DivergenceIn vector calculus, divergence is a vector operator that operates on a vector field, producing a scalar field giving the quantity of the vector field's source at each point. More technically, the divergence represents the volume density of the outward flux of a vector field from an infinitesimal volume around a given point. As an example, consider air as it is heated or cooled. The velocity of the air at each point defines a vector field. While air is heated in a region, it expands in all directions, and thus the velocity field points outward from that region.
Exterior derivativeOn a differentiable manifold, the exterior derivative extends the concept of the differential of a function to differential forms of higher degree. The exterior derivative was first described in its current form by Élie Cartan in 1899. The resulting calculus, known as exterior calculus, allows for a natural, metric-independent generalization of Stokes' theorem, Gauss's theorem, and Green's theorem from vector calculus.
Jacobi identityIn mathematics, the Jacobi identity is a property of a binary operation that describes how the order of evaluation, the placement of parentheses in a multiple product, affects the result of the operation. By contrast, for operations with the associative property, any order of evaluation gives the same result (parentheses in a multiple product are not needed). The identity is named after the German mathematician Carl Gustav Jacob Jacobi. The cross product and the Lie bracket operation both satisfy the Jacobi identity.
Differential formIn mathematics, differential forms provide a unified approach to define integrands over curves, surfaces, solids, and higher-dimensional manifolds. The modern notion of differential forms was pioneered by Élie Cartan. It has many applications, especially in geometry, topology and physics. For instance, the expression f(x) dx is an example of a 1-form, and can be integrated over an interval [a, b] contained in the domain of f: Similarly, the expression f(x, y, z) dx ∧ dy + g(x, y, z) dz ∧ dx + h(x, y, z) dy ∧ dz is a 2-form that can be integrated over a surface S: The symbol ∧ denotes the exterior product, sometimes called the wedge product, of two differential forms.
Pullback (differential geometry)Let be a smooth map between smooth manifolds and . Then there is an associated linear map from the space of 1-forms on (the linear space of sections of the cotangent bundle) to the space of 1-forms on . This linear map is known as the pullback (by ), and is frequently denoted by . More generally, any covariant tensor field – in particular any differential form – on may be pulled back to using . When the map is a diffeomorphism, then the pullback, together with the pushforward, can be used to transform any tensor field from to or vice versa.
Derivation (differential algebra)In mathematics, a derivation is a function on an algebra which generalizes certain features of the derivative operator. Specifically, given an algebra A over a ring or a field K, a K-derivation is a K-linear map D : A → A that satisfies Leibniz's law: More generally, if M is an A-bimodule, a K-linear map D : A → M that satisfies the Leibniz law is also called a derivation. The collection of all K-derivations of A to itself is denoted by DerK(A). The collection of K-derivations of A into an A-module M is denoted by DerK(A, M).
Cotangent spaceIn differential geometry, the cotangent space is a vector space associated with a point on a smooth (or differentiable) manifold ; one can define a cotangent space for every point on a smooth manifold. Typically, the cotangent space, is defined as the dual space of the tangent space at , , although there are more direct definitions (see below). The elements of the cotangent space are called cotangent vectors or tangent covectors. All cotangent spaces at points on a connected manifold have the same dimension, equal to the dimension of the manifold.
Tensor contractionIn multilinear algebra, a tensor contraction is an operation on a tensor that arises from the natural pairing of a finite-dimensional vector space and its dual. In components, it is expressed as a sum of products of scalar components of the tensor(s) caused by applying the summation convention to a pair of dummy indices that are bound to each other in an expression. The contraction of a single mixed tensor occurs when a pair of literal indices (one a subscript, the other a superscript) of the tensor are set equal to each other and summed over.
Interior productIn mathematics, the interior product (also known as interior derivative, interior multiplication, inner multiplication, inner derivative, insertion operator, or inner derivation) is a degree −1 (anti)derivation on the exterior algebra of differential forms on a smooth manifold. The interior product, named in opposition to the exterior product, should not be confused with an inner product. The interior product is sometimes written as The interior product is defined to be the contraction of a differential form with a vector field.
Adjoint representationIn mathematics, the adjoint representation (or adjoint action) of a Lie group G is a way of representing the elements of the group as linear transformations of the group's Lie algebra, considered as a vector space. For example, if G is , the Lie group of real n-by-n invertible matrices, then the adjoint representation is the group homomorphism that sends an invertible n-by-n matrix to an endomorphism of the vector space of all linear transformations of defined by: . For any Lie group, this natural representation is obtained by linearizing (i.
