Nonlinear Optics, Second Edition (Hardcover)

by Robert W. Boyd (Author) "Nonlinear optics is the study of phenomena that occur as a consequence of the modification of the optical properties of a material system by the..." (more)
Key Phrases: pulse propagation equation, full permutation symmetry, applied optical field, New York, Quantum Electron, Academic Press (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"This book is a well-written and successfully tested text useful for a course on An Introduction to Nonlinear Optics. It is also a fairly self-contained book. I recommend this book for classroom adoption. As well, I also recommend it as a very useful text for those who would like to learn this subject by themselves."
--PHYSICS IN CANADA
"If treatises expound and textbooks explain, then Boyd's book is definitely a textbook and a very readable one, too....For its intended audience and its purpose of illuminating the fundamental concepts of nonlinear optics, this book is a glowing success."
--OPTICS & PHOTONICS NEWS -- Review --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review
"Most readers interested in the theory of nonlinear optics, especially those who are familiar with the first edition of this book and those particularly interested in noise, will welcome this new second edition." - Optics & Photonics News, January 2005

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 576 pages
• Publisher: Academic Press; 2 edition (December 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0121216829
• ISBN-13: 978-0121216825
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #794,482 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not perfect, but nonetheless the best available, May 4, 2004

By	Jonathan Birge (Cambridge, MA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The field of nonlinear optics is actually much more general in scope than the name implies, and it finds large intersection with quantum mechanics, atomic physics and physical chemistry. It has applications in virtually all physical and life sciences. It's thus surprising that for such a useful and interesting subject, there would be such a shortage of good books! Fortunately, this book is excellent, and covers the subject thoroughly in both theory and application. An interesting feature of the book is that it covers the basic theory first from a classical perspective (i.e. nonlinear dipole polarization) and then rederives the basic results from semiclassical quantum theory. While the dielectric approach alone is adequate for solving problems (in fact, the quantum approach is useless in practice) the quantum background is fascinating to read and greatly helps in developing an intuitive picture of the physical mechanisms behind nonlinear processes. Boyd makes the nice choice of using Gaussian units, which is foreign to anybody but theoretical physics snobs but which eliminates a lot of useless notational complexity.

Unfortunately, the book is sometimes terse and occasionally presents results without sufficient derivation, especially for advanced concepts and applications. However, when it comes to the foundational elements of nonlinear optics, the book is always thorough and the concepts well explained. Boyd clearly has a very deep understanding of the subject, and this shows in his writing.

If you need to buy one book on nonlinear optics, this should probably be it. You might be temped to buy Shen or Bloembergen since they were such primary contributors to the field, but you will probably be disappointed in the quality of their exposition and confused by the notation.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A book instrumental in teaching nonlinear optics, August 21, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Nonlinear Optics (Hardcover)

I have found this book to be quite useful in my quest to understand nonlinear optics. It gives a thorough explanation of the fundamental priciples and even gives a few examples to aid in the learning of the subject. A very good text for graduate and undergraduate students.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good but could be better!, June 9, 2000

By	luca rinaldi (Roma, Lazio Italy) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nonlinear Optics (Hardcover)

Actually this is the best introductory text for the newcomer to the exciting field of Nonlinear Optics.The text is clear and undoubtely the author readily explains very complicated Phenomena in a succinct yet understable way.Very comprehensive coverage too stretching from classically explainable effects to quantum derivations of Nonlinear interaction coefficients.The only fault is sometimes the introduction of formulas "coming from the sky" which is a very deprecable fact.On the whole a good book but could be better!