• ISBN13: 9780521663625
• Binding: Paperback
• Subject: Mathematics and Statistics
• Publisher: Cambridge UP
• Publisher Imprint: Cambridge
• Publication Date: January 1, 1999
• Pages: 328
• Original Price: USD 88.0
• Language: English
• Edition: N/A
• Item Weight: 436 grams
• BISAC Subject(s): Differential Equations / General

Now in paperback, this graduate-level textbook is an excellent introduction to the representation theory of semi-simple Lie groups. Professor Varadarajan emphasizes the development of central themes in the context of special examples. He begins with an account of compact groups and discusses the Harish-Chandra modules of SL(2, R) and SL(2, C). Subsequent chapters introduce the Plancherel formula and Schwartz spaces, and show how these lead to the Harish-Chandra theory of Eisenstein integrals. The final sections consider the irreducible characters of semi-simple Lie groups, and include explicit calculations of SL(2, R). The book concludes with appendices sketching some basic topics and with a comprehensive guide to further reading. This superb volume is highly suitable for students in algebra and analysis, and for mathematicians requiring a readable account of the topic.