Special Relativity

Abstract In this chapter introduce the basic postulates and the formalism of Special Relativity. Special Relativity is one of the pillars of modern physics. Our presentation will be tuned toward understanding how Special Relativity is hidden into Maxwell’s equations, and in building a ‘covariant’ formalism that makes this symmetry explicit. We intrduce Lorentz transformations and the associated notions of causality, proper time, time dilatation, Lorentz contraction. We develop the covariant formalism (covariant and contravariant four-vectors and tensors) and we discuss the relativistic kinematics of point particles. A more advanced section discusses the action of relativistic point particles.