Publisher's Synopsis
Relativistic Quantum Mechanics begins with the Klein-Gordon equation describing its features and motivating the need for a correct relativistic equation for the electron. It then introduces the Dirac equation by linearizing the second order relativistic equation which reveals the spin, spin magnetic moment and the spin-orbit coupling of the electron.
After demonstrating the relativistic covariance of the Dirac equation, the discrete transformations of the Dirac spinor, are explained. The Dirac equation for a free electron and an electron in hydrogen atom are solved - these solutions are used to interpret the negative energy states in the 'hole theory' of Dirac. As applications of the Dirac equation, the scattering of electrons by a Coulomb potential is given in detail and extended to electron-proton scattering. As a further application, the Dirac equation with zero mass is considered to describe the neutrino. The chapter on neutrinos contains a brief description of 'neutrino oscillations'. The book ends with giving an elementary treatment of spin manifolds with illustrative examples.
