Colliding Plane Waves in General Relativity

Survey of current research in the field of colliding plane wave space-times. Following information on the background, field equations and their solutions, the book considers the collision and interaction of electromagnetic waves and summarizes more advanced current research topics.

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For many years after Einstein proposed his general theory of relativity, few exact solutions to the field equations were known. In particular, the theory of colliding plane wave space-times was thought to produce curvature singularities. In recent years, however, the rich structure of such colliding waves has been explored. This volume presents a survey of the current research in this topic, intended for graduate students and research workers involved with general relativity. The first eight chapters present the background to the subject, introduce the field equations and include a discussion of some qualitative aspects of their solution. An account is included of the Khan-Penrose solution since it exhibits the general character of most colliding plane wave solutions. The latter half of the book is devoted to considering further exact solutions, studying the collision and interaction of electromagnetic waves and summarizing more advanced topics of current research.