This book is an exposition of the algebra and calculus of differential forms, of the Clifford and Spin-Clifford bundle formalisms, and of vistas to a formulation of important concepts of differential geometry indispensable for an in-depth understanding of space-time physics. The formalism discloses the hidden geometrical nature of spinor fields. Maxwell, Dirac and Einstein fields are shown to have representatives by objects of the same mathematical nature, namely sections of an appropriate Clifford bundle. This approach reveals unity in diversity and suggests relationships that are hidden in the standard formalisms and opens new paths for research. This thoroughly revised second edition also adds three new chapters: on the Clifford bundle approach to the Riemannian or semi-Riemannian differential geometry of branes; on Komar currents in the context of the General Relativity theory; and an analysis of the similarities and main differences between Dirac, Majorana and ELKO spinor fields. The exercises with solutions, the comprehensive list of mathematical symbols, and the list of acronyms and abbreviations are provided for self-study for students as well as for classes. From the reviews of the first edition: “The text is written in a very readable manner and is complemented with plenty of worked-out exercises which are in the style of extended examples. ... their book could also serve as a textbook for graduate students in physics or mathematics." (Alberto Molgado, Mathematical Reviews, 2008 k)

This book is a comprehensive reference on differential geometry. It shows that Maxwell, Dirac and Einstein fields, which were originally considered objects of a very different mathematical nature, have representatives as objects of the same mathematical nature. The book also analyzes some foundational issues of relativistic field theories. All calculation procedures are illustrated by many exercises that are solved in detail.

This volume is dedicated to the memory of Albert Crumeyrolle, who died on June 17, 1992. In organizing the volume we gave priority to: articles summarizing Crumeyrolle's own work in differential geometry, general relativity and spinors, articles which give the reader an idea of the depth and breadth of Crumeyrolle's research interests and influence in the field, articles of high scientific quality which would be of general interest. In each of the areas to which Crumeyrolle made significant contribution - Clifford and exterior algebras, Weyl and pure spinors, spin structures on manifolds, principle of triality, conformal geometry - there has been substantial progress. Our hope is that the volume conveys the originality of Crumeyrolle's own work, the continuing vitality of the field he influenced, and the enduring respect for, and tribute to, him and his accomplishments in the mathematical community. It isour pleasure to thank Peter Morgan, Artibano Micali, Joseph Grifone, Marie Crumeyrolle and Kluwer Academic Publishers for their help in preparingthis volume.

This is the second edition of a popular work offering a unique introduction to Clifford algebras and spinors. The beginning chapters could be read by undergraduates; vectors, complex numbers and quaternions are introduced with an eye on Clifford algebras. The next chapters will also interest physicists, and include treatments of the quantum mechanics of the electron, electromagnetism and special relativity with a flavour of Clifford algebras. This edition has three new chapters, including material on conformal invariance and a history of Clifford algebras.

This work is unique compared to the existing literature. It is very didactical and accessible to both students and researchers, without neglecting the formal character and the deep algebraic completeness of the topic along with its physical applications.

This volume is an outgrowth of the 1995 Summer School on Theoretical Physics of the Canadian Association of Physicists (CAP), held in Banff, Alberta, in the Canadian Rockies, from July 30 to August 12,1995. The chapters, based on lectures given at the School, are designed to be tutorial in nature, and many include exercises to assist the learning process. Most lecturers gave three or four fifty-minute lectures aimed at relative novices in the field. More emphasis is therefore placed on pedagogy and establishing comprehension than on erudition and superior scholarship. Of course, new and exciting results are presented in applications of Clifford algebras, but in a coherent and user-friendly way to the nonspecialist. The subject area of the volume is Clifford algebra and its applications. Through the geometric language of the Clifford-algebra approach, many concepts in physics are clarified, united, and extended in new and sometimes surprising directions. In particular, the approach eliminates the formal gaps that traditionally separate clas sical, quantum, and relativistic physics. It thereby makes the study of physics more efficient and the research more penetrating, and it suggests resolutions to a major physics problem of the twentieth century, namely how to unite quantum theory and gravity. The term "geometric algebra" was used by Clifford himself, and David Hestenes has suggested its use in order to emphasize its wide applicability, and b& cause the developments by Clifford were themselves based heavily on previous work by Grassmann, Hamilton, Rodrigues, Gauss, and others.

This small book started a profound revolution in the development of mathematical physics, one which has reached many working physicists already, and which stands poised to bring about far-reaching change in the future. At its heart is the use of Clifford algebra to unify otherwise disparate mathematical languages, particularly those of spinors, quaternions, tensors and differential forms. It provides a unified approach covering all these areas and thus leads to a very efficient ‘toolkit’ for use in physical problems including quantum mechanics, classical mechanics, electromagnetism and relativity (both special and general) – only one mathematical system needs to be learned and understood, and one can use it at levels which extend right through to current research topics in each of these areas. These same techniques, in the form of the ‘Geometric Algebra’, can be applied in many areas of engineering, robotics and computer science, with no changes necessary – it is the same underlying mathematics, and enables physicists to understand topics in engineering, and engineers to understand topics in physics (including aspects in frontier areas), in a way which no other single mathematical system could hope to make possible. There is another aspect to Geometric Algebra, which is less tangible, and goes beyond questions of mathematical power and range. This is the remarkable insight it gives to physical problems, and the way it constantly suggests new features of the physics itself, not just the mathematics. Examples of this are peppered throughout ‘Space-Time Algebra’, despite its short length, and some of them are effectively still research topics for the future. From the Foreward by Anthony Lasenby

When one approaches the study of the quantal relativistic theory of the electron, one may be surprised by the gap which lies between the frame of the experiments, i.e. the real geometry of the space and time, and the abstraction of the complex matrices and spinors formalism employed in the presentation of the theory. This book uses a theory of the electron, introduced by David Hestenes, in which the mathematical language is the same as the one of the geometry of the space and time. Such a language not only allows one to find again the well known results concerning the one-electron atoms theory but furthermore leads easily to the resolution of problems considered for a long time without solution.