Book Description
This best-selling classical mechanics text, written for the advanced undergraduate one- or two-semester course, provides a complete account of the classical mechanics of particles, systems of particles, and rigid bodies. Vector calculus is used extensively to explore topics.The Lagrangian formulation of mechanics is introduced early to show its powerful problem solving ability.. Modern notation and terminology are used throughout in support of the text's objective: to facilitate students' transition to advanced physics and the mathematical formalism needed for the quantum theory of physics. CLASSICAL DYNAMICS OF PARTICLES AND SYSTEMS can easily be used for a one- or two-semester course, depending on the instructor's choice of topics.
Customer Reviews:
I doubt students using this text can tackle dynamics.......2007-04-28
I doubt students using this text will be as capable in tackling dynamics problems as one would assume. Give the Physics student fed on a regular diet of this book one of those swirling, mechanical-arm problems and they'll probably be dead in the waters. This is probably one of those books that create the illusion of mastery rather than develop real skills.
Springer has a real good series on classical mechanics nowadays. That's my tip.
Disclaimer: gave up on this book and never really used it, because I think it sucks and life is too short.
worst textbook I ever had.......2007-02-03
This book is one of the reasons why I am now a math phd student, rather than a physics phd student. Unfortunately, physics departments stick to the same awful books, when they really ought to know better. It doesn't matter how much math you know--I was a senior math major. You can follow everything that is written in this book and still not learn much because the book hardly contains any real knowledge. Very little physical insight will be found here, unless you think about it for yourself and come up with your own explanations. The idea of actually understanding anything seems to be completely missing. The problems are often tedious, involving excessive computations (not that some of that isn't appropriate), with a few exceptions. Not a good textbook or reference. If you don't at least question this book, you will miss out, big time--I promise.
If you have the misfortune of having this as a text, please, at least try reading something else. Feynman's lectures cover some of the material at an elementary level. V. I. Arnold's Mathematical Methods of Classical Mechanics might be worth taking a look at, although it requires some mathematical sophistication for a full appreciation.
This book is a real dissaster!!!.......2007-01-29
I used this book for Classical Mechanics and Classical Dynamics, and was a complete waste of time and money, the explanation of the topics is very superficial, and the mathematics are very poorly. However, the book is well organized, because clearly it develop a line of thought that an undergraduated student can follow, nonetheless the develop of this line of thought is a real dissaster. In conclusion, please look for another book, don't buy this piece of sh... Sorry, but I'm really dissapointed with this book. I had to buy another five books to complete what at last is the real classical dynamics.
P.S.: Beg your pardon if there is any grammar error, I'm not a native English Speaker.
Know's its place.......2006-09-02
This semester is my first in grad school and we're starting into Goldstein and I'm using Marion for review and backfill. The really negative opinions on this page are over done. AND so are the really positive reviews.
Overall the book is just great for an undergrad who won't be going on to the PhD or masters. But once you're in one of these programs you may find yourself reaching for it to make sure you've got your basics covered.
Hopefully Thornton will upgrade the book and not dumb it down as time goes on. A layered approach usually works.
A shame..........2006-04-29
People who read this book carefully will find that many of the examples in the book contain flawed reasoning. The sloppy logic often leads one to understand certain concepts in a wrong way. The book does have lots of long-winded mathematical derivations, but they don't really add to the reader's physical insight. (eg. in chapter 11, some simple linear algebra that can be done in three lines are instead derived in pages of summations and index swap)
This book is a disgrace to the teaching of physics. Its tedious, sometimes illegitimate algebra spoils the elegance of classical mechanics. Compare it with Landau, and you will see the point.
Book Description
This book first teaches learners how to do quantum mechanics, and then provides them with a more insightful discussion of what it means. Fundamental principles are covered, quantum theory presented, and special techniques developed for attacking realistic problems.
The book's two-part coverage organizes topics under basic theory, and assembles an arsenal of approximation schemes with illustrative applications.
For physicists and engineers.
Customer Reviews:
Emphasis on problems.......2007-09-04
How does Griffiths manage to cram such a comprehensive exploration of non-relativistic QM into such a small textbook? Nearly half of the material is explained only through doing the chapter problems. If you are a self-learner or looking for a reference, take a look at other texts such as Liboff before this one. If you are using this as part of an undergraduate class, get ready for some serious problem sets.
Fantastic First Book.......2007-07-27
The best introduction to quantum mechanics around, without doubt. Griffiths knows how to drive home the key concepts. Insufficient for a graduate student, but a highly desirable supplement to Shankar/Cohen-Tannoudji because Griffiths reminds you what is and what is not important concisely. There is no question that this book is brilliantly written. The smartest people are those who understand how to say things concisely and to the point, not pretentious people who hide behind equations and jargon because they cannot communicate ideas. Griffiths is obviously a very smart man.
This is written as a graduate physicist.
People who say that this book is insufficiently rigorous tend to be (but not necessarily) intellectual snobs who want to impress themselves and others by saying "Oh, Griffiths is too low level for me, I'm so great..." This is an INTRODUCTION, and that's what it serves to do...science was created by men based on intuition and logical clues, not by the gods of math (and I'd argue most of what is key in math came from mathematical clues and intuition before the proofs and notation...before derivatives and integrals were well defined, people were using them to solve physical problems).
Lots of subjects.......2007-05-15
A good book with lots of subjects but you need to listen to the instructor carefully and some theorems are just coming from somewhere that you dont understand...
Good choice as a first step.......2007-05-07
This is really a nice book to get a feeling about Quantum Mechanics. In just 450 pages, it covers most of the subject. Of course, with so few pages, you can't expect to see everything in depth.
The biggest quality Griffiths has, both in Introduction to Quantum Mechanics and Introduction to Electrodynamics, is developing a kind of physical intuition about the subject. The biggest flaw is a lack of mathematical rigour. Conserning this book, for example, I missed an axiomatic structure-like treatment of the theory. I would really recommend Cohen's book to anyone who wish to learn more.
Doesn't stand on its own........2007-04-28
I find example problems the most useful part of a science text book, and the ones in this book were very unhelpful. They did not prepare me at all for the problems in the book. It is not very clearly written and interspersed with jokes that do not make it easier to read. They're fairly extraneous. It's not detailed enough to be clear. I dont get a very good idea of the material from reading. Find a longer book.
Book Description
This didactically unrivalled textbook and timeless reference by Nobel Prize Laureate Claude Cohen-Tannoudji separates essential underlying principles of quantum mechanics from specific applications and practical examples and deals with each of them in a different section. Chapters emphasize principles; complementary sections supply applications. The book provides a qualitative introduction to quantum mechanical ideas; a systematic, complete and elaborate presentation of all the mathematical tools and postulates needed, including a discussion of their physical content and applications.
The book is recommended on a regular basis by lecturers of undergraduate courses.
Customer Reviews:
The solar-system-wide reference for Quantum Mechanics.......2007-05-26
Almost no words needs to be said about this masterwork.
And rare are serious students of quantum mechanics who could really afford to ignore it.
Several important techniques and recent developments are omitted, but having grasped the material presented in these two volumes, learning further about quantum mechanics will prove astonishingly straightforward.
A caution remark is in order, though : these books don't really suit to self-study, due to their sometimes rather lengthy, verbose exposition, which could well quickly fade away an initially strong motivation for studying quantum mechanics, if not bolstered by a teacher's or fellow student's incentives.
GOOD BOOK.......2007-03-09
Very good book for undergraduate or even graduate quantum mechanics. The book is very well organized and gives detailed explanations and examples of key quantum mechanical concepts. I would suggest that all undergraduates give it a try. It balances out importance of detail while maintaining clarity to give students a good understanding of the subject. Though it is a little hard to digest at first, that is just the nature of the subject. Once you become familiar with the basics of quantum mechanics, postulates, bra-ket etc this is a perfect book to learn from, or to go back as reference
Comprehensive.......2006-12-09
I'll keep this review short, unlike the 2-volume set on QM that I am reviewing here.
I used this text book for a two-semester graduate course in QM. Although lengthy, practically everything is in here. In that respect, it makes it difficult to pick out the key concepts. It is sort of the same problem when you try to learn relativity using Misner Thorne & Wheeler's book. Although I'd say that Cohen-Tannoudji's textbook is better organized. It may help if you read this book alongside a more concise book on the subject. A concise book will pick out the most important concepts for you, as well as help you with the homework problems. A good accompanyment I have in mind is Bransden & Jochain's textbook. Speaking of homework, I do not like how it is arranged in Cohen-Tannoudji. Say a professor decides to give you problems 1, 2 and 3 for a particular homework assignment, from some chapter. You think, "great, only three problems, no sweat, I'll do those a day or two before the due date." Trouble is, every problem has sections a, b, c, etc. and subsections i, ii, iii, etc. and within those sometimes sub-subsections alpha, beta, etc,--very frustrating! But if you sweat it out (managing your time well of course) with this textbook, and do the homework problems yourself instead of relying on the solutions older graduate students might be kind enough to hand down to you, you will get alot out of it.
Very good.......2006-11-02
I used this two volume set for a one year first course in quantum mechanics. These are from where I learn the subject for the first time. These are very good books intendent for the undergraduate level and very complete. It consists of a total of 14 chapters: 1-Waves and particles, 2-The mathematical tools of quantum mechanics,3-The postulates of Q.M., 4-Application of postulates to simple cases,5-The one dimensional harmonic oscillator,6-General properties of angular momentum in Q.M.,7-Particle in a central potential, the hydrogen atom, 8-An elementary approach to the quantum theory of scattering by a potential, 9-Electron spin, 10-Addition of angular momenta, 11-Stationary perturbation theory, 12-An application of perturbation theory, the fine and hyperfine structure of the hydrogen atom, 13-Approximation methods for time-dependent problems, 14-Systems of identical particles. In addition every chapter is followed by a set of complementary topics that help strengthen and deepen the material treated in the chapter, as you can see these books cover all essential material that should be covered in a first quantum mechanics course and when read, the reader can sense all the mastery of the authors explainig the topics.
The binding, in spite of being paperback, is very good also. I recommend these books to any one who wants to adquire a complete understanding of quantum mechanics at the undergraduate level, all in all, a superb book!
Love this book.......2006-01-09
A good, "deep" and complete presentation of quantum mechanics. The first chapter is great for basic ideas of QM. This is followed by a chapter on the mathematical tools of quantum mechanics and a very good chapter that lays out the postulates of quantum mechanics. Then it covers spin, the harmonic oscillator, angular momentum, and the hydrogen atom. It seems to me the book is the best around for teaching Dirac notation and matrix mechanics. Each chapter is accompanied by appendices that develop further detail or provide examples of various concepts. For help with problem solving, I recommend Quantum Mechanics Demystified and the Schaum's Outline of Quantum Mechanics. For a good reading companion, I recommend the Griffiths Quantum Mechanics book.
Average customer rating:
- Still the Best Overview on Quantum Computing
- Complete, but sloppy
- Complete and didactical
- Good book
- An essential text
|
Quantum Computation and Quantum Information
Michael A. Nielsen , and
Isaac L. Chuang
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
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Similar Items:
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Classical and Quantum Computation (Graduate Studies in Mathematics)
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Quest for the Quantum Computer
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The Physics of Quantum Information: Quantum Cryptography, Quantum Teleportation, Quantum Computation
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An Introduction to Quantum Computing
ASIN: 0521635039 |
Book Description
In this first comprehensive introduction to the main ideas and techniques of quantum computation and information, Michael Nielsen and Isaac Chuang ask the question: What are the ultimate physical limits to computation and communication? They detail such remarkable effects as fast quantum algorithms, quantum teleportation, quantum cryptography and quantum error correction. A wealth of accompanying figures and exercises illustrate and develop the material in more depth. They describe what a quantum computer is, how it can be used to solve problems faster than familiar "classical" computers, and the real-world implementation of quantum computers. Their book concludes with an explanation of how quantum states can be used to perform remarkable feats of communication, and of how it is possible to protect quantum states against the effects of noise.
Customer Reviews:
Still the Best Overview on Quantum Computing.......2007-03-02
This is an excellent book about a topic which becomes more important
with each passing month. It is written at a graduate level, such that
you really need to have had a college-level quantum mechanics course,
or equivalent. Most of the book uses bracket notation.
Complete, but sloppy.......2007-02-08
This is absolutely the standard introductory text to quantum information and quantum computation. Nielsen and Chuang certainly covered all the basis, and tried to give a self contained book including many reviews of related topics in the appendices. The main complain about the book is that some times it is sloppy, making hard to grasp the concepts. In some parts of the book there are even grammatical errors. My advice, get it, read it, but be very careful.
Complete and didactical.......2007-01-03
It is a book for specialists. In order to fully appreciate the contents you should have a physics, maths or computation science diploma. It contains a good introduction on Quantum mechanics, but for people that have already assited an introductory course on the field. Concerning the main subject: quantum computation, this book is the most complete review of the field and also suitable for a course on QC.
Good book.......2006-03-25
The book is good and gives you a general view of quantum information and computation. However, the size of the book disencourages beginners to read it.
An essential text.......2005-06-17
Despite its age, I keep coming back to this text for the careful prose and knowledgeable authors; so much so that I am ordering the hardback edition, having worn out the binding of the paperback edition. It is both a book to learn from and one to refer to later. It will eventually be outdated, but I don't see this as having happened yet. Although a large book, it is not bulked out like some, containing a lot of useful and relevant material. Perhaps not the text for those setting out from a 'cold start', but then a great follow up to 'The Quest for Quantum Computing" by Julian Brown. Not overtly rigorous, which is to its credit, as the concepts remain clear as a result. Certainly an essential text, where the prose does not get in the way. A very readable book about a very exciting subject, that is sure to deliver to the determined reader.
Average customer rating:
- Perfect.
- Wow, does this suck . . . get a different book!
- This book is a very very very bad book which you never buy.
- Don't make the same fault I did!
- It is sad that we don't have a better book out there...
|
An Introduction to Quantum Field Theory (Frontiers in Physics)
Michael E. Peskin , and
Dan V. Schroeder
Manufacturer: HarperCollins Publishers
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ASIN: 0201503972 |
Customer Reviews:
Perfect........2007-08-10
I received the book as it should be: knew. And it cames before the estimated time.
Wow, does this suck . . . get a different book!.......2007-06-13
Ok--I just need to help lower the overall rating for this book. I think the people who love it are professors and students who already are familiar with QFT--because it glosses over everything, does pertinent examples, etc. But that's just it, it GLOSSES over everything. Note that nearly all the higher reviews say things like: "oh, you wouldn't want to start with this book." or "Everyone knows that you're going to need more books than this one to understand it . . ." I couldn't even figure out how to create a Feynmann diagram from this book, let alone what one MEANT. FYI, my favorite QFT book so far is Weinberg's Quantum Theory of Fields.
This book is a very very very bad book which you never buy........2007-01-20
Absolutely no logic.
Perfectly nonclear.
No subject.
Mathematically poor.(very poor.)
Nonneccessary words.
No depth.
Not for self-study.
Just arrangement.
No physical insight.
No process.
No thinking.
This is indeed not a book.
This is a stuff for a vanity.
I wonder whether Peskin and Schroeder are genuine physicists.
Don't make the same fault I did!.......2006-12-16
Hi there!
The important information first: I'm a graduate student, mainly interested in theoretical physics. At the moment, I'm trying to get a deeper understanding of QFT.
Peskin's QFT book is NOT the one you should buy if you want to UNDERSTAND renormalization.
I learned the basics of QFT (\phi^4 and QED up to a first contact with renormalization - "trivial" subtraction of infinities) in a lecture and I finally felt like: "What does renormalization mean? What is it good for? Is there a deeper truth in it?" Well, the answer to the last question is definitely yes. It's about the Beta function. This function tells you how the coupling constants of a QFT behave at different momenta. E.g., we can learn from it why perturbation theory works for QED at low energies and for QCD at high energies (I think, this is amazing).
What I just said I learned from Huang's book. Peskin "deals" with it in chapters 10 to 12. In the middle of chapter 12 I finally said to myself: "Hey, don't feel stupid. This book is just completely incomprehensible here."
In my opinion, if you want to see behind renormalization (and therefore behind any QFT(!!)), don't buy Peskin's book. Any other book is better regarding this issue.
It is sad that we don't have a better book out there..........2006-05-28
The main problem of this book: what exactly is it supposed to be?
If it is an introduction, then the opening chapters are written at a level too sophisticated that an average first-time student can't handle.
If it aims to be a "bible" of the subject, then the later chapters are far too technical, loaded with only Feynman diagram calculations for standard model. Not being a phenomenologist, I personally have very little interest in all the technical detail, and apparently several other reviewers share my view here.
Now let me gives some examples to support my claim.
First, C, P and T symmetries are introduced very early on (right after Dirac spinor), and in a very formal way. Yes, they logically belong there, but in an "introduction" of the subject you don't throw out an isolated topic like this which you don't make use of in the following few hundred pages.
The part on cannonical quantization is written at a very fast pace. A complex scalar field is probably the first model you can construct with charged particles. And guess what kind of treatment it receives in this book? Not a single word in the main text. The problem 2 of that chapter essentially asks you to work out the content of this model with few hints given. If you have troble working it out, which is not uncommon for a first-timer, then you won't see the logic behind the decomposition of a complex Dirac field either. This is done in the following chapter, with no explaination.
Like the charged scalar field example, some important pieces of knowledge are hidden only in the exercises. So if you treat these high-power opening chapters as your bible-type reference, you will often end up in the frustrating situation that the book tells you to work out by yourself what you are seeking in the first place.
Now get to the later parts of the book. As I mentioned above, the second half of the book is almost conceptually too simple, overloaded with technical details.
This downfall begins around the renormalization group. On the back of this book, this Prof. Micheal Dine is qouted: "it is the only field theory text with a thoroughly modern, Wilsonian treatment of renormalization". The connection between the Wilsonian idea and dimensional regularization/renormalization scale is shaky at best. You read the text, and are left puzzled at the magic: how does a cut-off scale become some (much lower) arbitrary momentum scale? No explaination. The Wilsonian theory is completely isolated and have little connection with the rest of the renormalization section.
Furthermore, the book does not do a very good job on Lie algebra and non-abilien Lie groups. I mean, come on, if this is an "introduction" type of book, make it more readable. If this is a "bible" type of book, make it more comprehensive.
Having voiced all my bad opinions, I have to admit that the book has its merit. Bottom line is, this is a book written by phenomenologists for phenomenologists. If you view it from such an angle, it is not too badly written after all, and does cover most of the important topics a phnomenologist would want to know. But you may want to start from a more accessible text such as Ryder.
If you are a theorist, but not a phenomenologist, then, well, let's say the ability of getting through the first part perfectly is the minimum requirement for your research.
If you are an experimentalist, don't bother.
Book Description
Do you want to take a trip down the rabbit hole? Get ready, because that's exactly what you'll do when you open this book! Never before has a book so dramatically altered the status quoor reality for that matter. With a genre-busting break-through format and layout, the graphics, colors and characters compel readers to ask themselves Great Questions that will recreate their lives as they know them. With the help of fourteen leading quantum physicists, scientist and spiritual thinkers, this book guide readers on a course from the scientific to the spiritual, and from the universal to the deeply personal. Along the way, it asks such questions as: Are we seeing the world as it really is? What are thoughts made of? What is the relationship between our thoughts and our world? Are we biologically addicted to certain emotions? How can I create my day every day? The answer to the last question is a resounding yes: you are an infinite set of possibilities, and you can choose every day which reality you want to create for yourself. This book shows you how. Authors Will Arntz, Betsy Chasse and Mark Vicente transformed the movie world with their independent smash hit What the Bleep Do We Know?! Now they've brought their intelligent mix of science, spirituality and incredible graphics and storytelling to the printed page. The book features all new interviews with experts, relevant issues cut from the movie, deeper explanations of some of the more complex and important theories, and commentary from the authors about how these concepts transformed their personal lives for the better.
Customer Reviews:
Chalked Full...................2007-09-26
As a Druid High Priestess whom runs a large circle and runs PsychicSpellCaster.com, I can honestly tell you that this is full of very real information. Information that explains how the metaphysical is not really a mystical 'secret'- it is all explainable and can be used in a persons life to create a better life. The book can be heavy at times, but the format it is printed in really makes reading it easier (nice graphics,seperate paragraphs for covered subjects).
Over the years,many clients and students of mine have approached me with an array of metaphysical questions that can be explained by Quantum Physics (which is the underlined thread in this book). Therefore in my professional opinion, this is a must read.
Misleading. Realistically this is a self-help book with no scientific connection........2007-08-11
This book/movie is good in that it at least briefly skimmed principles of quantum mechanics and probably provokes some optimistic thought in its readers. Unfortunately, they dragged the most precisely proven scientific theory out onto the self-help floor. I honestly don't see the connection between Heisenberg's uncertainty principle and learning to better control your life with your mind. Taken word for word these two things might mesh together, but really, this book/movie strips all science from quantum theory, turning it into a two hour message to learn how to think with your mind.
This book has no place citing quantum mechanics or anything remotely scientific. It might be useful if you want to stare at the ceiling and try to figure out how to guide your life with what you have behind your eyes. Go read something on philosophy if you want to discover something about thought that isn't purely scientific.
A beautiful book, though not much new.......2007-07-31
I loved the film, despite having already researched most of the information in it. The movie had an awesome way of presenting the information and putting it into a visual form, so i was looking forward to the book.
I was immediately impressed with its looks and high quality finish. Reading it though was a little dull. I am perhaps overly critical as the information was hardly new, however for those new to the quantum physics world this is a great starter. I was hoping for some new insights that the film missed, but no such luck.
I love having it on my shelf, and it was worth reading, but the film was far better. Buy this with little expectation and you will be happy with your buy.
Thought provoking.......2007-06-27
The chapter on the links between biochemistry and emotion makes the book worth buying. Knowing what is happening inside your body is the first step to controlling it.
I am not convinced that quantum physics is the reason that people can communicate beyond the ordinary five senses. None the less, I have refered back to the book several times and I do recommend it.
The Movie was Flawed... the Book is Flawed........2007-06-19
The physics in this book is stretched into philosophies that can't possibly be derived from the data. The movie was just as flawed, only more confusing due to its pace and the little Flubber guy.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent model on how to not write a textbook.......2007-07-25
Buy this book, if you are going to write a textbook and want to know how to not write a textbook. Otherwise don't waste your time trying to read this book.
There are only 2 possibilities:
1. Either you are already an expert in which case you don't need this.
2. Or for the vast majority who are trying to learn, this is totally useless without a teacher.
I am trying to read this book for 2 years. Everytime I try to read it, it leaves me with frusturation.
Many books on physics I bought after this, I am able to move forward. Examples: 1) Gravitation [MTW] 2) Road to reality [Roger penrose]
1. There is no motivation given for any of the chapters or sections. e.g. One chapter starts with Lippmann Schwinger eq. No explanation on why it is important, what it is solving etc.
2. Notation is horrible. e.g. x', x''' etc. and they are not derivatives!
3. Derivations skips steps liberally, reverses the left and right hand sides of the eq. suddenly. e.g. formal development of perturbation.
4. It just has no approach to presentation. Many results are arrived at by weak analogy to something else at best. At worst they just pop out, out of nowhere. e.g. why we use bra, ket in very first chapter! optical theorem.
5. There is no axiomatic approach or gives no clue as to why we are doing something in a particular way as opposed to some other way. e.g. perturbation theory
I at last came to my senses,and going to buy some other book on Quantum mechanics.
One lesson I learned, just because you bought some book, don't try to read it. if it doesn't feel right, change to a different book fast.
good.......2007-07-10
This book is an excellent resource for the graduate student in physics. It covers many of the advanced topics like path integrals, etc. In the downside, it barely skims over some of the most important topics like the hydrogen atom.
For better or worse, this is the standard text........2006-04-07
I should mention, first of all, that I'm a mathematician and not a physicist. As such, I'm mostly interested in the formalism and mathematical foundations of quantum mechanics and, while Sakurai's treatement of the physics is superb, the treatment of the mathematics is not. The notation is horrific, and the derivations of the important results are not always completely clear. I, of course, do not expect this to be a book on mathematics (there are some books out there that try not to sacrifice any mathematical rigor at all, and this detracts from the physics so much that those books are rendered useless), but there is a balance that can be struck out, and this book doesn't achieve it.
Despite the text's wholesale abuse of mathematics, the material presented in Sakurai's text should be mastered by anyone attempting any work in quantum mechanics (and if you choose this as your field, it isn't likely that you'll be given a choice about using Sakurai anyway). The exercises are extremely challenging and relevant, and the treatment of perturbation methods is excellent. It makes an excellent follow-up to an introductory course on quantum mechanics, particularly if you are actually a physicist.
I should add that I do agree with everyone else here: the typsetting is pretty ugly. While the book has its merits, I don't think it warrants the three digit price tag. Personally, I'd find a used copy.
[Edit, 02/13/07]: Bad binding jobs have become the bane of my existence. Since purchasing this book a year ago, it has seen regular (but extremely polite) use. Despite my care in my daily book handling, the first and last signatures of my copy have fallen out. If this is an indicator of the quality of this printing, it makes it all the more important to find a used copy for yourself.
Overrated.......2005-09-30
Pretending to be rigurous, this book doesn't even mention Hilbert Spaces, Riesz Lemma, The Spectral Theorem... all of which are key to the formalism of Quantum Mechanics. Many decades have passed since the serious development of the mathematical tools (non-existent by the time Dirac published his book) needed for QM was made. This book totally snubs mathematics (as many physicists still do).
(And no, I'm NOT a mathematician).
A Classic with Holes.......2005-05-17
As many reviewers have already pointed out, the Sakurai was completed after the death of its attributed author, and one can definitely see after chapter 3 that this is definitely where things drop off (the chapter on symmetries is convoluted and very mathematical, almost to a fault). The notation is often cumbersome; I have to say that out of the six or so quantum mechanics books I have read or own, this is the only one where you will see notation like
.
Aside from the fourth chapter (which is weak at best) and the cumbersome notation, this is one of the best textbooks for quantum mechanics out there. Chapter 1 is the best discussion of linear algebra in quantum mechanics I have ever seen, and it alone is worth about $40. Although sometimes a little scattershot, the third chapter, on angular momentum, is also the best introduction to the theory of angular momentum I have ever seen. The text does not baby you like some undergraduate texts (the Griffiths immediately comes to mind), and treats you like an actual physicist capable of working through some pretty complicated problems.
Perturbation theory is an almost purely mathematical tool with very little physical "intuition" to be had, and therefore these sections of the book are not bad.
As far as I can tell, with Baym out of the picture, the race for "standard" graduate school textbook on QM is a dead heat between the established Sakurai and the upstart Shankar, and both books have their ups and downs. The Shankar can be too long-winded at times, although it covers path integration in much greater depth than the Sakurai. However, the Sakurai's treatment of symmetry operations is much more in-depth than the Shankar's. As far as I am concerned, the only way to get the best of both worlds right now is to drop the cash and read both books. The Sakurai is probably a much better way to learn the subject, but there are a few holes in Sakurai that Shankar covers well, although with a verbose style and with very simple problems.
Average customer rating:
- Great book for learning quantum field theory
- Perhaps the best book on QFT
- QFT ; This is the way to teach to it
- Excellent textbook
- Classroom Tested, Student Approved
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Quantum Field Theory
Mark Srednicki
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
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Quantum Field Theory
ASIN: 0521864496 |
Book Description
Quantum field theory is the basic mathematical framework that is used to describe elementary particles. This textbook provides a complete and essential introduction to the subject. Assuming only an undergraduate knowledge of quantum mechanics and special relativity, this book is ideal for graduate students beginning the study of elementary particles. The step-by-step presentation begins with basic concepts illustrated by simple examples, and proceeds through historically important results to thorough treatments of modern topics such as the renormalization group, spinor-helicity methods for quark and gluon scattering, magnetic monopoles, instantons, supersymmetry, and the unification of forces. The book is written in a modular format, with each chapter as self-contained as possible, and with the necessary prerequisite material clearly identified. It is based on a year-long course given by the author and contains extensive problems, with password protected solutions available to lecturers at www.cambridge.org/9780521864497.
Customer Reviews:
Great book for learning quantum field theory.......2007-09-10
This book is a great resource for learning quantum field theory. People that have already taken QFT courses may also enjoy reading it. The emphasis is on learning the concepts of QFT and the techniques for doing calculations. A very nice feature of this book is that these concepts are often developed using simple examples. While many of these do not describe realistic field theories, they improve the leaning process by isolating specific ideas to be learned and removing many complicating details. The problems at the end of the chapters are instructive and doable. This is a matter of taste, but I liked the fact that most of the chapters were fairly short.
The book starts by considering scalar fields. This material includes: relativistic quantum mechanics, why relativistic quantum mechanics is inconsistent as a single particle theory and how this leads to QFT, Feynman diagrams, cross sections/decay rates, renormalization and spontaneous symmetry breaking. I think covering these topics without the complications of spin makes it much easier to learn them. It also helps that many of the calculations are done in great detail.
Things get more complicated in the next two parts as spin is added. First spin one-half theories are covered and then spin one is covered. As in the first part, the quality of the presentation is excellent. All the topics one would expect are covered such as anomalies, chiral symmetry breaking, Wilson loops and BRST symmetry.
There is also a fair amount of more advanced material. This includes the strong CP problem and various aspects of the standard model. Some of the other more advanced topics are supersymmetry, grand unified field theories, lattice theory and matrix models. I would have liked these sections to been bigger.
In short, this is a great introduction geared towards teaching and it also has a fair amount of coverage of some advanced topics.
Perhaps the best book on QFT.......2007-08-04
This book clarifies a lot of mysteries on QFT for me. The concept is explained so clearly. It may not give you a lot of experimental results. But the methodology of QFT is explained much more clearly than other QFT books in the market. Basically, every one of the chapter in this book is written very well. The calculations involved in different topics are displayed line by line without jumping steps. Reading it is just like attending a tutorial. But you may need some experience on QFT before you can appreciate this book.
If you want to buy one book on QFT, buy this.
QFT ; This is the way to teach to it.......2007-04-13
Aimed towards graduate students, the text is presented with pedagogical brilliance. This is the way one teaches QFT to students who intend to actually use it in their research endeavors. I highly recommend this textbook to any student of high energy particle physics.
DF - Northeastern Univ. Boston MA.
Excellent textbook.......2007-02-17
Srednicki's book provides a brilliantly organized exposition of the fundamental concepts and calculational tools of quantum field theory. The book is self-contained, and divided into many short chapters which makes it convenient to read. The writing style is very pedagogical, essentially avoiding the "black magic" and mystery that seem to be a necessary ingredient in many other QFT textbooks. The material is presented in a logical way, and the author makes sure to address all the necessary details. I won't be surprised if this new book soon becomes the leading book on the subject.
Classroom Tested, Student Approved.......2007-02-07
I have been taught field theory from this text (actually, while it was in the process of being written), and then been a teaching assistant for the course in which it was used a second time.
In my experience, this is the best single text to use to learn field theory that one can buy today. It is completely modern in its presentation, and covers all of the fundamentals of field theory from scalars to spinors to gauge theory, and even has a significant amount of coverage of the standard model, specifically the Electro-weak theory. Additionally, the book is broken up into very short chapters of 4-10 pages each, and clearly cross referenced so you know what chapters are prerequisite knowledge.
There are a very large number of exercises which range in difficulty from very straightforward to very difficult. The problems manage to be educational and help deepen the understanding of what's presented in the text while still being a challenge.
This is an extremely well-rounded text. It is easily readable, and provides good intuition about the theory, but also goes far more in depth then the other "easier-to-read" field theory texts out there. It also generally sticks to the most commonly used notation and in situations where new notation is needed, the ones that are used are clear and well thought out. A solid graduate quantum mechanics background is necessary to get the most out of this test, but much of the more advanced math is covered as the book needs it (or reviewed in the exercises).
One down side to being so thorough on the theoretical framework is the lack of any reference to experiment or historical development of field theory. If your goal is to learn field theory only from the experimental side, there are better books out there. But for a solid grounding in the fundamentals of field theory there is no better place to start then this.
Book Description
The most successful theory in all of science--and the basis of one third of our economy--says the strangest things about the world and about us. Can you believe that physical reality is created by our observation of it? Physicists were forced to this conclusion, the quantum enigma, by what they observed in their laboratories. Trying to understand the atom, physicists built quantum mechanics and found, to their embarrassment, that their theory intimately connects consciousness with the physical world. Quantum Enigma explores what that implies and why some founders of the theory became the foremost objectors to it. Schrodinger showed that it "absurdly" allowed a cat to be in a "superposition" simultaneously dead and alive. Einstein derided the theory's "spooky interactions." With Bell's Theorem, we now know Schrodinger's superpositions and Einstein's spooky interactions indeed exist. Authors Bruce Rosenblum and Fred Kuttner explain all of this in non-technical terms with help from some fanciful stories and bits about the theory's developers. They present the quantum mystery honestly, with an emphasis on what is and what is not speculation. Physics' encounter with consciousness is its skeleton in the closet. Because the authors open the closet and examine the skeleton, theirs is a controversial book. Quantum Enigma's description of the experimental quantum facts, and the quantum theory explaining them, is undisputed. Interpreting what it all means, however, is controversial. Every interpretation of quantum physics encounters consciousness. Rosenblum and Kuttner therefore turn to exploring consciousness itself--and encounter quantum physics. Free will and anthropic principles become crucial issues, and the connection of consciousness with the cosmos suggested by some leading quantum cosmologists is mind-blowing. Readers are brought to a boundary where the particular expertise of physicists is no longer a sure guide. They will find, instead, the facts and hints provided by quantum mechanics and the ability to speculate for themselves.
Customer Reviews:
Importance of Einstein's inquisitiveness........2007-10-03
Remember "Blue Velvet" movie and frequently shouting "don't you f@#$ look at me!!" Frank (played with raving mania by Dennis Hopper)? Maybe Frank knew something we do not. But.. jokes aside - it is again about Einstein mostly, and about his two famous quips: "I like to think that the moon is there even if I am not looking at it" and: "God does not play dice". He related to measurement/observation problem and Nature's randomness. His questions, musings and skepticism spawned further research into "what is going on?" bringing quantum physics and consciousness enigma into the light. As we read the text, we learn that physicists can be divided into two groups: these who does not want to enter the hazy border of physics and philosophy, and much smaller but not less respected cluster of open-minded scientists who are not afraid to investigate and ask dipper questions. Second group consist(ed) among others Schrodinger himself and John Wheeler - dreamer and colleague of Einstein. There is something wrong with the way science is conducted, and authors clearly point at it quoting many names and opinions. For example: reductionism may be soon in retreat and reasoning by induction has logical problems. Mathematics is not always a panacea for theory -says Stephen Hawking: "The usual approach of science of constructing a mathematical model cannot answer the questions of why there should be a universe for the model to describe" (string cosmologists take heed!). Even philosopher and physicist Victor Stenger ("The Unconscious Quantum") - strong believer in empirical facts/observations and total critic of consciousness admits that we do not live in deterministic Newtonian clockwork universe. I mention him here because I read several of his books not without pleasure. In conclusion: "Quantum Enigma" is a fascinating and provocative book. The only small disappointment comes from marginal treatment of Roger Penrose's interpretation of quantum weirdness that goes without any need to invoke observers or parallel universes. For details one may check June 2005 Discover magazine. Soon after this book was published, May 12th 2007 New Scientist magazine printed information about planned experiments at the University of California , Santa Barbara. The researchers believe they will have ruled out one of the most popular explanations for how quantum things turn classical and that decoherence theory cannot be correct. Experiment will offer an inside into the fundamental nature of quantum measurement, and possibility to take a quick peek inside the box, glimpse the cat's state and observe "superposition" marching one step at a time. This could be a very profound discovery..stay alerted.
Quantum questions at their best.......2007-09-12
A good concise format for the most pressing quantum questions.
A very good read. Recomended for anyone needing more input on how our peception of reality, changes as quantum questions arise..
IM
Absolute must-read.......2007-08-24
I just finished reading Quantum Enigma and it has left me stunned.
Although I am sure many folks would not agree, I think the topic of this book examines the most important questions facing us humans -- the fundamental nature of consciousness and "reality", and how the two interact. The authors explain how quantum theory clearly shows that microscopic particles behave in a way that does not "make sense". Not only can those particles exist in two places at once, but the theory shows that they only exist when observed by something or someone. And since our everyday macroscopic objects are theoretically made up of those tiny particles, what does that mean about the chair I am sitting on? Is it there only because I am here? As stated on page 156, "There is no way to interpret quantum theory without in some way addressing consciousness."
This is not a "pop-quantum" book like the Tao of Physics or The Dancing Wu Li Masters. Nor does it present nonsensical extrapolations of quantum theory to spiritual phenomena, as in the "What the Bleep..." movie. But it does explore realms where most physics text books do not go -- the juncture of physics and philosophy. It shines a bright light on physicists' "skeleton in the closet", the enigmatic meaning of quantum theory.
The book is written in a friendly and entertaining manner, without sacrificing depth or seriousness. I enjoyed the photos of the great minds of quantum theory - Bohr, Heisenberg, Einstein, etc - the guys who knew from the start that quantum theory required a different world view.
It may be true, in some sense, that nothing exists unless and until "observed"! How can that possibly be? The authors don't provide an answer, but the beauty of this book for me was the courageous and competent way in which it asks the questions. And they freely admit that "The more deeply you think about quantum mechanics, the more strange it seems." No kidding.
--Joel Nisson
A perspective shaking journey.......2007-08-14
The concepts are simple but profound, mind creates matter. This book takes this idea and a few other mind bending, and mind blowing concepts that quantum physics has shown us about ourselves, and our universe and expands on them in a readable format. The astonishing realization for me is the apparent direct correlation between what quantum physics has told us about reality, and what mystics have been saying for thousands of years, especially the Buddha. This book is a must buy for any inquiring minds out there. It will change the way you look at yourself, and the world!!
Excellent treatment of the subject.......2007-08-10
The authors do a great job of presenting the issue. Some of the basic quantum concepts seem a bit dumbed-down, but their focus on the subject of quantum physics vs. consciousness is precise and well-thought-out. Refreshingly free of all the wooly-headedness that plagues other discussions of this type ("The Holographic Universe" comes to mind as a particularly bad example), which hijack science, broadly and clumsily applied, to justify belief in everything from ESP to reincarnation. They stick to the science, and properly so. Quantum mechanics is already so weird, it doesn't need to be conflated into anything else.
Book Description
Careful and detailed explanations of challenging concepts, and comprehensive and up-to-date coverage in this best-selling quantum mechanics book, continue to set the standard in physics education.
In this new edition, a new chapter on the revolutionary topic of of quantum computing (not currently covered in any other book at this level) and thorough updates to the rest of the book bring it up to date.
For anyone interested physics or quantum mechanics.
Customer Reviews:
Quantum book cover gauged.......2007-10-09
I was dissapointed to find large deep scratches on the front cover of my "new" book. Other than that it was fine.
the qm encyclopedia.......2007-09-19
It's a bit old school but very complete. No book is as thick or helpful.
Add this to your bookshelf.
Riddled with errors, omissions, and unclear writing.......2006-05-21
Liboff's quantum mechanics text is fairly complete, covering most of what should be covered in an undergraduate quantum mechanics course. That's about the only good thing I have to say about it. After two semesters of using this text in my undergraduate quantum course, I was happy to sell it back to my university's bookstore; it is the only textbook I have sold back so far.
While working problems from Liboff, I spent nearly as much time trying to decipher what Liboff was really asking me to do and correcting his typographical errors as I did actually working problems. To be fair to Professor Liboff, these problems with his book may be due to poor copy editing rather than to poor writing, but the point is the errors are still there. Nothing justifies spending multiple hours slaving over a single problem only to discover that the source of the difficulty is a typo in the book, rather than your own error.
I was also very frustrated at the organization of the text. For example, the material on angular momentum, rather than being presented together is a unit, is scattered amongst several chapters. Liboff is also fond of referring the reader to previous sections of the text. While there is nothing really wrong with this in itself, I found it grew tiresome rapidly to flip back hundreds of pages for a single equation that could easily have been reproduced. This is especially frustrating when Liboff refers to several equations from various previous sections in quick succession, a procedure necessitated by his peculiar organization of the material.
On the whole, Liboff's text confused me more than it clarified anything. I was fortunate to have a good professor for the course, and good lecture notes to draw from. Had I been relying on Liboff's book for my understanding, I would have understood nothing. I'm going to purchase Griffiths' book and see if it will help fill the gaps in my understanding that Liboff's left.
Basis and Representations.......2006-02-06
I am giving Chapter 11 (4th ed.) five stars. The rest of the book is around four stars. Chapter 11 on Elements of Matrix Mechanics contains the best, clearest discussion of Basis and Representations I have ever seen. Matrix methods and the powerful significance of unitary transformations (11.3) then becomes perfectly clear. Yes, I know a lot of this is discussed in Schiff, but sometimes, you just need someone elses view. (Actually, I'd say it took Liboff to enable me to understand Schiff.) To me, wave function representation by sets of complete functions, and the relationship of those function sets to operators and matrices, are the most elegant parts of quantum mechanics. Liboff does an excellent job of describing these beautiful topics.
Good text book overall.......2005-06-08
Places need improvement:
1. Time independent perturbation theory - The justifications for the derivation steps that lead to degenerate case are terrible. The place I learned degenerate perturbation method is from Fayer (Elements of Quantum mechanics).
2. Addition of angular momentum - For a beginner whom has never seen this done, just reading that section about addition of angular momentum, I don't believe one would walk away with anything but confusion. This section seriously needs some rewriting.
Highlights
1. Very complete! This means pretty much anything that one would encounter in undergrad quantum mechanics course is included here, in contrast to Griffith whom enjoys making you work through the exericses and have you arrive the results yourself. Having said that, this is a great book for reference.
2. For 3-D problems, there are many nice tables in the chapter that summarize all the important functions such as Neumann, Hankel, Legendre...etc. Furthermore, many commonly used spherical harmonics functions contained in a giant table is included. Once again, this makes it a great reference book as well.
3. Some harder exercises in the book contain answers or partial answers. The problems are not too hard which allows one to build confidence through solving theml
4. Includes a bonus chapter on quantum computing and a chapter on relativistic quantum mechanics which are both RARE things to be found in introductory textbooks.
5. One BIG chapter devoted to real-world applications...this is usually lacking in physics curriculum!!
Conclusion: As it is with any book out there, there are always good things and bad things about the book, however, there are significantly more good things I can say about this book than its shortcomings....Therefore, BUY this book to learn Quantum!
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