Carlo Becchi
Encyclopedia
Carlo Maria Becchi is an Italian theoretical physicist.
Becchi studied at the University of Genoa
, where he received his university degree in physics in 1962. He is since 1976 full professor for theoretical physics at the University of Genoa. Twice (first in 1983) he was chairman of the physics faculty there. From 1997 to 2003 he was the chairman of the theory committee of the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare
(INFN).
Becchi began with investigations on the photoelectric effect in nuclear physics (topic of his thesis). In the 1960s he worked on quark
s and the associated unitary symmetries. Since 1971 he has done work on renormalization theory. Becchi became known for his development around 1975 with Raymond Stora and Alain Rouet of the BRST formalism, which is a method of quantization of systems with secondary conditions like gauge theory
. In 2009 as recognition for the BRST formalism, he received the Dannie Heineman Prize for Mathematical Physics
with Stora, Rouet, and Igor Tyutin. Since 1991 he is Supervisory Editor of the journal Nuclear Physics B.
Becchi studied at the University of Genoa
University of Genoa
The University of Genoa is one of the largest universities in Italy.Located in Liguria on the Italian Riviera, the university was founded in 1471. It currently has about 40,000 students, 1,800 teaching and research staff and about 1,580 administrative staff.- Campus :The University of Genoa is...
, where he received his university degree in physics in 1962. He is since 1976 full professor for theoretical physics at the University of Genoa. Twice (first in 1983) he was chairman of the physics faculty there. From 1997 to 2003 he was the chairman of the theory committee of the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare
Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare
The Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare is the coordinating institution for nuclear, particle and astroparticle physics in Italy. It was founded on the 8th of August 1951, to further the nuclear physics research tradition initiated by Enrico Fermi in Rome, in the 1930s...
(INFN).
Becchi began with investigations on the photoelectric effect in nuclear physics (topic of his thesis). In the 1960s he worked on quark
Quark
A quark is an elementary particle and a fundamental constituent of matter. Quarks combine to form composite particles called hadrons, the most stable of which are protons and neutrons, the components of atomic nuclei. Due to a phenomenon known as color confinement, quarks are never directly...
s and the associated unitary symmetries. Since 1971 he has done work on renormalization theory. Becchi became known for his development around 1975 with Raymond Stora and Alain Rouet of the BRST formalism, which is a method of quantization of systems with secondary conditions like gauge theory
Gauge theory
In physics, gauge invariance is the property of a field theory in which different configurations of the underlying fundamental but unobservable fields result in identical observable quantities. A theory with such a property is called a gauge theory...
. In 2009 as recognition for the BRST formalism, he received the Dannie Heineman Prize for Mathematical Physics
Dannie Heineman Prize for Mathematical Physics
Dannie Heineman Prize for Mathematical Physics is an award given each year since 1959 jointly by the American Physical Society and American Institute of Physics. It is established by the Heineman Foundation in honour of Dannie Heineman...
with Stora, Rouet, and Igor Tyutin. Since 1991 he is Supervisory Editor of the journal Nuclear Physics B.
Selected publications
- with Giovanni Ridolfi: Introduction to relativistic processes and the standard model of electroweak interactions, Springer 2005
- with Rouet, Stora: The Abelian Higgs-Kibble-Model. Unitarity of the S-Operator, Physics Letters B, Vol.52, 1974, p. 344
External links
- Homepage at the University of Genova with lecture texts and publications list
- Carlo Becchi and Camillo Imbimbo, Becchi-Rouet-Stora-Tyutin symmetry