JET BUNDLES IN QUANTUM-FIELD THEORY - THE BRST-BV METHOD

The geometric interpretation of the Batalin-Vilkovisky anti-bracket as the Schouten bracket of functional multivectors is examined in detail . The identification is achieved by the process of repeated contractio n of even functional multivectors with fermionic functional 1-forms. T he classical master equation may then be considered as a generalizatio n of the Jacobi identity for Poisson brackets, and the cohomology of a nilpotent even functional multivector is identified with the BRST coh omology. As an example, the BRST-BV formulation of gauge fixing in the ories with gauge symmetries is reformulated in the jet bundle formalis m.