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Mathematical Physics and the Physical Universe

Oyelami Benjamin Oyediran
National Mathematical Centre, Abuja
Email:boyelami2000@yahoo.com


Humanity is going to need a substantial new way of thinking if it is to survive!
Albert Einstein


1. Introduction

The year 2009 has been declared the International Year of Astronomy (IYA). Astronomy is a
branch of Physics that studies the universe, celestial bodies and their compositions and an
Astronomer is the person who studies Astronomy. We will talk extensively on the universe later
on. The great astronomer Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) who is also known as the father of modern
Physics observed in 1623 and said The entire universe is written in the language of
Mathematics; Science and Society are governed by mathematical ideas .By Galileos
philosophy, Matter, Space, Time and Energy can best be understood if the physical laws of the
nature can be demystified by Mathematics.

Mathematical physics or Theoretical Physics is the use of Mathematics to study the theoretical
concepts in Physics. We recall, Physics is made of two components the Experimental Physics
and the Theoretical Physics. In modern times, introduction of computer has sandwiched
Experimental Physics and the Theoretical Physics together to have what is now known as
Computational Physics. In Mathematical Physics we are interested in studying Matter, Space,
Time and Energy using mathematical concepts. Hence we try as much as possible to codify the
physical laws in mathematical term and use Mathematics to unravel the mysteries of nature.

1.1 The Universe from historical Perspective

The word Universe was derived from old French word for universe, which was derived from
Latin word universum but most common term for universe among ancient Greek
Philosophers from Pythagoras onward was tou (The All) and defined as All Matter(oou), all
Space( kouoo) (meaning the world, the Cosmos) and nature as derived from Physics. Most
Noble Prizes in Physics were won on the creation and sustenance of the Universe. The creation
of the Universe had three fundamental consideration vis--vis scientific explanations, theological
and the mythological considerations [7].

In Christianity and Islam it is believed that God created Heaven and Earth in six days and the
Bible said God rested on the seventh day. The creation of the universe by God has given rise to
Physics and other branches of Science and man is occupied with the study of Gods creation.

The mythology consideration can be said to be local Science peculiar to people to try to explain
things surrounding them based upon some superstition or other cultural believes and the
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mysteries that cannot be explained are termed magic[7].One myth has it that earth was hatched
from the world egg.

Furthermore, early cosmogonies have it that people from all part of world created their own
myths, inspired by things they see and the celestial bodies. Their cosmogonies can be seen as an
attempt to explain their own place in the Universe .The Sumerians believed the earth was the
center of the Cosmos and this was even carried over to the periods of the Babylonian and the
Greek civilizations [1, 2].The idea that the earth was spherical was first put forward by the
Greeks, in particular, Aristotle around 340 BC and provided several evidences among them was
the formation eclipse of the sun to support that the earth is spherical in nature. The earth then
was before Aristotle time believed to be flat.

Around 150 AD, Claudius Ptolemaeus (Ptolemy) elaborated Aristotles idea into what is now
known as Geocentric System Model (GSM). He thought that the earth was stationary at the
center of the universe and the sun, stars and other planets revolve around it in circular orbits.
However, his theory cannot comprehensively explain what are responsible for the planets
motion, size and brightness which vary with time. Ptolemy put forward the concept of epicycles
to overcome the limitations in his GSM .The epicycles concept considered the universe as an
onion with earth being the center of the onion and the stars are arranged in layers around it.

Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543) in 1514 introduced a new model which centered on
Heliocentric System Model (HSM) in which the sun was thought to be the center of the solar
system and every other planet including the earth revolves around it. The farther apart a planet is
from the sun, the longer it takes to complete a revolution. Galileo Galillei (1564-1642) invention
of telescope helps to establish that all celestial bodies revolve around the earth, contrary to
Ptolemys theory and also the Copernicans model need to be modified.

In 1594, Johannes Kepler (1511-1630) modified the heliocentric model in Copernicus model by
showing that planets move on elliptical rather than circular orbits. Keplers thought of gravity by
explaining that the sun exerts a force on planet that diminishes inversely with distance and
causes them to move faster on their orbits, the closer they come to the sun. The novelty of his
work was that it matches theory with observation.

Mathematical Physics often provide us with fundamental principles and even platforms for
revealing the mysteries of the nature. Big-bang theory was introduced by Georges Lemaitre who
said the Universe is expanding .The earth was formed as a result of the thermo nucleic reaction
at the surface of sun ,which led to formation of matter and life[7,9].

According to the Big- bang theory the Universe began about twelve to fifteen billion years ago in
a violent explosion which took place in fraction of millions of seconds. Nucleosynthesis gave
rise to protons and neutrons which form nuclei of simple elements like hydrogen and helium.
After series of years, packet of gasses after condensation, gave rise to the Milky Way Galaxy and
the sun .The debris swirling around the Sun gave birth to the earth and planets between 4.5 and
4.6 billion years old .The Cosmos is in a state of expansion and therefore gravitational collapse is
prevented so that collision between near stars are prevented [5].

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In physics the most acceptable theory of creation is the Big-bang theory and it was supported by
the Copernican cosmological principle that the universe is homogenous and isotropic in nature,
that is, the same in every direction in space. Moreover, the Hubbles principle can also be used to
support the Big-bang theory. Edvin Hubble (1889-1953) observed shift in the spectra of light
from different galaxies which is proportional to distance from us [1, 2].

In 1687, the publication of Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica by Sir Isaac Newton
led to the formation of the classical mechanics .Planck, Albert Einstein and Neils Borh
developed quantum theories to cater for the shortcoming of the Newtonian theory which the
quantum theory explained that does not hold on small scale.

The universe is very large and possibly infinite in nature, the observable matter is spread over a
space at least 93 billion light years across. Astronomers believed that the diameter of a galaxy is
about 30,000 light years and the difference between two neighboring galaxies are only 3 million
light years .The Universe is about 13.70.2 billion years old [5,9].

There are scientists who were noted to have contributed to the Special Relativity Theory (SRT)
amongst were Henri Poincare, Hendrik Lorentz, and Albert Einstein. It is generally accepted the
Einstein originated STR in a paper published 1905.This was affirmed by Wolfgang Paulis well-
known article The Theory of Relativity published in Mathematical Encyclopedia in
1921.Another controversial issue on SRT is whether Michelsons experiment was instrumental
or motivated Einsteins work on SRT.
Laue, in book written in 1911, stated that Michelsons experiment became ,as it were, the
fundamental experiment for the relativity theory [11,pp346].Albert Einstein in the reply to a
letter written to him by Mr. Davenport said In my own development Michelsons result had not
had a considerable influence. I even do not remember if I know of it at all when I wrote my first
paper on the subject (1905) .The explanation is that I was, for general reasons, firmly convinced
how this could be reconciled with our knowledge of electro-dynamics. One can therefore
understand why in my personal struggle Michelsons experiment played no or at least no
decisive role.

Some paradoxes on Special Relativity Theory [11]
- Faster-Than-light velocity: No object can move at speed faster than light. When an
object gets closer to the speed of light it gains time and becomes invisible.
- The tread-and level paradox
- Clock paradox: Time dilation that is moving clocks are slow down
- The equivalence of mass and energy zero rest mass.

The great Discoveries in the 19
th
Century

The 19
th
century witnesses the period of modern scientific revolution. Investing in science was
critical to ensuring property and high quality of life. Sir Isaac Newtons classical mechanics
which gave us insight to the laws of nature especially motion of heavenly bodies in Newton
framework but more light were shed in the Einsteins relativity mechanic context [7,11].
The industrial revolution began at the end of eighteen with the invention of steam-engine by
James Watt.
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The industrial revolution precedes the science of thermodynamics which was developed in the
nineteenth century. J .J. Thomson discovered the electron and Max Planck put forward the idea
of quantum in 1900.The emission and absorption of radiation from atom take place in discrete
amounts, that is, it is said to be in quanta.

Einstein famous equation
2
mc E = and consequence of the special theory of time dilation that is
moving clocks are slow down. The existence of gravity which cannot be switched-off back up
the special theory of relativity. He based his new theory on a reinterpretation of the classical
principle of relativity, namely that the laws of Physics had to have the same form in any frame of
reference. As a second fundamental hypothesis, Einstein assumed that the speed of light
remained constant in all frames of reference, as required by Maxwell's theory. Later in 1905
Einstein showed how mass and energy was equivalent. Einstein was not the first to propose all
the components of special theory of relativity. His contribution is unifying important parts of
classical mechanics and Maxwell's.

Heisenberg discovered Matrix Mechanics, Schrdinger wave- mechanics and Dirac predicted the
existence of anti-matter by unifying special theory of relativity with quantum mechanics. The
First law of thermodynamics ,is the extension of Conservation of Energy and the second law
being introduced by Clausius in 1850 based on Carnots work who established that Heat cannot
go from colder to warmer body without some accompanying change. And six years later he
introduced the concept of entropy the energy of the world is constant and its entropy strives
toward maximum [1].

The idea of electric and magnetic field were introduced by Faraday and Maxwell and had great
impact on the development of Physics. Consequence of Maxwell equation is that electric and
magnetic fields propagated through space in which with speed of light. Hertz demonstrate the
existence of electromagnetic waves.

The study of evolution of the universe and it sustenance requires the use some mathematical
equations and theories ranging from simple ones like equation of circle to sophisticated high-
level Mathematics. The secondary school level students should be encouraged to make use of the
basics O level mathematics to study and understand physical laws in the universe.
There are many equations that play vital role in understanding of Physics and by extension the
existence and sustenance of life in the universe.

The history of science contained several accomplishments of physicists who made contribution to
mankind, for example, Marie and Pierre Cure discovered and isolated radioactive materials. Further
examples were Albert Einstein in relativity theory, creation of the universe and photo electric effect. In
20
th
Century some achievements were made but we only mention three. Hermann Weyls great
contribution to quantum theory of radiation was the invention of gauge fields in 1918 as classical fields in
his unified theory of general relativity and electromagnetism. This theory is concern with non-
integrability of measurements of length. Fifty years after Weyls death were a golden age of experimental
physics and observation astronomy [8].

Superconductivity was discovered in 1911 by Kammerling Ohnes it consists in the complete loss of
resistivity of certain metals and alloys at very low temperatures. Ginzburg and Landeu in 50s as a
phenomenological model to describe superconductivity.
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Quasi-crystals are pure point distribution that has pure point spectrum .There is similarity
between quasi-crystal and the zeroes of Riemann-Zeta functions .The question is can we use the
Quasi-crystals to establish Riemann hypothesis?

The some great equations in Mathematical Physics

Equation Importance
1. Newtons equation ma F = where F is
the force exerted on an object with
mass m and a is the acceleration of the
object.
2. F
dt
mv d
=
) (

1. The equation was useful in laying the
foundation of Physics, energy,
momentum and was successfully used
in astronomy in the classical sense.
2. The rate of change of momentum with
time is equal to force and mass is a
constant quantity
Maxwell equation
t
D
H
c
c
= V this one of the
several forms
In Maxwell equations electric and magnetic
fields were unified to have electromagnetism
which gives rise to light, X-rays, radio wave
and we have light, television, telephones etc
The Boltzmanns equation ) in(W k S = The equations make us to understand the
second law of thermodynamics which is the
unification of entropy and probability
1. Einsteins relation
2
mc E =

2. F
dt
v m d
=
) (

1. Shows that energy is conserved not
mass.
2. This the secret behind the energy
production for nuclear reaction for
power generation and atomic bomb.
The rate of change of momentum with
time is equal to force but mass has
velocity and changes with reference
frame

Bragg equation u n d = sin 2 Bragg scattering of X-rays useful for medical
image of bones and crystallographic analysis
The equation of circle
2 2 2
r y x = +
Use to understand the planetary motion from
Ptolemy and Copernicus point of views
The equation of ellipse 1
2
2
2
2
= +
b
y
a
x

Instrumental to formation Johannes Keplers
laws for the planetary movement
Gravitation Microlensing

=
=
n
j
j j
z z z w
1
) /( o
Useful for finding the distant objects in the
universe and determine the masses of these
objects




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Main Contributors to the Development of Space and Time Science [10]

Copernicus (1473-1543) Doppler (1803-1853)
Galileo (1564-1642) Maxwell (1831-1879)
Kepler (1571-1650) Lorentz (1853-1428)
Descartes (1596-1650) Poincare (1854-1909)
Huygens (1629-1695) Einstein (1879-1955)
Newton (1643-1727)


Some Nobel Prizes in Physics whose contributions has developed Mathematical Physics in 20
th

century [6]
S/No NAME YEAR CITATION
1 Whelm Conrad
Roentgen
(Germany)

1901 In recognition of the
extraordinary merit
gained by the
discovery of the
special rays bearing
his name
2 Friedrik Antoon
Lorentz (Netherlands)
and Pieter Zeeman
(Netherlands)
1902 In recognition of the
extraordinary service
they rendered by their
researches into the
influence of
magnetism upon
radiation phenomena
3 Albert Einstein
(Germany)
1952 For his contribution
on Photoelectric effect






Micheal Heller, a polish cosmologist and Catholic priest won 2008 Templeton Prize for his
original concepts on the origin and the cause of the universe. Templeton Prize is valued at over
US$1.6 million the worlds largest annual monetary award to an individual.

Challenges of Physics in the 21
st
Century
The 21
st
century was ushered in with several changing problems amongst is the issue of global
warming and associated entropy trap. Also are the problems of pollution and the energy crisis.
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Many mathematical Physics are working of problem of climatic changes and environmental
degradation using satellite technology.
Global warming had marked degree of rise in the ocean tidal level, thereby giving rise to
flooding and submerging of some territories worldwide .Another possible life threatening
problem is the nuclear weapons stock pile. We hope safety and the abuse of nuclear materials
would not threaten the world peace and there would be no out brake of the third world war [7].

The crucial matter in the universe today is the Energy issue for many Mathematical Physics are
working on it and related issues. The classical definition of energy is that, it is the ability of an object
to do work, in Physics, work simply mean an object with force acting on it moves some distance. The
work, therefore, is the product of the distance and the force acting on it. The modern usage of energy
is thus defined as the unifying concept of all physical science that associated with any system a
capacity for work either as a result of the motion of mass in the system, the configuration of masses or
charges in the system, or the present of photons in the system.
Various government of the world today adopted the term energy department to mean the
ministry of fuel and power, or petroleum, power and steel in most countries. Added to modern
vocabulary are words like energy crisis and energy policy. Energy policy embraces all
activities that got to do with oil, coal, hydro-electricity or nuclear power stations.
The unifying idea of having together chemical energy (fossil fuel, coal, gas and oil), nuclear fuel
(uranium and plutonium) to producing electricity by heat engine driving generators is the energy
process. And in the recent times, renewable energy is gradually find applications in the society.
The primary source of energy available to human is the suns radiation, fossil fuel and renewable
energy. Energy exists in various forms in the form of renewable and non-renewable energies.
The renewable energy are in the form of hydropower, biomass, wind and wave power (solar);
tidal `and geothermal power (non-solar). The worlds energy consumption shows three-quarter is
from the fossil fuel, biomass accounts about one-tenth and the rest from nuclear power,
hydroelectricity and to less extent renewable account for the rest.

The modern world today, the quest for application of science and technology, right from the 17
th

century, national prosperity became closely linked with ready access to fossil fuel. In the 20
th

century, natural gas has been adapted as a cleaner domestics and industrial fuel. The availability
of fossil fuel and natural gas are among other thing indicators to measure how powerful the
economy and political base of a nation by the end of the 20
th
century. There is more likelihood
this trend would continue for the second decade of the century. Intensive interdisciplinary
researches are being carried on energy including Mathematics Physicists.

Conclusion

There are many real life situations can be explained from mathematical physics point of view.
Some those problems can be explained to students at secondary school level using the Olevel
mathematics. The teacher should explore these problems and ask student to solve the problems
and explain the real life implications of the solutions from physics perspective. This simulate the
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interest of the love physics and mathematics at that level and further make the student to know
the interplay between the two subjects.
The universe has bundle of unsolved and unexplained phenomena which intensive research using
Mathematical Physics can help us to find solutions and explain the known phenomena .The
students should be encouraged to think about some of these problems and possible ways to solve
them, perhaps, some day, one of our students will become a Nobel Prize winner in Physics.

References

[1] Ahmed, hameed et.al. (Eds)
Physics in our Lives, COMSATS publication, Islamabad. 2005,ii,249pp.

[2] Ahmed, hameed et.al. (Eds)
Physics for Developing Countries: Past, present and future.COMSATS publication, Islamabad.

[3] Alan Siegel
Understanding and misunderstanding Science Study: what is at stake and why K-12 education
studies matter. International Congruence of Mathematicians, Madrid Spain 2006, Vol.iii, 1599-
1630.

[4]Dmitry Khavinson Genevra Neumann
Notices of the American Mathematical Society Vol.55,No.6,June/July, 2008, 666-675.

[5] Rinder W.: Essential Relativity: Special, General and Cosmological. New York, Springer
Verlag, 1977, 193-244.

[6]Patrick Clancey
Nobel prizes in Physics.
http://web.ift.uib.no/ladi/Nobel95.html.

[7] Oyelami B. O.
Power of Science and its usefulness. Mathematics and Science Lecture Notes.Vol.1 of the
Course on Effective Teaching of Mathematics and Science Subjects. National Mathematical
Centre, Abuja, Nigeria publication, 2008.

[8] Sam O.Ale
Theoretical Physics a recipe for National Development. Openning Ceremony for 2
nd

International Seminar on Theoretical Physics and National Development(ISOTPAND09) held at
National Mathematical Centre,Abuja,Nigeria (July 5-9,2009).

[9] Shirley Ho: The dark and bright side of universe .Princeton University
(http://consmology.ibl.gov/talks/Ho_07.pdf)

[10] The Science Channel: 100 Greatest Discoveries.

[11] Ugarov P. Special Relativity Theory.MIR Publication, Moscow, 1982.
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