ABSTRACT
Integral equations with separable kernels and integral equations of the convolution form have simple solutions which can be found in closed form. Perturbation theory can often be formulated in terms of the iteration solution of an integral equation. This chapter discusses types of integral equations and the methods available for their solution. It also discusses the most part to the study of one dimensional integral equations. The formulation of the scattering problem presented perhaps makes it clear that it is worthwhile for a physicist to learn something about how to solve integral equations. Although the scattering problem with simple central potentials can be handled most easily with a differential equation approach, many problems in many body and particle physics lead naturally to integral equations in momentum space which cannot be transformed into simple differential equations in coordinate space.
