Quantum Mechanics

Ebook

An Accessible Introduction

This book provides a comprehensive introduction to quantum mechanics from the ground up. It is designed to be completely self-contained and assumes very little knowledge or mathematical background on the part of students as it takes them through the major topics of quantum mechanics.

Designed to be appropriate for students across a wide range of abilities and backgrounds, this book will be particularly helpful for students who might lack some of the mathematical background typically assumed in an undergraduate quantum mechanics course. The book includes three 'math interludes' covering such topics as complex numbers, linear operators, vector spaces, and matrix manipulation. The book also discusses some interesting modern applications of quantum mechanics: magnetic resonance imaging and quantum computing, and it concludes with an introduction to relativistic quantum theory.

This second edition includes expanded and improved coverage of the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, the use of ladder operators to solve the harmonic oscillator, as well as the treatment of the Lamb shift.

Contents:

• The Origins of Quantum Mechanics
• Math Interlude A: Complex Numbers and Linear Operators
• The Schrödinger Equation
• Solutions of the One-Dimensional Time-Independent Schrödinger Equation
• Math Interlude B: Linear Algebra
• Solutions of the Three-Dimensional Time-Independent Schrödinger Equation
• Math Interlude C: Matrices, Dirac Notation, and the Dirac Delta Function
• Spin Angular Momentum
• Time-Independent Perturbation Theory
• The Variational Principle
• Time-Dependent Perturbation Theory
• Scattering Theory
• Multiparticle Schrödinger Equation
• Modern Applications of Quantum Mechanics
• Relativistic Quantum Mechanics

Readership: Undergraduate students, useful for all Physics majors and some Engineering majors; Educators of undergrad students.
Key Features:

• Designed to be appropriate for students with a wide range of abilities and backgrounds
• Helpful for students who might lack some of the mathematical background typically assumed in a quantum mechanics course
• Includes three math interludes" covering such topics as complex numbers, linear operators, vector spaces, and matrix manipulation
• Also discusses some interesting modern applications of quantum mechanics: magnetic resonance imaging and quantum computing, and concludes with an introduction to relativistic quantum theory