Quantum Mechanics: Fundamentals (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Tung-Mow Yan (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

From the reviews of the second edition:

JOURNAL OF PHYSICS A: MATHEMATICAL AND GENERAL (27 FEBRUARY 2004)

"… [The first edition] has become one of the most used and respected accounts of quantum theory … Gottfried and Yan’s book contains a vast amount of knowledge and understanding. As well as explaining the way in which quantum theory works, it attempts to illuminate fundamental aspects of the theory … For use with a well-constructed course (and, of course, this is the avowed purpose of the book; a useful range of problems is provided for each chapter), or for the relative expert getting to grips with particular aspects of the subject or aiming for a deeper understanding, the book is certainly ideal."

PHYSICS TODAY (August 2004)

"…especially useful for graduate students and professors who have time to go beyond the bare essentials of a topic and explore it in depth… I would recommend the book for its lucid discussions of less familiar topics alone, but the authors do not short-change the standard subjects… I expect the second edition of Gottfried and Yan to join my library of well thumbed-through texts."

"The book … is intended for a graduate course in quantum mechanics. … would be especially useful for graduate students and professors who have the time to go beyond the bare essentials of a topic and explore it in depth. … The topics covered are unusually complete … . Along the way, one can learn about topics often not covered in more elementary textbooks … . And appearing at the end of most chapters are engaging and challenging problems." (William Happer, Physics Today, August, 2004)

"Written in collaboration with Tung-Mow Yan, this new treatise is much more than a simple revised version of the 1996 book. The reader will find in it a lot of new elements, essential to a modern formation in quantum mechanics … . This book concerns readers that beforehand have acquired some knowledge of elementary quantum mechanics, mainly graduate students and researchers. For sure it deserves to appear in any scientific library." (Philippe Spindel, Physicalia, Vol. 26 (1), 2004)

"Gottfried and Yan’s book contains a vast amount of knowledge and understanding. As well as explaining the way in which quantum theory works, it attempts to illuminate fundamental aspects of the theory. … For use with a well-constructed course (and, of course, this is the avowed purpose of the book; a useful range of problems is provided for each chapter), or for the relative expert … aiming for a deeper understanding, the book is certainly ideal." (A Whitaker, Journal of Physics A: Mathematical and General, Issue 37, February, 2004)

Product Description

This classic text builds a solid introduction to the concepts and techniques of quantum mechanics in settings where the phenomena treated are sufficiently simple that the student can readily assess the validity of the models or the reliability of the approximations and can thus concentrate on the intrinsic difficulties of the subject. The treatment thus confines itself to systems that can either be solved exactly or be handled by well-controlled, plausible approximations. With few exceptions, this means systems with a small number of degrees of freedom. The exceptions are many-electron atoms, the electromagnetic field, and the Dirac equation. (The inclusion of these last two topics reflects the now widely held belief that every physicist should have should have some knowledge of these cornerstones of modern physics.) This new edition has been completely revised and rewritten throughout, but retains the clarity and readability of the first edition. Born in Vienna, Kurt Gottfried emigrated to Canada in 1939 and received his Ph.D. in theoretical physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1955. He is professor of physics at Cornell University, and had previously been at Harvard University and at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland. He is the co-author of Concepts of Particle Physics (with V.F. Weisskopf) and of Crisis Stability and Nuclear War. Gottfried has done research in both nuclear and particle physics; he has an active interest in arms control and human rights and is a founder and currently the Chair of the Union of Concerned Scientists. Tung-Mow Yan, originally from Taiwan, received his Ph.D. in theoretical physics from Harvard in 1968. He has been a member of the Cornell faculty since 1970 after spending two years as a research associate at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center. He has conducted research in many areas of elementary particle physics.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 632 pages
• Publisher: Springer; 2nd edition (June 19, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0387955763
• ISBN-13: 978-0387955766
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #550,301 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars nice guys write tough books, March 3, 2004

By A Customer

Quantum mechanics taught from the point of view that mathematics leads and concepts follow. This is great if you already know the concepts or are very gifted at math, but it is not for the average student unless supplemented. (Consider Shankar.) A lot of ground is covered rapidly in this book, so it might be a very good reference for an experienced researcher.

5.0 out of 5 stars A nice book but incomplete, June 29, 2005

By	physics student "visviva" (St. John's, Newfoundland Canada) - See all my reviews

Whenever looking up something about quantum mechanics I start with Gottfried. Measurement theory, angular momenta, elementary scattering theory - all are well done.

The book would be more useful if Gottfried had ever finished the second part of it! Several sections are lead-ins to material which was intended for a second volume.