Customer Reviews

Quantum Mechanics for Scientists and Engineers (Classroom Resource Materials)

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Many textbooks, in general, suffer in readability due to the author assuming the reader thinks just as he or she does, or knows a sufficient amount of information prior to reading. David Miller is one of those authors that is just the opposite: he never assumes you know anything that isn't in his book (other than that you know how to read and do basic math). In addition, Miller has the unique ability to relate complex and complicated concepts to common examples. You will find that reading through this text is much smoother than with other textbooks. There are also solutions to certain problems and viewgraphs available for free online.

The topics in the book cover the basic quantum mechanical scenarios, such as simple 1D/3D potentials, operators, the uncertainty principle (taught in two ways...Griffiths provides a third), matrix formalism, Dirac notation, angular momentum, spin, and the Hydrogen atom. In addition, more advanced topics, such as perturbation theory (time independent and dependent), the density matrix, and approximation techniques. Miller also relates much of the material to photonics topics, such as absorption, Fermi's Golden Rule, non-linear effects, refractive index, and much more. As an EE professor, he also covers some band theory of crystalline solids.

I feel that this book is extremely complete and will be extremely useful for anyone wanting to learn Quantum Mechanics. I've also used Griffiths and Singh, which are also excellent texts. I feel that Griffiths accompanies this text very well (so having both is more than complete). I have yet to find an error in the text, and this is most likely because Miller wrote this originally as a course reader that was published through Stanford. The course reader has been used by other professors and hundreds of student prior to publishing. This means that your learning won't be plagued or interrupted with errors, or with the need to purchase a new edition.

As a physicist, I bought this book more for curiosity than to study itself. And I must confess I was really surprised by the conciseness of the text. It is a really nice and good introductory book. It doesn't go into the details and math formalism, but it does provide a nice physical insight, as well as good explanations. I recommend this book if you are looking for an introductory quantum mechanics text.

This is a textbook like no other: Clear. Honest. Eloquent. Thorough. Typo-free. Readable.

Reading Quantum Mechanics for Scientists and Engineers feels like nothing more than a friendly chat with Dave Miller about the nature of the universe. This year, as an undergrad EE major at Stanford, I took the quantum mechanics course from which this book emerged, using the book as a primary textbook and reference. You can pick up this book with nothing but a basic linear algebra background--the simple math relevant to QM is reviewed in the appendix--and immediately dive in, learning from cover to cover without ever feeling lost in the vast world of QM. A fantastic teacher and writer, Prof. Miller devotes particular attention to practical methods for using quantum mechanics in engineering (e.g., transfer matrix, perturbation theories, various approximation methods). That said, he never fails to explore and explain the theoretical and philosophical aspects of QM, giving a satisfyingly honest sense of certainty to an inherently uncertain field.

Without a clear guide, learning (and using) quantum mechanics can be a frightening endeavor for students and experienced researchers alike. With this book in hand, you'll quickly find that David Miller is the right man for the job.

My major is physics, and i bought this book for self-learning. The book is clear and requires less background knowledge, 2 years of basic college math and physics are enough. The book was well written with good explainations. Specialy with appendices can help you know what physics, math background you need for the subject.

Reminiscent of Feynman's Lectures on Physics, the author's clear, conversational writing style makes quantum mechanics tangible (and interesting!) to a wide range of readers.

I have used this reference before it was even made into a book for a course taught by the author. Both the authors written and spoken words are incredibly clear and easy to follow. The examples and homework questions help to better understand the material being taught and relate directly to the books contents. I highly recommend this as a reference for students as well as a course book since it would be excellent source around which a Professor may design a course.

It's rare that I am happy about the textbook I assign for classes; many texts cover the wrong material, have significant holes, or are difficult for students to follow. I had used Miller's lecture notes a number of years ago as an undergrad, so I was excited when this book was published in time for the Applied QM class I started teaching last fall. The only downside I can see is that I often find it hard to improve upon the book's explanations; I sometimes feel as though I have very little to add.

I am teaching myself quantum mechanics with the goal of understanding original research articles. I have found Miller to be extraordinarily well written and suitable for self-study. As an overall introduction to QM for self-study, I think Miller would be hard to beat, providing a nice balance between physical applications and mathematics. (For those sensitive to the physical quality of a book, Miller is very nicely produced and easy on aging eyes.)

Although I haven't reviewed this published version of the text, I have read his course reader that this text is based on (and a few others) for an applied QM course at Stanford. Unlike too many graduate courses where course notes are so poorly written and organized that the student finds themselves spending an inordinate amount of time deciphering them, Dr. Miller essentially writes a detailed (yet fairly concise) textbook for just about every class that he teaches. More importantly he is able to convey complex concepts very clearly. Based on my experience reading his course readers, I highly recommend any textbook he writes.