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This book describes the basic concepts of supersymmetric theories. It is aimed at theorists, experimentalists and cosmologists interested in supersymmetry, and its content is correspondingly divided into three distinct tracks of study. The topics covered include a discussion of the motivation for supersymmetry in fundamental physics, a description of the minimal supersymmetric model as well as models of grand unification and string models, a presentation of the main scenarios for supersymmetry breaking, including the concepts and results of dynamical breaking. On the astrophysics/cosmology side, the book includes discussions of supersymmetric dark matter candidates, inflation, dark energy, and the cosmological constant problem. Some very basic knowledge of quantum field theory is needed and extensive appendices (in particular an introduction to the Standard Model of fundamental interactions) allow the reader to refresh and complete their notions.
1: The problems of the Standard Model
2: The singular role of supersymmetry
3: Basic supermultiplets
4: The supersymmetry algebra and its representations
5: The minimal supersymmetric model
6: Supergravity
7: Phenomenology of supersymmetric models: supersymmetry at the quantum level
8: Dynamical breaking. Duality.
9: Supersymmetric grand unification
10: An overview of string theory and string models
11: Supersymmetry and the early universe
12: The challenges of supersymmetry
A: A review of the Standard Model and of various notions of quantum field theory
B: Spinors
C: Superfields
D: An introduction to cosmology
E: Renormalization group equations
Binetruy provides an excellent bullet point summary of the problems that supersymmetry could solve.
- Mathematical Reviews
"Binetruy has worked successfully at making his book pedagogically useful. He provides a roadmap of three paths through the book: one for researchers who want a theoretical introduction, a second for high-energy experimentalists, and the third for astrophysicists and cosmologists. The author often includes extra steps in derivations, which are helpful to a beginner or a reader coming from another field. He also provides useful hints to solving the exercises and includes a self-contained summary of basic notions of quantum field theory. His presentation of the general form of the supersymmetry soft-breaking Lagrangian is very pedagogical and physical. His 55 pages on string theory provide a good physical picture of compactifying to four dimensions and of phenomenological aspects of superstring theory."
- Physics Today
"A treasure trove of information for teaching staff and students."
- Physik Journal
