The Quantum Vacuum: An Introduction to Quantum Electrodynamics [Hardcover]

Peter W. Milonni (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0124980805 | ISBN-13: 978-0124980808 | Publication Date: November 2, 1993 | Edition: 1

In modern physics, the classical vacuum of tranquil nothingness has been replaced by a quantum vacuum with fluctuations of measurable consequence. In The Quantum Vacuum, Peter Milonni describes the concept of the vacuum in quantum physics with an emphasis on quantum electrodynamics. He elucidates in depth and detail the role of the vacuum electromagnetic field in spontaneous emission, the Lamb shift, van der Waals, and Casimir forces, and a variety of other phenomena, some of which are of technological as well as purely scientific importance.
This informative text also provides an introduction based on fundamental vacuum processes to the ideas of relativistic quantum electrodynamics and quantum field theory, including renormalization and Feynman diagrams. Experimental as well as theoreticalaspects of the quantum vacuum are described, and in most cases details of mathematical derivations are included.
Chapter 1 of The Quantum Vacuum - published in advance in The American Journal of Physics (1991)-was later selected by readers as one of the Most Memorable papers ever published in the 60-year history of the journal. This chapter provides anexcellent beginning of the book, introducing a wealth of information of historical interest, the results of which are carefully woven into subsequent chapters to form a coherent whole.

Key Features
* Does not assume that the reader has taken advanced graduate courses, making the text accessible to beginning graduate students
* Emphasizes the basic physical ideas rather than the formal, mathematical aspects of the subject
* Provides a careful and thorough treatment of Casimir and van der Waals forces at a level of detail not found in any other book on this topic
* Clearly presents mathematical derivations

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A survey of some of the most important ideas about the always fluctuating quantum vacuum along with a description, based on fundamental vacuum processes, of the physical concepts of quantum electrodynamics."
--SCI TECHBOOK NEWS (1994)
"The Quantum Vacuum [is] an informative and very readable introduction to quantum electrodynamics. It is a remarkable idea that a book on this topic should be a 'page turner but I found it difficult to put down....I have not come across a better introduction to this subject than Milonnis text. All serious students of quantum theory will benefit from reading it and I have already recommended it to my students. I am looking forward to finishing working through the later chapters once I get the book back from the aforementioned students!"
--Stephen M. Barnett, JOURNAL OF MODERN OPTICS (1994, vol. 41, no. 5, 1051-1052)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 522 pages
• Publisher: Academic Press; 1 edition (November 2, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0124980805
• ISBN-13: 978-0124980808
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #947,197 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A thoughtful account of QED, July 16, 2001

By 

Hanno Essen (Stockholm Sweden) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Quantum Vacuum: An Introduction to Quantum Electrodynamics (Hardcover)

This is an original, pedagogical, and scholarly account of quantum electrodynamics. It does not imitate other books. The author has his own points of view which are personal and insightful. The subject is presented as a part of physics with many applications to Casimir forces, Van der Waals forces, radiation and spectra of atoms, vacuum fluctuations, quantum optics etc. The author gives the impression that he explains what he has really understood and he makes you curious about the things that he has not. I like this book and recommend it; it has integrity.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Bad quality item, July 2, 2005

By 

TTTTTTTTT - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Quantum Vacuum: An Introduction to Quantum Electrodynamics (Hardcover)

About the quality of the edition only.

Academic Press has done it again: charge you more than 100$ for a crappy book. That is, very bad quality printing, the text seems like if scanned first and then printed in a laser wich gives it a piggy typeface, to complement this the pages are glued instead of sewn. Very well done, overall quality and durability of a cheap paperback for only 115$.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good at what it covers, April 13, 2006

By 

Dean Welch - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Quantum Vacuum: An Introduction to Quantum Electrodynamics (Hardcover)

This is primarily a book on quantum electrodynamics, with a focus on the zero-point energy fluctuations. The thing I really liked about it is that the physics doesn't take a backseat to formalism, the same effect is also often examined from several different angles. Another nice this is that the effects of the electromagnetic vacuum fluctuations on atoms is often considered.

The book opens with a chapter covering some of the earlier work that hinted at vacuum fluctuations, for example blackbody radiation and spontaneous emissions. Following this the vacuum fluctuations of the electromagnetic field are derived.

Then some interesting physics is presented. The Casimir effect is covered briefly. The Casimir effect is returned to frequently throughout the book, in fact it's one of the central topics of it. The Unruh-Davies effect is derived and a physical explanation is given for it, there is also a discussion of what a freefalling observer with a charge sees. Although not mentioned in the book, the analogous effect has important implications for Hawking radiation. Many other effects are considered. One that I thought was particularly interesting is that the van der Waals force between atoms that lack permanent magnetic dipole moments is ultimately caused by vacuum fluctuations. Van der Waals forces are covered in great detail as the book proceeds.

The final four chapters read like a quick introduction to quantum field theory similar to the approach in Bjorken and Drell. The contents are roughly: the Dirac equation, some of its effects (e.g. Zitterbewegung and vacuum polarization), the realization that the Dirac equation has issues as a single particle theory, second quantization, renormalization and Feynman diagrams. One of the interesting results is the calculation of the Casimir type force caused by the electron field. Other than that, not much else from this part of the book stood out for me.

This isn't a comprehensive book on field theory in general or even quantum electrodynamics, however I do think it adds a lot of insight into quantum electrodynamics and the physical effects of the vacuum. It is very detailed in the things it covers and often adds insight by looking at a problem from several angles. I also think parts of the book would be very useful for somebody studying atomic physics.