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PHYS4390 - General Relativity

Outline

An advanced course introducing Einstein's theory of General Relativity and the curvature of spacetime. Topics shall include manifolds, Riemannian geometry, Einstein's equations, and applications to cosmology and black holes.

Syllabus

0. Introduction: motivation for studying GR
1. Review of Special Relativity and use of tensor notation, including vectors and scalars
2. Tensor algebra & calculus: mainfolds, metrics, curvature, covariant differentiation
3. Fundamental concepts in GR: Principle of Equivalence, Mach's Principle, Principle of Covariance, Principle of Minimal Coupling
4. Energy momentum tensor and Einstein's Field Equations
5. Schwarzschild solution and black holes
6. Applications of GR in astrophysics (depending on scheduling, compact objects, gravitational waves, lensing, cosmology)

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