Mathematics of string motion

String Theory (Fall, 2010)

Lecture Playlist

  1. The historical origins of string theory

  2. Mathematics of string motion

  3. The energy spectrum of strings

  4. Closed strings and the level matching rule

  5. Bosonic strings

  6. Strings with spin

  7. Fermionic strings and path integrals

  8. Conformal mapping and string scattering

  9. Strings in compact dimensions

  10. T-duality, D-branes and modeling field theories

  11. String theory wrapup

September 27, 2010

Professor Susskind establishes the mathematical foundation for solving the equations of motion for strings.     Breaking a string into discrete mass points, he substitutes a Fourier series for the position, generating a set of independent solutions.    Dirichlet and Neumann boundary conditions are explained and connected to open and closed strings.

Topics: 
  • Dirichlet and Neumann boundary conditions
  • Fourier series
  • The open string
  • The energy levels (excitations) of a string