Noether Symmetries In Theories Of Gravity

This volume summarizes the many alternatives and extensions to Einstein's General Theory of Relativity, and shows how symmetry principles can be applied to identify physically viable models. The first part of the book establishes the foundations of classical field theory, providing an introduction to symmetry groups and the Noether theorems. A quick overview of general relativity is provided, including discussion of its successes and shortcomings, then several theories of gravity are presented and their main features are summarized. In the second part, the 'Noether Symmetry Approach' is applied to theories of gravity to identify those which contain symmetries. In the third part of the book these selected models are tested through comparison with the latest experiments and observations. This constrains the free parameters in the selected models to fit the current data, demonstrating a useful approach that will allow researchers to construct and constrain modified gravity models for further applications. Demonstrates the importance of symmetries in the development of a coherent treatment of the physics of gravitation Presents a formal and comprehensive outline of Noether's theorem, including its applications in cosmology and astrophysics Provides a self-consistent summary of modifications and extensions of general relativity at the theoretical, experimental, and observational levels