes/books.
- Perform local calculations in differential geometry accurately (tensor calculus, covariant derivatives, Lie derivatives)
- Calculate curvature tensors for simple spacetimes.
- Derive and solve the geodesic equations for simple spacetimes.
- Apply theory developed in the course to solve unseen problems.
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Reading List
Recommended:
An Introduction to General Relativity, L.P Hughston and K.P. Tod (LMS, CUP, 1990)
General Relativity, R. M. Wald, University of Chicago Press (1984) |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | GGR |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Prof José Figueroa-O'Farrill
Tel: (0131 6)50 5066
Email: j.m.figueroa@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mr Martin Delaney
Tel: (0131 6)50 6427
Email: Martin.Delaney@ed.ac.uk |
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