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Teaching quantum mechanics to electrical engineering students

Moise Bonilla–Licea, M. Bonilla

Published Oct 23, 2023• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Abstract The second quantum revolution is taking place nowadays with quantum computing and quantum communications. This implies the necessity of providing to electrical engineering students, not necessarily physicists, a clear presentation of the quantum theory in the least amount of time. Since the publication of Dirac's book, in 1930, there has been different approaches to introduce quantum mechanics. Nevertheless, they are all based on the assumption of the physics students syllabus, and not on the conventional knowledge of electrical engineering students. For this reason, in the present work it is proposed a presentation, addressed to electrical engineering students, to approach the quantum formalism, by means of matrix algebra and Fourier series, which are familiar topics for electrical engineering students.

DOI
10.21203/rs.3.rs-3464295/v1

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Abstract The second quantum revolution is taking place nowadays with quantum computing and quantum communications. This implies the necessity of providing to electrical engineering students, not necessarily physicists, a clear presentation of the quantum theory in the least amount of time. Since the publication of Dirac's book, in 1930, there has been different approaches to introduce quantum mechanics. Nevertheless, they are all based on the assumption of the physics students syllabus, and not on the conventional knowledge of electrical engineering students. For this reason, in the present work it is proposed a presentation, addressed to electrical engineering students, to approach the quantum formalism, by means of matrix algebra and Fourier series, which are familiar topics for electrical engineering students.
We introduce here an approach that presents the basics of quantum mechanics to electrical engineers using common matrix algebra and Fourier series knowledge. Designed to quickly impart a fundamental understanding, this strategy bypasses the complex mathematics typically required. Amidst the unfolding second quantum revolution, the accelerated development of quantum engineering in academia and industry underscores the urgent need for a skilled workforce. Scientific and technological fields like quantum computing, quantum sensing, and quantum communications are gaining significant momentum, necessitating the urgent involvement of electrical engineers skilled in management, design, manufacturing, and research. These professionals require foundational quantum mechanics knowledge to effectively integrate these principles with their existing technical skills in areas like automatic control theory and signal processing. Traditionally, educational methods have targeted physicists rather than engineers, often treating quantum mechanics as too abstract for practical engineering applications. However, the rise of quantum technology now demands the inclusion of engineers from diverse backgrounds. Our proposal offers this primer as an innovative, electrical engineering-focused educational tool. We strongly believe that our approach prepares engineers to make significant contributions to the rapidly expanding field of quantum technology.
Traditional approaches to undergraduate-level quantum mechanics require extensive mathematical preparation, preventing most students from enrolling in a quantum mechanics course until the third year of a physics major. Here we describe an approach to teaching quantum formalism and postulates that can be used with first-year undergraduate students and even high school students. The only pre-requisite is a familiarity with vector dot products. This approach enables students to learn Dirac notation and core postulates of quantum mechanics at a much earlier stage in their academic career, which can help students prepare for careers in quantum science and engineering and advance the Second Quantum Revolution.
Quantum Mechanics: An Introduction for Device Physicists and Electrical Engineers, Fourth Edition provides a complete course in quantum mechanics for students of semiconductor device physics and electrical engineering. It provides the necessary background to quantum theory for those starting work on micro- and nanoelectronic structures and is particularly useful for those beginning work with modern semiconductors devices, lasers and qubits. This book was developed from a course the author has taught for many years with a style and order of presentation of material specifically designed for this audience. It introduces the main concepts of quantum mechanics which are important in everyday solid-state physics and electronics. Each topic includes examples which have been carefully chosen to draw upon relevant experimental research. It also includes problems with solutions to test understanding of theory. Fully updated throughout, the fourth edition contains the latest developments, experiments, and device concepts. It contains completely new material on quantum computing and information processing, including qubit implementations and quantum sensing. Key features: Fully updated throughout with the latest research from the field Presents a different view of quantum mechanics from an engineering perspective Takes a modern view of the understanding of quantum mechanics as it affects real world technologies, including nanotechnology and quantum information processing
Quantum Mechanics: An Introduction for Device Physicists and Electrical Engineers, Third Edition provides a complete course in quantum mechanics for students of semiconductor device physics and electrical engineering. It provides the necessary background to quantum theory for those starting work on micro- and nanoelectronic structures and is particularly useful for those beginning work with modern semiconductors devices, lasers, and qubits. This book was developed from a course the author has taught for many years with a style and order of presentation of material specifically designed for this audience. It introduces the main concepts of quantum mechanics which are important in everyday solid-state physics and electronics. Each topic includes examples which have been carefully chosen to draw upon relevant experimental research. It also includes problems with solutions to test understanding of theory. Full updated throughout, the third edition contains the latest developments, experiments, and device concepts, in addition to three fully revised chapters on operators and expectations and spin angular momentum, it contains completely new material on superconducting devices and approaches to quantum computing.
A clear introduction to quantum mechanics concepts Quantum mechanics has become an essential tool for modern engineering, particularly due to the recent developments in quantum computing as well as the rapid progress in optoelectronic devices. Engineering Quantum Mechanics explains the fundamentals of this exciting field, providing broad coverage of both traditional areas such as semiconductor and laser physics as well as relatively new yet fast-growing areas such as quantum computation and quantum information technology. The book begins with basic quantum mechanics, reviewing measurements and probability, Dirac formulation, the uncertainty principle, harmonic oscillator, angular momentum eigenstates, and perturbation theory. Then, quantum statistical mechanics is explored, from second quantization and density operators to coherent and squeezed states, coherent interactions between atoms and fields, and the Jaynes-Cummings model. From there, the book moves into elementary and modern applications, discussing such topics as Bloch theorem and effective mass theory, crystal orientation effects for zinc-blend and wurtzite Hamiltonian, and quantum entanglements and teleportation. There has been growing interest in the model of semiconductor lasers with non-Markovian relaxation. This book develops a non-Markovian model for the optical gain in semiconductor materials, taking into account the rigorous electronic band-structure and the non-Markovian relaxation using the quantum statistical reduced-density operator formalism. Many-body effects are taken into account within the time-dependent Hartree-Fock equations, and example programs based on Fortran 77 are provided for band-structures of zinc-blend quantum wells. Engineering Quantum Mechanics is intended for advanced undergraduate and graduate students in electrical engineering, physics, and materials science. It also provides the necessary theoretical background for researchers in optoelectronics or semiconductor devices.