. - Cosmology
PROF. YVES GASPAR
COURSE CONTENT
Cosmology corresponds to the part of physics that studies the origin and the
evolution of the universe. In this field, various disciplines of physics, which are
usually taught separately, are used in a unified framework. The course also
contains a part dedicated to theoretical astrophysics, which studies the stars and
their evolution, the general aim being the study of the problems inherent to black
hole physics. The content of the course can be divided in the following way:
a) Theoretical cosmology.
- Review of general relativity and quantum physics, the Friedmann-LemaitreRobertson-Walker (FLRW) models, the dynamics and geometry of the FLRW
models, the cosmological expansion, fundamental parameters, open, flat and closed
models. A. Einstein’s cosmological constant and the impossibility of the static
universe.
- The basis of the Standard Hot Big Bang Model, elements of particle physics. The
origin of matter: asymmetry between particles/antiparticles. Primordial
nucleosinthesis: the “fossil” elements of the Big Bang. The “fossil” cosmic
background radiation: theory and observation. The entropy of the universe.
Primordial neutrinos.
- The problems of the Big Bang model, the initial conditions problem in
cosmology. Inflationary cosmological models, spontaneous symmetry breaking.
- The dark matter problem – observational status and theory. The accelerated
cosmological expansion and dark energy. Thermodynamical aspects of
gravitation, entropic gravity, the holographic universe, implications of quantum
gravity and string theory, brane-world scenarios, ekpyrotic and cyclic models:
alternatives to the Standard Big Bang.
b) Theoretical astrophysics
- Structure formation: Jeans instability, the formation of stars, fundamental models.
- Stellar evolution and dynamics: brown dwarfs, the main sequence, giant stars,
novae and supernovae, the formation of “heavy” chemical elements, white dwarfs,
the Chandrasekhar limit, neutron stars, quark stars, pulsars, binary and multiple
systems.
- Elements of black hole physics, black hole thermodynamics, the basis of the
holographic principle.
READING LIST
J.N.ISLAM, An Introduction to Mathematical Cosmology, Cambridge University Press, 1992.
J.V. MUKHANOV, PHYSICAL FOUNDATIONS OF COSMOLOGY, Cambridge University Press, 2005.
J.D.BARROW-P. DAVIES-C.HARPER, Science and Ultimate Reality, Cambridge University Press, 2004.
G.W.GIBBONS-E.P SHELLARD-S.J.RANKIN, The Future of Theoretical Cosmology, Cambridge
University Press, 2003.
LEONARD SUSSKIND AND JAMES LINDESAY, An introduction to black holes, information, and the string
theory revolution: the holographic universe - World Scientific - 2004
BLACK HOLES, White Dwarfs and Neutron Stars, Stuart L. Shapiro, Saul A. Teukolsky, Ed.
WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 2004
ROGER PENROSE, La strada che porta alla realtà, 2005, ed. BUR
NOTES
Further information can be found on the lecturer's webpage
http://www2.unicatt.it/unicattolica/docenti/index.html or on the Faculty notice board.
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