Kirjahaku

Usually, it is not easy to de?ne the main dates of creation of a new science – the birth date, when the ?rst distinct idea was generated, and the - turity date, when the science manifested itself as a separate and consistent discipline. For particle astrophysics, the science that has developed very - tensively over the last two decades, the birth is most likely to be dated to the beginning of the 1930s. Just then, after the discovery of a neutron by J. Chadwick in 1932, the concept of a neutron star was proposed by L.D. L- dau, and independently by W. Baade and F. Zwicky. The maturation of this science can be more or less con?dently be dated to 1987 when extragal- tic neutrinos were registered for the ?rst time from the supernova SN1987A explosion in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy of our Milky Way. There are at least two excellent books on the topic written by G.G. R- felt: Stars as Laboratories for Fundamental Physics (Univ. Chicago Press, Chicago 1996) and by H.V. Klapdor-Kleingrothaus and K. Zuber: Particle Astrophysics. 2nd ed. (Inst. of Phys., Bristol 2000), where the basics of this new science can be studied. However, new facts and ideas appear so fast that it is necessary for specialists to follow not only journal papers but also electronic preprints, in order to keep abreast of the latest developments.

Usually, it is not easy to de?ne the main dates of creation of a new science – the birth date, when the ?rst distinct idea was generated, and the - turity date, when the science manifested itself as a separate and consistent discipline. For particle astrophysics, the science that has developed very - tensively over the last two decades, the birth is most likely to be dated to the beginning of the 1930s. Just then, after the discovery of a neutron by J. Chadwick in 1932, the concept of a neutron star was proposed by L.D. L- dau, and independently by W. Baade and F. Zwicky. The maturation of this science can be more or less con?dently be dated to 1987 when extragal- tic neutrinos were registered for the ?rst time from the supernova SN1987A explosion in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy of our Milky Way. There are at least two excellent books on the topic written by G.G. R- felt: Stars as Laboratories for Fundamental Physics (Univ. Chicago Press, Chicago 1996) and by H.V. Klapdor-Kleingrothaus and K. Zuber: Particle Astrophysics. 2nd ed. (Inst. of Phys., Bristol 2000), where the basics of this new science can be studied. However, new facts and ideas appear so fast that it is necessary for specialists to follow not only journal papers but also electronic preprints, in order to keep abreast of the latest developments.

Expanding on the concept of the authors’ previous book “Electroweak Processes in External Electromagnetic Fields,” this new book systematically describes the investigation methods for the effects of external active media, both strong electromagnetic fields and hot dense plasma, in quantum processes. Solving the solar neutrino puzzle in a unique experiment conducted with the help of the heavy-water detector at the Sudbery Neutrino Observatory, along with another neutrino experiments, brings to the fore electroweak physics in an active external medium. It is effectively demonstrated that processes of neutrino interactions with active media of astrophysical objects may lead, under some physical conditions, to such interesting effects as neutrino-driven shockwave revival in a supernova explosion, a “cherry stone shooting” mechanism for pulsar natal kick, and a neutrino pulsar. It is also shown how poor estimates of particle dispersion in external active media sometimes lead to confusion. The book will appeal to graduate and post-graduate students of theoretical physics with a prior understanding of Quantum Field Theory (QFT) and the Standard Model of Electroweak Interactions, as well as to specialists in QFT who want to know more about the problems of quantum phenomena in hot dense plasma and external electromagnetic fields.

Expanding on the concept of the authors’ previous book “Electroweak Processes in External Electromagnetic Fields,” this new book systematically describes the investigation methods for the effects of external active media, both strong electromagnetic fields and hot dense plasma, in quantum processes. Solving the solar neutrino puzzle in a unique experiment conducted with the help of the heavy-water detector at the Sudbery Neutrino Observatory, along with another neutrino experiments, brings to the fore electroweak physics in an active external medium. It is effectively demonstrated that processes of neutrino interactions with active media of astrophysical objects may lead, under some physical conditions, to such interesting effects as neutrino-driven shockwave revival in a supernova explosion, a “cherry stone shooting” mechanism for pulsar natal kick, and a neutrino pulsar. It is also shown how poor estimates of particle dispersion in external active media sometimes lead to confusion. The book will appeal to graduate and post-graduate students of theoretical physics with a prior understanding of Quantum Field Theory (QFT) and the Standard Model of Electroweak Interactions, as well as to specialists in QFT who want to know more about the problems of quantum phenomena in hot dense plasma and external electromagnetic fields.