Introduction to Elementary Particles (book)

Introduction to Elementary Particles
Author	David J. Griffiths
Subject	Elementary particle physics
Published	2004
Publisher	Wiley - VCH
Publication date	2004
Media type	Textbook
ISBN	978-0-471-60386-3
Preceded by	Introduction to Elementary Particles, published 1987 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Introduction to Elementary Particles, 2nd ed., by David Griffiths, is an introductory textbook that describes an accessible "coherent and unified theoretical structure" of particle physics, appropriate for advanced undergraduate physics students.^[1] It was originally published in 1987, and the second revised and enlarged edition was published 2008.

Content (2nd edition)

Chapter 1: Historical Introduction to the Elementary Particles
Chapter 2: Elementary Particle Dynamics
Chapter 3: Relative Kinematics
Chapter 4: Symmetries
Chapter 5: Bound States
Chapter 6: The Feynman Calculus
Chapter 7: Quantum Electrodynamics
Chapter 8: Electrodynamics of Quarks and Hadrons
Chapter 9: Quantum Chromodynamics
Chapter 10: Weak Interactions
Chapter 11: Gauge Theories
Appendix A: The Dirac Delta Function
Appendix B: Decay Rates and Cross Sections
Appendix C: Pauli and Dirac Matrices
Appendix D: Feynman Rules

New content in the second addition includes "neutrino oscillations and prospects for physics beyond the Standard Model".^[2]

Reception

Acknowledging it as a "a well-established textbook", an IAEA review said the second edition, "...strikes a balance between quantitative rigor and intuitive understanding, using a lively, informal style... The first chapter provides a detailed historical introduction to the subject, while subsequent chapters offer a quantitative presentation of the Standard Model. A simplified introduction to the Feynman rules, based on a 'toy' model, helps readers learn the calculational techniques without the complications of spin. It is followed by accessible treatments of quantum electrodynamics, the strong and weak interactions, and gauge theories."^[2]

^[3]