Automorphic forms are an important complex analytic tool in number
theory and modern arithmetic geometry. They played for example a vital
role in Andrew Wiles's proof of Fermat's Last Theorem. This text
provides a concise introduction to the world of automorphic forms using
two approaches: the classic elementary theory and the modern point of
view of adeles and representation theory. The reader will learn the
important aims and results of the theory by focussing on its essential
aspects and restricting it to the 'base field' of rational numbers.
Students interested for example in arithmetic geometry or number theory
will find that this book provides an optimal and easily accessible
introduction into this topic.