As the title aptly states, this book deals with harmonic oscillators of various kinds, from classical mechanical and electrical oscillations up to quantum oscillations. It is written in a lively language, and occasional interspersed anecdotes make the reading of an otherwise mathematically oriented text quite a pleasure. Although the author claims to have written an `elementary introduction', it is certainly necessary to have a good deal of previous knowledge in physics (mechanics, electrodynamics, quantum theory), electrical engineering and, of course, mathematics in order to follow the general line of his arguments. The book begins with a thorough treatment of classical oscillators (free, damped, forced) that is followed by an elaboration on Fourier analysis. Lagrange and Hamilton formalisms are then introduced before the problem of coupled oscillations is attacked. A chapter on statistical perspectives leads over to the final discussion of quantum oscillations. With the book comes a diskette containing a number of worksheets (Microsoft Excel) that can be used by the reader for instant visualization to get a better qualitative and quantitative understanding of the material. To the reviewer it seems difficult to pinpoint exactly the range of prospective readership of the book. It can certainly not be intended as a textbook for students, but rather as a reference book for teachers of physics or researchers, who want to look up one or other aspect of harmonic oscillations, for which purpose the diskette represents a very valuable tool.
As the title aptly states, this book deals with harmonic oscillators of various kinds, from classical mechanical and electrical oscillations up to quantum oscillations. It is written in a lively language, and occasional interspersed anecdotes make the reading of an otherwise mathematically oriented text quite a pleasure. Although the author claims to have written an `elementary introduction', it is certainly necessary to have a good deal of previous knowledge in physics (mechanics, electrodynamics, quantum theory), electrical engineering and, of course, mathematics in order to follow the general line of his arguments. The book begins with a thorough treatment of classical oscillators (free, damped, forced) that is followed by an elaboration on Fourier analysis. Lagrange and Hamilton formalisms are then introduced before the problem of coupled oscillations is attacked. A chapter on statistical perspectives leads over to the final discussion of quantum oscillations. With the book comes a diskette containing a number of worksheets (Microsoft Excel) that can be used by the reader for instant visualization to get a better qualitative and quantitative understanding of the material. To the reviewer it seems difficult to pinpoint exactly the range of prospective readership of the book. It can certainly not be intended as a textbook for students, but rather as a reference book for teachers of physics or researchers, who want to look up one or other aspect of harmonic oscillations, for which purpose the diskette represents a very valuable tool.
Written in a lucid and engaging style, the author takes readers from an overview of classical mechanics and the historical development of quantum theory through to advanced topics. The mathematical aspects of quantum theory necessary for a firm grasp of the subject are developed in the early chapters, but an effort is made to motivate that formalism on physical grounds. Including animated figures and their respective Mathematica® codes, this book provides a complete and comprehensive text for students in physics, maths, chemistry and engineering needing an accessible introduction to quantum mechanics. Supplementary Mathematica codes available within Book Information
This book and the accompanying software (PC Diskette) is a toolbox for performing a set of numerical simulations on simple quantum mechanical problems. It is one in a series of similar books (CUPS) covering different fields in physics from classical mechanics to nuclear and particle physics. Each chapter of the book is written by a different author and deals with a different physical problem. The choice of problems is standard, e.g. bound state and scattering problems in one and three dimensions, quantum mechanical time development; the exceptions are, a study of identical particles and electron states in a one dimensional lattice, an example from solid state physics. Although the chapters are self-contained and can be studied independently (at the expense of some minor duplication of material), care was taken with a uniform style of presentation and similar format in numerical simulations. As a result, it is easy to proceed in the study of the different problems having understood the technical possibilities of one simulation. Each chapter starts with a section presenting the basic theoretical concepts to be studied using the numerical simulation. It is followed by a section with a short description of the numerical technique used and an extensive series of suggestions for problems and quantities to experiment with, using the computer codes provided. A final section describes in detail how to run the computer programs. This book is not, and is not intended to be, a textbook for learning quantum mechanics nor a textbook of numerical analysis. Nevertheless, I find the theoretical presentation clear and straightforward enough for its purpose. The extensive and up to date list of references to books and research articles at the end of each chapter is also very helpful. Technically, I found the software easy to install and, after some initial testing, easy to run. The produced plots are clear and the use of units of atomic dimension gives a touch of reality to the simulations. In contrast to other similar books, this is not a `picture' book of quantum mechanics where results of numerical simulations are illustrated; here the reader is given the necessary means to play and discover for himself the properties of quantum mechanical systems. I believe that this book, used by teachers for demonstrations and students for independent study, provides a versatile tool for numerical experimentation in quantum mechanics.
Abstract This book provides the reader with a contemporary and comprehensive introduction to Quantum Mechanics. It is suitable for beginners as well as for more advanced university students. Quantum mechanics is presented in a pedagogical fashion, with a clear logical organization. The various concepts and methods are introduced first in elementary terms, and later developed into more precise formulations. Systematic studies of approximation methods and the discussion of a wide class of physical applications follow. Part I of the book, together with the opening sections of Part II, provide adequate material for an introductory course of one semester at most universities. The rest of the book might be used in an advanced course on Quantum Mechanics. The basic material is fairly standard, even though some discussions such as those on general systems with time-dependent Hamiltonians, on metastable systems, as well as the discussions in some of the Complement sections, may not be found in other textbooks. The book also contains many original observations or new ways of illustrating even well-known subjects. In fact, the authors wish to convey in this book the sense of wonder in the logical simplicity and at the same time the beauty of subtle and far-reaching consequences of Quantum Mechanics, to young physics students in particular. Problem sets are provided at the end of each chapter, to be solved either analytically or by numerical methods. The solutions to both types of problems are given as separate pdf files or as Mathematica notebooks (there are 88 of them), all together on a CD accompanying the textbook. The presence of such a collection of numerical analyses enriches the main text and is one of the characteristic features of the book. With the many interesting systems discussed, the book will also be a useful reference for researchers and teachers. It provides the reader with a unique, enjoyable and rather complete textbook of Quantum Mechanics, destined to set a new standard for many years to come.
Designed for a two-semester advanced undergraduate or graduate level course, this distinctive and modern textbook provides students with the physical intuition and mathematical skills to tackle even complex problems in quantum mechanics with ease and fluency. Beginning with a detailed introduction to quantum states and Dirac notation, the book then develops the overarching theoretical framework of quantum mechanics, before explaining physical quantum mechanical properties such as angular momentum and spin. Symmetries and groups in quantum mechanics, important components of current research, are covered at length. The second part of the text focuses on applications, and includes a detailed chapter on quantum entanglement, one of the most exciting modern applications of quantum mechanics, and of key importance in quantum information and computation. Numerous exercises are interspersed throughout the text, expanding upon key concepts and further developing students' understanding. A fully worked solutions manual and lecture slides are available for instructors.
After a short review of some essential concepts of classical physics (with a discussion of the so-called `scientific method', which is rarely found in textbooks of this kind), including the classical description of particles and waves, together with a sketch of statistical thermodynamics, the basics of quantum mechanics are introduced. The third chapter then treats systems of identical particles and their statistics, as well as the statistics of discrete energy levels. This is followed by an extensive presentation of the behaviour of quantum particles in periodic potentials with obvious applications to crystalline materials, including metals, insulators, semiconductors and superconductors. The band structure of some special materials, intrinsic carrier concentrations and electrons in metals are further topics of this main chapter. In most quantum mechanics textbooks the subjects of the fifth chapter, quantum wells, harmonic oscillators and the hydrogen atom, are usually introduced before a discussion of periodic potentials, but the author's exposition makes it quite plausible to place them afterwards. The concept of tunnelling through potential barriers and important application examples, ranging from ohmic contacts to scanning tunnelling microscopy and even radioactivity, make up the next chapter. Some approximation methods, i.e. stationary perturbation theory with applications to coupled wells, and the variational method, are treated in the next chapter. The final chapter dealing with quantum mechanics then is concerned with scattering and collision problems, again, of course, with examples from solid state physics. This last chapter, however, looks somehow merely added on, since it introduces only quite briefly the theory of special relativity -almost certainly in order not to leave out this important revolution of modern physics. Three appendices, on Fermi's Golden Rule, Boltzmann's transport theory and quantum interference devices, round off the contents. The book abounds with links to modern technologies that have evolved out of quantum mechanics (with, of course, the exception of the last chapter on special relativity). To the reviewer this constitutes its outstanding value as a textbook on quantum mechanics for engineering students. In addition, about 100 solved numerical examples in the text illustrate very lucidly some of the more abstract concepts, and at the end of the chapters altogether 200 further problems are posed. Although some of the concepts and results of quantum mechanics are introduced in a seemingly ad hoc manner, nevertheless the book as a whole certainly represents a valuable teaching tool at engineering schools; even physics majors may profit from the wealth of technical applications not usually found in their textbooks on quantum mechanics.
The book is designed to serve as an `upper-level one-semester course in Quantum mechanics for students majoring in physics or related topics'. To that purpose the author has organised the contents into roughly six parts, giving first a historical introduction into quanta and matter waves, then the solution of the Schrödinger equations in one, and subsequently in three dimensions; in a fourth part spin and the concept of identical particles are explained, whilst in the next the approximation (perturbation) methods and their application to atomic systems and the creation and transfer of radiations. Finally there are two chapters on molecular and solid state physics. Each chapter is accompanied by a selection of appropriate problems. Appendix, index plus diskette are provided. As the author states, the topics and examples were taken from his other (successful) book, Introduction to Modern Physics . It appears to the reviewer that the present account may indeed serve as a first introduction into the elementary aspects of quantum mechanics, with particular emphasis on explaining the basic concepts (like spin, statistics, even the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen paradox). Addressed are the slightly advanced students of science. The language is clear, the formal apparatus does not overwhelm the reader, and the figures have been carefully selected and drawn. We do recommend the book for the purpose envisaged. It raises the appetite for a more systematic and extended study of the subject.