by Fritz Rohrlich, World Scientific. Hardback ISBN 9789812700049 £33 ($58).
Originally written in 1964, this text is a study of the classical theory of charged particles. Many applications treat electrons as point particles, but there is nevertheless a widespread belief that the theory is beset with various difficulties, such as an infinite electrostatic self-energy and an equation of motion that allows physically meaningless solutions. The classical theory of charged particles has meanwhile been largely ignored and left incomplete. Despite the efforts of great physicists such as Lorentz, Poincaré and Dirac, it is usually regarded as a “lost cause”. Thanks to more recent progress, however, the author has been able to resolve the various problems and to complete this unfinished theory successfully.
