Quantum Mechanics
Quantum Mechanics 1 for Physicists, PHY-106.7
Course outline:
August-December (2023) 2023_QM1.pdf
August-December (2022) 2022_QM1.pdf
References:
- Principle of Quantum Mechanics, R. Shankar, Springer (Edition-2, Sixth Indian Reprint 2015).
- Modern Quantum Mechanics, J. J. Sakurai, J. J. Napolitano, Cambridge University Press (Edition-3, 2021).
We may include some content from the following texts in the following years.
- Quantum Physics, Michel Le Bellac, Cambridge University Press (Edition-1, 2006).
- Quantum Mechanics: Fundamentals, Kurt Gottfried Tung-Mow Yan, Springer (Edition-2, 2003).
- Lectures on Quantum Mechanics, Steven Weinberg, Cambridge University Press (Edition-2, 2015).
Notes on selected topics for self-study:
You can read these notes alongside the section in the reference textbook on the right side. This section will be updated as the course progresses.
- Application of Lambert-W function to derive Wien’s displacement law, Preliminary topics (Sakurai)
- Paradoxes of a classical electron, 1.1: The Stern-Gerlach Experiment (Sakurai)
- Linear vector space and Hilbert space, 1.2: Kets, Bras and Operators (Sakurai)
- Canonical transformation, 1.6: Position, Momentum, and Translation (Sakurai)
- Degeneracy theorem and Wronskian, 2.4: Schroedinger’s Wave Equation (Sakurai)
- Series solution for particle-in-a-box, 2.5: Elementary Solutions to Schroedinger’s Wave Equation and Appendix B (Sakurai)
- Properties of a physically acceptable wavefunction, 2.5: Elementary Solutions to Schroedinger’s Wave Equation (Sakurai)
What are some excellent textbooks to consult for QM-1?:
Several books discuss specific topics remarkably well. Here is a short list.
- Introductory Quantum Mechanics, Richard L. Liboff, Pearson (Edition-4, 2002).
- A Modern Approach to Quantum Mechanics, John S. Townsend, Viva (First Indian Edition, 2010, Reprinted 2017).
- Quantum Mechanics, David McIntyre, Corine A. Manogue, Janet Tate, Pearson (First Indian Edition, 2016).
- Quantum Mechanics: Theory and Experiment, Mark Beck, Oxford University Press (Edition-1, 2012).
- Introduction to Quantum Mechanics, D. J. Griffiths, D. F. Schroeter, Cambridge University Press (Edition-3, 2018).
Further, there is a long list of classic texts that I will list some other time.
Optional reading on measurement, entanglement, and related topics:
We will not discuss these topics in this course, but here is a list of references for those interested in getting some idea of these topics.
- Quantum Physics: A First Encounter, Valerio Scarani, Oxford University Press (Edition-1, 2006).
- A Short Introduction to Quantum Information and Quantum Computation, Michel Le Bellac, Cambridge University Press (Edition-1, 2006).
Optional reading of interesting articles and reviews:
This list is maintained (and will be regularly updated) to collect interesting articles that can be studied/discussed during the QM-1 course. Feel free to go through them. If you have any recommendations for this section, please send them to ramakrishnan@tifrh.res.in
- Against Measurement, John Bell, Physics World, Volume 3, Number 8 (1990) pages 33-40.
- Ten theorems about quantum mechanical measurements, N.G. Van Kampen, Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Volume 153, Issue 1 (1988) pages 97-113.
- The Stern-Gerlach experiment revisited, Horst Schmidt-Böcking, Lothar Schmidt, Hans Jürgen Lüdde, Wolfgang Trageser, Alan Templeton & Tilman Sauer, The European Physical Journal H volume 41 (2016) pages 327–364. arxiv link
- Albert Einstein’s explanation of how science works from Physics: A Conceptual World View Larry Kirkpatrick, Gregory E. Francis, Cengage Learning (2009).
- Stern and Gerlach: How a Bad Cigar Helped Reorient Atomic Physics, Bretislav Friedrich and Dudley Herschbach, Physics Today Volume 56, Number 12 (2003) pages 53–59.
- One hundred years of Alfred Landé’s g-factor, Bretislav Friedrich, Gerard Meijer, Horst Schmidt-Böcking, Gernot Gruber, Natural Sciences, Volume 1, Issue 2 (2021) pages 1–7.
Internet sources for images, videos, blogs, etc.:
- https://toutestquantique.fr/en/, contains animations of experiments (such as Stern-Gerlach experiment) that we will discuss in the course.
Quantum Mechanics 2, PHY-206.7/CHM-211.7
This course is offered along with Dr. G. Rajalakshmi (raji@tifrh.res.in). This course aims to cover the advanced topics in Sakurai’s Modern Quantum Mechanics (Edition-3, 2021) and possibly some topics from other references.