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This course in Cosmology provides a theoretical overview of the standard cosmological model. Key topics include the FRW metric and the homogeneous universe, the thermal history of the universe, inflation and scalar field dynamics, along with selected aspects of cosmological perturbation theory time permitting.

This course will be an introduction to world-sheet and space-time aspects of topological strings. Topics that will be discussed include: the world-sheet formulation of both the A and B model topological strings, axiomatics of topological string theories, categories of branes, string field theory, the relation to the physical string; and dualities.

This course teaches basic numerical methods that are widely used across many fields of physics. The course is based on the Python programming language. Topics include an introduction to Python, linear algebra, Monte Carlo methods, root finding, integration, differential equations, and are based on applications by researchers at Perimeter. The course will also teach principles of software engineering ensuring reproducible results.

We will study advanced topics in gravitational physics and their applications to high energy physics. After reviewing topics in differential geometry, including differential forms, Cartan's formalism, and the Gauss-Codazzi equations for the geometry of embedded hypersurfaces, we will address the Einstein-Hilbert variational principle and the Hawking-York term, which plays an important role in the gravitational path integral. We will then study the Kerr solution for rotating black holes, and address topics in black hole thermodynamics using the Euclidean action, as well as Hawking radiation. Time allowing we will touch on some more advanced topics such as domain walls, brane world scenarios, Kaluza-Klein (KK) theory & KK black holes, Gregory-Laflamme instability, and Gravitational instantons.

We will study topics in theoretical physics through the lens of differential geometry and algebraic topology. The topics will be chosen among the following: differential forms on manifolds, homology, homotopy, de Rham cohomology, gauge theory and principal fiber bundles, nonperturbative effects and topology, characteristic classes, basics of solitons (ex: why is the instanton number a number?), index theorems, introduction to anomalies.

This course will explain why textbook quantum “theory” is merely a mathematical recipe rather than a proper physical theory. It will then cover the most serious obstacles to fixing this problem and to providing a clear metaphysics underpinning the mathematics of quantum theory. We will focus on key no-go theorems (e.g., Bell’s theorem, contextuality theorems, and Extended Wigner’s friend arguments), as well as on key frameworks (e.g., generalized probabilistic theories and ontological models).

The course will give introduction into the structure of the Standard Model of particle physics and its field content. The emphasis will be made on the underlying principles, such as gauge invariance, cancellation of quantum anomalies, and Brout-Englert-Higgs mechanism. Effective low-energy description of strong interactions will be also discussed. It will be assumed that students are familiar with the basics of quantum field theory.

This course offers an introduction to general relativity (GR), focusing on the core principles of Einstein's theory of gravity. We will explore key topics such as the equivalence principle, some essential concepts in differential geometry, the Einstein-Hilbert action, and Einstein's field equations. Furthermore, we will examine practical applications of general relativity in understanding black holes, cosmology, and gravitational waves.

Quantum field theory intertwines continuous and discrete structures. On the discrete side, combinatorics plays a central role in describing and understanding its expansions and models. This lecture series focuses on the combinatorial aspects of quantum field theory. In the first part, we explore analytic combinatorics techniques, inspired by QFT, for the enumeration of graphs. These methods turn out to be surprisingly powerful in addressing deep questions in algebraic geometry, topology, and statistical models on graphs. In the second part, we turn to discrete structures arising in perturbative expansions of QFT. We study these from a modern combinatorics viewpoint, using tools such as Lorentzian polynomials and generalized permutahedra to better understand the mathematical objects at the heart of quantum field theory.

For updates visit: https://michaelborinsky.com/combqft.html

This course is offered by the University of Waterloo's Department of Combinatorics & Optimization; UW students can enroll through Quest.

Lectures will be held at Perimeter Institute, 31 Caroline St N, Waterloo. Students will need to sign in and out of Perimeter each day. Note: session is cancelled for Sept 25; there is a room change for Oct 2 & Nov 11, and no classes week of October 13.

Scroll down to Registration and Enrollment to participate.

Structure:

We will discuss 8 papers which had huge impact in physics. One week Instructor Pedro Vieira will discuss a paper; students should read it beforehand. One week later students discuss recent papers referring to that paper (20 min each student, ~ 3 presentations; at the end of the class Pedro will grade the presentations based on “Physics”, “Presentation”, “Question handling”; and give comments).

By the end of the course, students will have explored a vast set of topics in theoretical physics — spotting potential gaps to be fixed — sharpened their presentation skills through steady practice, and sparked cross-disciplinary conversations through our shared physics language.

Familiarity with Quantum Field Theory and General Relativity is assumed.

The papers:

Sept 12 & 19: On the Quantum Correction for Thermodynamic Equilibrium, Wigner, 1932 Topic: Quantum Mechanics

Sept 22 & 29: Existence theorem for certain systems of nonlinear PDEs, Foures-Bruhat, 1952 Topic: General relativity

Oct 3 & 10: The Renormalization Group and the Epsilon Expansion, Wilson and Kogut, 1973 Topic: Quantum Field Theory

Oct 10 (EXTRA) & 17: More about the Massive Schwinger Model, Coleman, 1976 Topic: 2D Quantum Field Theory

Oct 20 & 27: A sequence of approximated solutions to the S-K model for spin glasses, Parisi, 1980 Topic: Statistical Mechanics

Oct 29 (New Date) & Nov 7: Quantum Field Theory and the Jones Polynomial, Witten, 1988 Topic: Topological Quantum Field Theory

Nov 10 & 17: Exactly Solvable Field Theories of Closed Strings, Brezin, Kazakov, 1989 Topic: 2D Quantum Gravity

Nov 21 & Nov 28: Unpaired Majorana fermions in quantum wires, Kitaev, 2000 Topic: Quantum Matter/Quantum Information

Schedule: This is a Friday / Monday alternating week schedule from 915am-1045am.

Exceptions: There will be an afternoon session at 130pm on Friday October 10 to avoid the Thanksgiving holiday.

Location & Building Access: Alice Room, 3rd Floor, Perimeter Institute, 31 Caroline St N, Waterloo Participants who do not have an access card for Perimeter Institute must sign in at the security desk before each session. For information on parking or accessibility please contact [email protected].

Registration and Enrollment: Please sign-up here: https://forms.office.com/r/nDQ6SDxSR4