Customer Reviews

Quantum Mechanics in Simple Matrix Form (Dover Books on Physics)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

There are few books which explain quantum mechanics with such grace and simplicity. Starting with the basics the author sets out to explain the ideas and mathematics behind qunatum mechanics. The author also provides the historical references leading to the birth of quantum mechanics. The layout and presentation of the material is pure mathematical poetry.

Whilst the material would never make light bedtime reading, I would seriously recommend this book for both phyisicists and electronic engineering at the undergraduate and graduate level. The book has been a great source of information for my own research into the mysteries of quantum mechanics.

This review is written from the point of view of a philospher, poorly trained in mathematics, but still wanting to get to the meat of quantum mechanics from a methematical point of view. Wow. In this book I found what I thought I never would. It describes the mathematical world of quantum physics using the majestic simplicity of matrices and the algebra of complex numbers. As the author states in the preface, no calculus or trigonometry is required. While the math isn't downright simple, neither is beyond the grasp of someone who is bright, but hasn't taken claculus or even precalc. For those who want to journey past this book another excellent intro level quantum mechanics text that introduces wave mechanics and does assume a knowledge of basic calculus is "Fundamentals of Quantum Mechanics" by J.E. House. Both are excellent!

I have quite a few books on Quantum Mechanics. This book does what the others do not. The first half is about simple math. Understanding that QP - PQ = ih/2pi is the matrix form of an equation and the QP - PQ is not zero because the matrices do not commute is critical. This is basic stuff that a lot of books just skip. The second half uses the math to explain some of the features of Quantum Mechanics. For me I needed the detailed first half even though the math was not too hard. Now I can read my other books with a new understanding and finally I am starting to understand Quantum Mechanics.

I liked this book and learned a good deal from it. It is intended as a look at only some aspects of QM -- a slice -- not the subject as a whole. It has some problems: he never defines quite why or how the given matrices are chosen for ecample. It seems like a good "add on" to whatever other introduction to QM you are reading.

This book is intended to introduce quantum mechanics to beginners at the level of a Scientific American article. No knowledge of calculus is assumed; the reader can probably get by with nothing more than high school Algebra II. Due to these constraints, a great deal of material must necessarily be left out. As calculus is not used in this book, there is no mention of the Schrodinger equation or differential operators.

When I was a college physics major first learning modern physics 40 years ago, it was not until I encountered the solution to the hydrogen atom using the Schrodinger equation that I began to feel comfortable with quantum mechanics. Schrodinger's solution to the hydrogen atom was sufficiently specific and detailed to show the power of quantum theory, and in historical terms provided the theory with much needed credibility. I would therefore suggest that the reader with knowledge of calculus read an introductory book that includes the Schrodinger equation, such as Cropper's The Quantum Physicists: And an Introduction to Their Physics.

It's true that this book requires absolutely no calculus. Or linear algebra for that matter. This book doesn't even assume you've ever seen a complex number or a matrix before. All that is necessary is introduced in the first few chapters.

However, as this book progresses it slowly reveals itself for what it truly is: a first book on the operator formalism in quantum mechanics, where commutation relations for observable quantities are promoted to central importance.

While I'm certain that students with only a very modest background in physics and mathematics will be able to get something out of this book at least in the early chapters, the last third of this book is more suitable for fairly advanced students of quantum mechanics looking to make their way from state vectors to operators as required by quantum field theory. To such students I would recommend already having The Principles of Quantum Mechanics (International Series of Monographs on Physics) under your belt.

This is ultimately a challenging book masquerading as an elementary one.

Very good !
The book helps the reader very well to understand the way of thinking that he needs to get to use when dealing with quantum mechanics.
The book gives the opportunity to get the explanations directly from the source - the people who were facing the question why a new mechanic is necessary and what are the things that make it a new mechanic compared to the classical mechanic.

This is more of a philosophical or logical (axiomatic) approach to QM from minimal principles. It's not too practical but is enlightening.

i will not add any thing newer compared to the other reviewers.
but i felt that i should vote for that book.
very clear introduction for the subject, specially for the new comers.
highly recommended.

A preview of this book has motivated me to take a Linear Algebra class at a local college. The author has tried hard to make the subject approachable by readers without a strong math background, however, I want to feel comfortable with the material and not be just hanging on lightly.