Feynman-Kac-type theorems and Gibbs measures on path space. With applications to rigorous quantum field theory. (Q834512)

Path integrals are a commonly used tool by the practitioners in quantum field theory. In particular, in modern textbooks the quantisation of non-Abelian gauge theories is often presented in terms of path integrals. This technique goes back to Feynman. In short, it allows us to represent the quantities we want to calculate as integrals over all possible paths. The path integral is an infinite dimensional integral and it is highly non-trivial to define it with mathematical rigour. The book under review approaches the subject of path integrals with mathematical rigour. If one replaces time by imaginary time, the formulation of quantum field theory resembles statistical mechanics. This is exploited by the authors, and the book starts with a concise introduction to Brownian motion and stochastic integrals. Building on that, the authors then develop the path integral formulation of quantum mechanics. The first part of the book closes with a chapter on Gibbs measures. In the second part of the book the authors make the step from quantum mechanics to quantum field theory. They first discuss free particles in Euclidean space, and then two specific interacting models: the Nelson model and the Pauli-Fierz model. The book is targeted to advanced students and researchers. The reader will profit from many proofs spelled out in detail.