Quantum Mechanics: A Short Overview

Robert Golub, S. K. Lamoreaux

Abstract Most, but not all, of the fundamental work on quantum mechanics took place during the turbulent times of the Weimar republic, which was formed in Germany after the abdication of the Kaiser at the end of WWI. While many physicists are appalled at the implication that physical theories might, even to a limited extent, be influenced by their cultural milieu, we feel an overview of the latter might help in an overall understanding of the theory. We will see that such views were shared, to some extent, by Schrödinger. After a brief overview of the contemporary economic and cultural situation and the reactions of several of the originators of quantum theory, we pass on to Forman’s thesis regarding the influence of Weimar culture and quantum mechanics. This thesis has spurred an enormous debate, of which we give a short description.

John G. Taylor

Roland Rüdiger

The present article gives an introductory overview of the novel field of quantum programming languages (QPLs) from a pragmatic perspective. First, after a short summary of basic notations of quantum mechanics, some of the goals and design issues are surveyed, which motivate the research in this area. Then, several of the approaches are described in more detail. The article concludes with a brief survey of current research activities and a tabular summary of a selection of QPLs, which have been published so far.

Shabnam Siddiqui

Valia Allori

This is a brief review of the history and development of quantum theories. Starting from the experimental findings and theoretical results which marked the crisis of the classical framework, I overview the rise of axiomatic quantum mechanics through matrix and wave mechanics. I discuss conceptual problems such as the measurement problem that led scientific realists to explore other, more satisfactory, quantum theories, as well as Bell’s theorem and quantum nonlocality, concluding with a short review of relativistic theories.