Suggestion for textbook(s) needed

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the need for comprehensive textbooks to cover specific topics in a Physics honors degree curriculum, particularly for Mathematical Methods. Key areas of concern include index notation, transformations, and surfaces in 3D. While the user has consulted Arfken and Weber, and M. L. Boas, these texts do not sufficiently address the syllabus requirements. Recommendations include exploring resources on Ricci calculus, especially in the context of electromagnetism and general relativity.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of index notation and summation conventions in Physics.
  • Familiarity with transformations, including orthogonal transformations and their applications.
  • Knowledge of 3D geometry, particularly surfaces of revolution and second-order surfaces.
  • Basic concepts of Ricci calculus and its relevance to electromagnetism and general relativity.
NEXT STEPS
  • Research Ricci calculus and its applications in general relativity and electromagnetism.
  • Explore textbooks specifically addressing index notation and transformations in Physics.
  • Investigate resources on 3D surfaces, focusing on cylindrical and conical surfaces.
  • Review lecture notes or online materials related to tensor calculus and its applications in Physics.
USEFUL FOR

Students pursuing an honors degree in Physics, particularly those studying Mathematical Methods, as well as educators seeking supplemental resources for teaching complex topics in Physics.

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I'm a fresher at college, pursuing an honors degree in Physics. I've got Mathematical Methods for my first semester. I've collected a couple of books like Arfken and Weber and M. L. Boas. But none of them quite entirely cover the course material.
Listed below are the topics included in our syllabus which I could not find in any book I've looked up so far:
  • Index notation: dummy indices, free and sum indices, symmetric and skew symmetric expressions, summation convention, addition and multiplication of symbols, contraction, special symbols.
  • Transformations: Inversion, mirror reflection, True and pseudo vectors and scalars, orthogonal transformations, general spatial notations(passive).
  • Surfaces in 3D: Surfaces of revolution, cylindrical surfaces, conical surfaces, standard surfaces of second order(ellipsoids, hyperboloids, paraboloids), the Z-Slice method.
Though Orthogonal transformations has been partly covered in Arfken, it isn't as detailed as I need it to be. For some unknown reasons our professor refuses to recommend any textbook. I feel quite lost when it comes to these topics. Not to mention the utterly helpless feeling that comes when you do not have a loyal book to depend on. So, any help in this matter would make me immensely grateful. :smile:
 
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The content of your first bullet point is what one would call Ricci calculus, particularly in the context of ##\mathbb{R}^{3}## if this is for say an introductory electromagnetism (EM) class: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ricci_calculus.

I personally got acquainted with Ricci calculus through general relativity textbooks (Ricci calculus is a fundamental tool in general relativity), e.g. https://www.amazon.com/dp/0521887054/?tag=pfamazon01-20, but the formalism is also introduced in some EM texts.

You might try the following:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0486658406/?tag=pfamazon01-20
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0486654931/?tag=pfamazon01-20
http://www.ita.uni-heidelberg.de/~dullemond/lectures/tensor/tensor.pdf
 

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