The discussion centers on recommended resources for learning gauge theories and particle physics, particularly after studying Shankar's "Principles of Quantum Mechanics." Participants suggest key texts, including Schwartz's "Quantum Field Theory and the Standard Model" (Cambridge University Press, 2014) and Landau/Lifshitz's Volume II on classical electromagnetism for a solid foundation in special relativity. The consensus is that while Shankar is sufficient for quantum mechanics, familiarity with special relativity and tensor manipulation is essential for tackling gauge theories. Aitchison and Hey's book is mentioned as a comprehensive resource, though opinions on its pedagogical effectiveness vary.
PREREQUISITESStudents and researchers in theoretical physics, particularly those focusing on quantum field theory, gauge theories, and particle physics. This discussion is beneficial for anyone seeking structured learning paths and recommended texts in these advanced topics.
These are excellent books. I think that Shankar is sufficient for QM (and Sakurai is really not a great textbook to learn from, in my opinion). But you definitely need to be very at ease with special relativity and with tensor manipulation.Andreol263 said:https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1466513179/?tag=pfamazon01-20
This book, so will suffice if i read Shankar? Or i will need to read Sakurai too?
That shows how picking books is subjective. That's why I never say that a book is great or a book is bad, I can only say that something is good or bad, in my opinion.vanhees71 said:I'm not so enthusiastic about Aitchison and Hey. I don't know Shankar's textbook very well. Sakurai, from which I learned QM in my introductory course lecture, is excellent.
Ok, but they also make a lot of effort to be pedagogical, I find.Andreol263 said:I Don't know, i picked up the Aitchison and Hey's book because it appears to have more content and good for self-studying, because this book has two volumes that summed up go to nearly 1000 pages!