No Arabic abstract
These lecture notes introduce the multiple membrane theories known as BLG and ABJM. We assume the reader is familiar with string theory, but not with M-theory, 11-dimensional supergravity or membranes. We therefore start with a background on M-theory and its extended objects before discussing BLG and ABJM. The link to string theory via dimensional reduction will be maintained throughout.
We give an elementary introduction to classical and quantum bosonic string theory.
These lecture notes contain an elementary introduction to lattice QCD at nonzero chemical potential. Topics discussed include chemical potential in the continuum and on the lattice; the sign, overlap and Silver Blaze problems; the phase boundary at small chemical potential; imaginary chemical potential; and complex Langevin dynamics. An incomplete overview of other approaches is presented as well. These lectures are meant for postgraduate students and postdocs with an interest in extreme QCD. A basic knowledge of lattice QCD is assumed but not essential. Some exercises are included at the end.
We discuss only domestic affairs of metric spaces, leaving all external applications aside. Topics include universal spaces, injective spaces, Gromov--Hausdorff convergence, and ultralimits.
These notes consist of 3 lectures on celestial holography given at the Pre-Strings school 2021. We start by reviewing how semiclassically, the subleading soft graviton theorem implies an enhancement of the Lorentz symmetry of scattering in four-dimensional asymptotically flat gravity to Virasoro. This leads to the construction of celestial amplitudes as $mathcal{S}$-matrices computed in a basis of boost eigenstates. Both massless and massive asymptotic states are recast as insertions on the celestial sphere transforming as global conformal primaries under the Lorentz SL$(2, mathbb{C})$. We conclude with an overview of celestial symmetries and the constraints they impose on celestial scattering.
These lectures cover aspects of primordial cosmology with a focus on observational tests of physics beyond the Standard Model. The presentation is divided into two parts: In Part I, we study the production of new light particles in the hot big bang and describe their effects on the anisotropies of the cosmic microwave background. In Part II, we investigate the possibility of very massive particles being created during inflation and determine their imprints in higher-order cosmological correlations.