PAULI ALGEBRA AND THE STRUCTURE OF LORENTZ GROUP,
Abstract
The set of two-by-two complex matrices, called the Pauli algebra, is developed systematically for a variety of applications. In addition to the usual concepts, the authors discuss matrices which are normal (as a generalization of unitary or Hermitian), introduce the concept of complex matrix axis, and provide a so-called polar decomposition for any nonsingular matrix. As a first application, they discuss the homogeneous restricted Lorentz group. The parametrization here advanced for unimodular two-by-two matrices provides directly the geometrical meaning of the Lorentz transformation induced by any such matrix. The discussion is exhaustive and includes matrices which induce the so-called exceptional Lorentz transformations. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1966
- Accession Number
- AD0639651
Entities
People
- Cynthia Kolb Whitney
- Laszlo Tisza
Organizations
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology