The Feynman Lectures on Physics Volumes 3-4

Book Description

Eagerly awaited by scientists and academics worldwide, Feynman's famous Lectures on Physics, now on CD.

Basic Books is proud to announce the next two volumes of the complete audio CD collection of the recorded lectures delivered by the late Richard P. Feynman, lectures originally delivered to his physics students at Caltech and later fashioned by the author into his classic textbook Lectures on Physics. Ranging from the most basic principles of Newtonian physics through such formidable theories as Einstein's general relativity, superconductivity, and quantum mechanics, Feynman's 111 lectures stand as a monument of clear exposition and deep insight.

Customer Reviews:

Learn from the best- con't.......2007-01-12

We purchased this series because we checked them out from the library and decided we should own them. The _Feynman Lectures on Physics_ are great resources for you as a parent desiring to impart these concepts. Feynman explains complex ideas through very simple and entertaining stories. ***** These CDs are a "must have" for roadtrips!

Use with the Feynman Lectures (Red Books) - 3 Volume Set.......2005-07-29

As other reviewers have stated this series has a few problems. The first is that the audio was copied from audio tapes as one long CD track without partitions which is a huge pain. The lectures are also all jumbled up into "topic areas", and the listener is left to align them to the chapters in the Feynman Lectures on Physics. The sections to which the commentator on the CD's refers are in these books (ISBN: 0201021153, or even better get the hardcover). If you are learning physics for the first time, you definitely want the books to go along with at the same time.

Audio Volume 3: From Crystal Structure to Magnetism
'The Feynman Lectures on Physics: From Crystal Structure to Magnetism (Feynman Lectures on Physics (Audio))'
Volume II, Chapter 30: The Internal Geometry of Crystals
Volume II, Chapter 32: Refractive Index of Dense Materials
Volume II, Chapter 39: Elastic Materials
Volume II, Chapter 10: Dielectrics
Volume II, Chapter 11: Inside Dielectrics
Volume II, Chapter 34: The Magnetism of Matter

Audio Volume 4: Electrical and Magnetic Behavior
'The Feynman Lectures on Physics Vol. 4 : Electrical and Magnetic Behavior'
Volume III, Chapter 13: Propagation in a Crystal Lattice
Volume III, Chapter 14: Semiconductors
Volume III, Chapter 15: The Independent Particle Approximation
Volume III, Chapter 21: The Schrödinger Equation in a Classical Context: A Seminar on Superconductivity
Volume II, Chapter 35: Paramagnetism and Magnetic Resonance
Volume II, Chapter 36: Ferromagnetism

Thanks to Autodidact Andy for the contents list (taken from his How To List on the cassette versions).

5 Stars for sure but here is a caveat before you buy.......2005-03-05

There is no way you can follow these lectures UNLESS you have the books (R.P Feynman lectures on Physics Vols 1-3) in front of you or maybe you can follow them if you are smarter than RPF himself, which is unlikely (otherwise i'd be reading your book). Anyway, the reason for this is there is a lot of formulae and explaining happening on the black board and RPF talks pretty fast with his sharp brooklyn accent. So, have the book and chapter he is talking about in front of you and pay attention to what he is saying and frequently pause to digest what he has said and you'll appreciate the lectures more. It may not be possible to understand everything he says in his books, let alone in the audio, which makes it difficukt understanding when you are not in possession of his books. But the CD's are a blast to listen to, EXCEPT the people who produced the CD's should be impaled on some sharp object because each CD has ONE track from start to finish. So to go back or skip sections is a real pain.

If you liked the book then try this.............2000-12-07

If you are looking for a laymans' basic physics primer, look somewhere else! If you have a background in the material and are looking for a review or for alternative views of the subject then this is appropriate.

I first read the "Feynman Lectures" (in book form) during the first year of my physics studies. They struck me then, and still do, as offering inspired and inspiring insight from a first class brain.

To hear him speak, after reading so much of his material through the years is a real kick. At first I couldn't imagine how one could hear the lectures without the written material in support. Although I think that this material is in fact best absorbed in conjunction with the written Lectures, yet these tapes are a pleasurable and thoughtful listen all by themself.

Foir the advanced..........2000-03-27

If you order one of the series, go for the more general of the sets. I got one which was extremely good in it's description of the structure of crystals, 'Volume 3 From Crystal Structure of Magnetism', but went into later elaborate detail on formulae, much done on a chalkboard in the longlost 1960's, which left me in the dust...

Atom—Photon Interactions: Basic Processes and Applications

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Very useful

Atom—Photon Interactions: Basic Processes and Applications
Claude Cohen-Tannoudji , Jacques Dupont-Roc , and Gilbert Grynberg
Manufacturer: Wiley-Interscience
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0471625566

Book Description

Atom-Photon Interactions: Basic Processes and Applications allows the reader to master various aspects of the physics of the interaction between light and matter. It is devoted to the study of the interactions between photons and atoms in atomic and molecular physics, quantum optics, and laser physics. The elementary processes in which photons are emitted, absorbed, scattered, or exchanged between atoms are treated in detail and described using diagrammatic representation. The book presents different theoretical approaches, including:
* Perturbative methods
* The resolvent method
* Use of the master equation
* The Langevin equation
* The optical Bloch equations
* The dressed-atom approach

Each method is presented in a self-contained manner so that it may be studied independently. Many applications of these approaches to simple and important physical phenomena are given to illustrate the potential and limitations of each method.

Customer Reviews:

Very useful.......2000-06-26

Atom Photon Interactions is an excellent text for atomic and optical physics. I refer back to the review material---transition amplitudes, quantum electrodynamic fundamentals, etc--- over and over again. Naturally, these sections are very brief, and the book works best along side Cohen-Tannoudji's more elementary texts Quantum Mechanics and Photons and Atoms, or their equivalents.

Book Description

Quantum Kinetics in Transport and Optics of Semiconductors deals with the quantum kinetics for transport in low-dimensional microstructures and for ultrashort laser-pulse spectroscopy. The nonequilibrium Green function theory is described and used for the derivation of the quantum kinetic equations. Numerical methods for the solution of the retarded quantum kinetic equations are discussed and results are presented for quantum high-field transport and for mesoscopic transport phenomena. Quantum beats, polarization decay and non-Markovian behaviour are treated for femtosecond spectroscopy on a microscopic basis.

Customer Reviews:

A very useful book on Keldysh techniques.......1999-05-28

I recommend this book to anyone who wants an introduction to nonequilibrium Green function techniques. It is much more readible and up-to-date than Kadanoff and Baym's "Quantum Statistical Mechanics".

Collective Electrodynamics: Quantum Foundations of Electromagnetism

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"Not even wrong"
Coherent, Concise, and Challenging
Successor to Feyman's Red Books
Pioneering Research
Collective Electrodynamics--Carver Mead's book

Collective Electrodynamics: Quantum Foundations of Electromagnetism
Carver A. Mead
Manufacturer: The MIT Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0262133784

Book Description

In this book Carver Mead offers a radically new approach to the standard problems of electromagnetic theory. Motivated by the belief that the goal of scientific research should be the simplification and unification of knowledge, he describes a new way of doing electrodynamics--collective electrodynamics--that does not rely on Maxwell's equations, but rather uses the quantum nature of matter as its sole basis. Collective electrodynamics is a way of looking at how electrons interact, based on experiments that tell us about the electrons directly. (As Mead points out, Maxwell had no access to these experiments.)

The results Mead derives for standard electromagnetic problems are identical to those found in any text. Collective electrodynamics reveals, however, that quantities that we usually think of as being very different are, in fact, the same--that electromagnetic phenomena are simple and direct manifestations of quantum phenomena. Mead views his approach as a first step toward reformulating quantum concepts in a clear and comprehensible manner.

The book is divided into five sections: magnetic interaction of steady currents, propagating waves, electromagnetic energy, radiation in free space, and electromagnetic interaction of atoms. In an engaging preface, Mead tells how his approach to electromagnetic theory was inspired by his interaction with Richard Feynman.

Customer Reviews:

"Not even wrong".......2006-07-23

This is an unusual book and not an easy one to review.
Perhaps the best starting place is the publisher's summary:

[BEGIN PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY (from the book's back cover)]

"In this book Carver Mead offers a radically new approach to the standard problems of electromagnetic theory. Motivated by the belief that the goal of scientific research should be the simplification and unification of knowledge, he describes a new way of doing electrodynamics---collective electrodynamics---that does not rely on Maxwell's equations, but rather uses the quantum nature of matter as its sole basis. Collective electrodynamics is a way of looking at how electrons interact, based on experiments that tell us about the electron directly. (As Mead points out, Maxwell had no access to these experiments.)"

"The results Mead derives for standard electromagnetic problems are identical to those found in any text. Collective electrodynamics reveals, however,that quantities that we usually think of as being very different are, in fact, the same---that electromagnetic phenomena are direct manifestations of quantum phenomena. Mead views this as a first step toward reformulating quantum concepts in a clear and comprehensive manner.''

[END PUBLISHER's SUMMARY]

It was this summary that persuaded me to order, sight unseen, this small (132 pages) but relatively inexpensive book to read on vacation. I didn't expect a lot from it, but I hoped that it might furnish some new insights. I was very disappointed that I learned nothing of substance from it.

Indeed, I think that the above summary borders on false advertising. The book does not convincingly obtain classical electrodynamics from accepted quantum mechanical principles nor from experiments to which "Maxwell had no access". Its motivation is presented in such a vague and sloppy way that I regard it as yet one more of the endless accumulation of dreary papers which Pauli, in a famous remark, characterized as "not even wrong", i.e., too vague to be meaningful.

The book only sketchily describes the "experiments that tell us about the electron directly". These are experiments with superconducting coils, which reveal not the behavior of individual electrons, but behavior of a system of a large number of electrons coupled in poorly understood ways (hence the collective" in the book's title). Most of the book's development is based on just one experimental fact---that the magnetic flux of a superconducting loop is quantized, i.e., the flux can take on only values which are a constant multiple of integers. The book views such a system as a primitive system "having only one degree of freedom".

Before proceeding to sketch the book's main argument, I have to make some mathematical remarks. It is well known that classical electrodynamics can be plausibly developed starting with just one mathematical object---the four-potential A, which is a 1-form on four-dimensional Minkowski space. The electromagnetic field tensor F, a 2-form, is the differential of the potential 1-form: F = dA. It would be too difficult to give precise definitions here, but they can be found in my book *Relativistic Electrodynamics and Differential Geometry* and many other places. The 4-current J is then defined as (or, from a more physical point of view, assumed to be) the codifferential (covariant divergence) of the field tensor. This mathematical structure is equivalent to Maxwell's equations.

In summary, from any physical situation in which a 1-form
on Minkowski space appears naturally, one can plausibly recover much of the mathematical structure of classical electrodynamics. For example, if within the logical structure of thermodynamics there were a naturally occurring 1-form on Minkowski space, one might claim to "derive" electrodynamics from thermodynamics by identifying this "natural" thermodynamic 1-form with the electromagnetic potential A.

The only problem would be if the thermodynamic definition of A were somehow in physical conflict with the electrodynamic definition. But if A should be an unmeasurable quantity within thermodynamics, then this problem would not exist.

The essence of Mead's argument is that within quantum mechanics, there is a naturally occurring 1-form on three-dimensional space with the property that integrating it over a superconducting loop gives the phase change of the "wave function" of the loop, which must be a constant multiple of an integer. Also, integrating the space part of the four-potential 1-form A over a loop gives the magnetic flux threading the loop, which for a superconducting loop is observed to be a constant multiple of an integer. This suggests identifying the "phase change" 1-form with a constant multiple of the space part of A.
Later the full A is recovered by hand-waving analogies. In my opinion, the main problem with his argument is that his construction of the "phase change" 1-form is so vague, sloppy, and problematic that it is "not even wrong".

Another difficulty is that the electrodynamic potential 1-form
has special properties which may or may not be possessed by Mead's "phase change" 1-form, a point which Mead does not address. Since there seems no way to experimentally determine Mead's "phase change" 1-form independently of electromagnetic measurements, his identification of the "phase change" 1-form
with a constant multiple of the electrodynamic 1-form seems physically sterile.

I cannot point out the precise difficulties with his construction without using symbols which are unavailable here.
A more extensive review on my website gives the mathematical details of some of the problems with it.

Is there anything of interest in the book?
Well, some may find of interest an 11-page "Personal Preface" describing, among other things, the author's relationship with and impressions of Richard Feynman. Mead was an undergraduate student of Feynman and later his colleague at Caltech.

I have mixed feelings about these.
His reminiscences sound sincere, but also seem to me to have a
flavor of name-dropping. For example, he discusses a "sticking point" in his development of electrodynamics which held him up for years, and informs us that "it is resolved in this treatment in a way that Feynman would have liked". It seems presumptuous to claim to know what a great, deceased physicist would have thought about this work.

Coherent, Concise, and Challenging.......2005-06-30

For those of us who were fascinated by Feynman's presentation of the vector potential field A, this book is irresistable. Mead tries to build the foundations of electricity and magnetism anew, and does a fascinating job of it.

There is a lot of history and historiography mixed in with this short book, but I myself find that fascinating. If you're interested in how the currents of thought might have eddied, or where key suggestions were missed, or what from Einstein may have been underappreciated, you'll enjoy this side of the book.

All that said, this book is chewy, and does only a mild amount of hand-holding in walking through the math. This is NOT anybody's first book of mathematical physics - but if you have enjoyed reading books by (e.g.) Feynmann, Misner/Thorne/Wheeler, Herb Kroemer, Andy Grove, Morse/Feshbach, Francon, Ichimaru, Khinchin, Papoulis, Polya, Sapriel, or Wiener, you're part of the natural audience for this book. If you liked "The Elegant Universe" you may love this book (and find some common themes), but this book is more mathematically demanding. On the other hand this is no mere tome, and does not require more than undergraduate competence.

I would have liked to see more visualization aids - some of the concepts in this formulation lend themselves very well to a visual presentation. I'm going to be rereading this book, and I'm really looking forward to expository textbooks which may follow this line of presentation.

If you're in doubt, buy this - it's challenging, but very broad and brilliant, and is not only about electrodynamics.

Successor to Feyman's Red Books.......2004-07-06

From time to time I ask people if there's been anything better than Feyman's "Lectures in Physics," and the answer is generally no, that's about all there is...

Seems to me this beautiful book is at least the start of the current generation's canonical physics text set.

Pioneering Research.......2003-06-27

Carver Meade is a Pioneer. Like Einstein, he recognized that Maxwell's Equations (ME) are not correct because they are based on the assumption that the electron is a point particle. This myth was handed down from the Greek Democritus. Like Milo Wolff before him, Meade deduces that the electron is quantum wave structure, as proposed by Schroedinger. Wolff's book is also sold here at Amazon.com.
Meade uses the properties of a wave structure to provide new equations for the analysis of electronic engineering ciruits - very useful in the design of micro chips. He also shows how the collective behavior of waves is the cause of low-temperature behavior.

Collective Electrodynamics--Carver Mead's book.......2002-12-05

Despite his preface upbraiding physicists for their work of the past 50-75 years, the main text makes reasonable claims based upon well-founded experimental and theoretical results. The book endorses earlier work of Einstein, Feynmann, Reimann, Lorentz, Maxwell, Planck, and others while making computational and conceptual adjustments to accommodate modern experimental results.

Also in the text, Bohr and other die-hard quantum statisticians are continually under attack for their poo-pooing of possible phenomena, algorithms, and concepts behind the observed quantum behavior. Bohr and his clan, apparently, claimed that the statistics made up the whole baseball team of quantum physics--and that we should not, and could not, look further.

In refuting this micro-labotomic approach of Bohr, Dr. Mead makes reference to systems--macroscopic in size--that exhibit quantum behaviors. While he mentions lasers, masers, semiconductors, superconductors, and other systems in the text, the primary results of the book hinge upon experimental results from the field of superconductors. He points out that physics can be split into several areas:

Classical Mechanics explains un-coherent, uncharged systems such as cannon balls, planets, vehicles, etc.
Classical Electrodynamics explains un-coherent, charged systems such as conductors, currents, and their fields.
Thermodynamics explains how macroscopic statistics, such as temperature and entropy, guide the time evolution of systems.
Modern Quantum Mechanics tries to explain coherent, charged systems.

Here 'coherent' refers to quantum coherency, where many particles/atoms march to the same drum such as the photons in a laser, or the electrons in a superconductor, or any isolated one or two particles. Another description of coherency is that the states are quantum entangled; their time-evolution depends upon each other.

The thrust of Carver's book: QM applies to all matter--not just small systems or isolated particles--is well made. He brings up experimental data from superconductors to illustrate that the phenomenon of coherent quantum entanglement can, and does, occur at macroscopic scales; and that such behavior is very quantum. Thus he proves, quite convincingly, that quantum mechanics applies to all coherent systems.

He then closes by making some very important points. (1) He shows that quantum behavior of such systems can be expressed in quantum language (wave function), relativistic language (four-vectors), or electrodynamics (vector potential, scalar potential) in an equivalent fashion. This is important, as it proves that a superconductor is macroscopic, exhibits quantum behavior, and that these quantitative results agree with those found from the other approaches. (2) He makes the point that the quantum and relativistic equations show that electromagnetic phenomena consist of two parts: one traveling forward in time; the other backward in time. Feynmann and others have said this for a long time, and he shows how thermodynamics (or un-coherent behavior) forces what we see as only time-evolution in one direction in un-coherent systems. (3) He illustrates, modeling single atoms as tiny superconducting resonators, that two atoms that are coherently linked will start exchanging energy. This causes an exponential, positive-feedback loop that ends with each atom in a quantum eigenstate. Thus quantum collapse is neither discontinuous, nor instantaneous; and in fact makes a lot of sense. (4) He explains, using four-vectors, that all points on a light-cone are near each other in four space. This point--together with (2)--shows that there's no causality contradiction between relativity and quantum mechanics. For example, he explains that two entangled particles, such as photons light years apart, can affect each other immediately if one falls into an eigenstate, since the four-dimensional distance between them (R1 dot R2) is zero. Although separated in three space, they're neighbors in four space. Through these demonstrations and proofs, he successfully suggests that there is a way to further develop the 'behavior of charged, coherent systems' such that quantum mechanics and relativity will agree--but the conceptual changes he suggests are necessary and must be further developed. Also, he admits that a better, more appropriate mathematical and computational methods will be needed, since the complexity of coherent systems runs as n^2.

Pleasantly, then, the book makes elegant, defensible, mathematical and conceptual steps to resolve some nagging points of understanding. Also, the narrative gives the best introduction to electrodynamics and quantum mechanics that I've ever seen. Since the theoretical criticisms and experimental data are quite valid, his proposed resolutions are eye-opening and valuable. The methods he suggests greatly simply thinking about complicated quantum/classical problems. New approaches for future theoretical research are also suggested. Despite the dark tone in the preface, the book is positive, enlightening, and well anchored to accepted, modern experimental results and theoretical work.

Book Description

This completely revised and corrected new edition provides several new examples and exercises to enable deeper insight in formalism and application of Quantum electrodynamics.
It is a thorough introductory text providing all necessary mathematical tools together with many examples and worked problems. In their presentation of the subject the authors adopt a heuristic approach based on the propagator formalism. The latter is introduced in the first two chapters in both its nonrelativistic and relativistic versions. Subsequently, a large number of scattering and radiation processes involving electrons, positrons, and photons are introduced and their theoretical treatment is presented in great detail. Higher order processes and renormalization are also included. The book concludes with a discussion of two-particle states and the interaction of spinless bosons.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent for self-study - My highest recommendations.......2004-01-29

This book basically covers the same material as chapters 6-9 of the classic "Relativistic Quantum Mechanics" by Bjorken & Drell.
- Propagator
- Basic Quantum Electrodynamical Processes
- The Scattering Matrix in Higher Order (including good discussions of vacuum polarization, electron self-energy and the vertex correction)
- QED of spinless bosons

In addition to this it covers bound systems and strong fields, which are not discussed in B&D. The book also does a good job of working out a lot of the details missing from B&D.

The only minuses are:
-- some of the more advanced topics in B&D are dropped.
-- there are a lot of typos (but the alert reader should spot them easily)

Most accurate theory in physics........2000-02-18

QED is known as the most accurate theory in physics. This text nicely explains the major achievements in QED by Feynmann, Schwniger, and Tomonaga. Important connection among relativities, quantum mechanics, and classical electrodynamics.

The Basics of Spectroscopy (SPIE Tutorial Texts in Optical Engineering Vol. TT49)

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The Basics of Spectroscopy (SPIE Tutorial Texts in Optical Engineering Vol. TT49)
David W. Ball
Manufacturer: SPIE Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 081944104X

Book Description

Spectroscopy--the study of matter using electromagnetic radiation--and its applications as a scientific tool are the focus of this tutorial. Topics covered include the interaction of light with matter, spectrometer fundamentals, quantum mechanics, selection rules, and experimental factors.

Quantum Electrodynamics (Advanced Book Classics)

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feynmans way
The first great Feynman classic
Question
Once More
QED IN NUTSHELL !

Quantum Electrodynamics (Advanced Book Classics)
Richard Phillips Feynman , and Feynman
Manufacturer: Westview Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0201360756

Customer Reviews:

feynmans way.......2001-04-25

I think this is a good supplemental book. it's like his course on physics; you cant learn from it alone; but with a canonical text it adds wonderful insight on a subject. His theory of fundamental processes is out of date (way before tau neutrinos, and there are mistakes in parts); so i would avoid that one. this one I find to be about the level of sophistication of his lectures on gravitation, but explaining field theory. Feynman naturally has a slightly more functional approach than other books of this era. I think it's a good book to keep next to something like peskin and schroeder in ones personal library

The first great Feynman classic.......2001-02-13

This book collects a set of lectures by Feynman on quantum electrodynamics and a few reprints of his papers on the subject.Nowadays it would be a (hard) graduate course. At its time it was written for Feynman's peers. At that time the method developped by him, though he had total control of it, was not complete as far as derivations are concerned. However, each topic was solidly grounded on the basis of specific arguments. This is how things are done. Usually you have a hundred incomplete arguments which, put together, are, so to speak, stronger than a formal demonstration. And, what arguments! What insight this (then) young guy had already!This book is for pleasure! You probably should read it together with some modern text, like Veltman's "Diagrammatica", to get the modern perspective and also to see how little, after all, was changed. A companion book, called "Theory of Fundamental Processes" is also a sterling lecture, for the same reasons. Perhaps even more so.

Question.......2000-08-24

I know two kinds of books on the Quantum Electrodynamics by Richard P. Feynman; "Q.E.D." and this title "Quantum Electrodynamics". Once I owned both. But by my mistake I lost "Quantum Elec...". Rubendoz's review looks like one for "Q.E.D.", a good book for the Physics Student who begins to learn Q.E.D., but also good for the laymen who wants to understand the perspect of the theory.
Now my question: Tell me - since Rubendoz's review confuses me - if this book is a renamed version of the easier - if it is - book, "Q.E.D.", or the formula-prone book, "Quantum Electrodynamics" , to say, the harder book. I wish there were the publisher's review which would make this point clear.
Thanks.

Once More.......2000-05-23

I only had the opportunity to browse around this book. However, I imediately realized that this one was worth reading calmly. Once more Fayman explains this generally abstract subject with his grace and knowledge, making it easier to digest the material. If you have read any of Fayman's book, you know his ways of explaining things are just superb. So, without further explanations, this book it is worth every penny, it worked for me, a Physics student, and it will work for anyone who's interested in this matter.

QED IN NUTSHELL !.......1999-01-05

People reading this book must be safely assumed to be physics oriented guys esp the ones in particle physics. The book is a good introduction for an amateur who is not necessarily a good mathematician cuz this book has surprisingly NO glamorous formulae associated with QED.It doesn't give you in-depth scrutiny of the high-energy world yet it gives you enough to keep you interested all the way. The title can be mis-leading cuz it doesn't really cover extensive knowledge about the field, should've been introductory QED or something on those lines. Anyways should be fun to read iff you want to know the nuances of matter !

Average customer rating:

Great book
Superb overview of the development of QED...
Thorough Coverage of the Pinaccle of 20th Century Physics

QED and the Men Who Made It
Silvan S. Schweber
Manufacturer: Princeton University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0691033277

Book Description

In the 1930s, physics was in a crisis. There appeared to be no way to reconcile the new theory of quantum mechanics with Einstein's theory of relativity. Several approaches had been tried and had failed. In the post-World War II period, four eminent physicists rose to the challenge and developed a calculable version of quantum electrodynamics (QED), probably the most successful theory in physics. This formulation of QED was pioneered by Freeman Dyson, Richard Feynman, Julian Schwinger, and Sin-Itiro Tomonaga, three of whom won the Nobel Prize for their work. In this book, physicist and historian Silvan Schweber tells the story of these four physicists, blending discussions of their scientific work with fascinating biographical sketches.

Setting the achievements of these four men in context, Schweber begins with an account of the early work done by physicists such as Dirac and Jordan, and describes the gathering of eminent theorists at Shelter Island in 1947, the meeting that heralded the new era of QED. The rest of his narrative comprises individual biographies of the four physicists, discussions of their major contributions, and the story of the scientific community in which they worked. Throughout, Schweber draws on his technical expertise to offer a lively and lucid explanation of how this theory was finally established as the appropriate way to describe the atomic and subatomic realms.

Customer Reviews:

Great book.......2002-10-27

Love it so far. Brilliant insight into not just the men behind the theories - but also physics itself.

Superb overview of the development of QED..........2001-09-11

This book is a superb overview of the development of QED. The slant is geared towards the major personalities involved in it's development. The key players of course were: Feynman, Schwinger, Dyson, and Tomonaga. The text is quite detailed and is directed towards the academic community and assumes a cursory knowledge of quantum mechanics. That being the case, I got lost in much of the math. However, I kept at it and got much out of the book. If you are a physics major then this book will be a jewel to own. What an experience to "see" the human mind come up with ideas which at first glance seem impossible but later turn out to be perfectly true. The writing is quite turgid as is the case with books put out by Princeton, but the material is just fantastic. If the math overwhelms you, as it did me, just get the main idea down and forge on. Later, if time and patience permits re-visit the portion that got you lost and try again. I did this but still am lost in many areas. Nevertheless, a great read!!

Thorough Coverage of the Pinaccle of 20th Century Physics.......1999-11-25

This is a very technical and historical review of the creation of the 20th Centuries most accurate of all physics, QED. The work is very complete and besides the mathematics, it provides excellant yet terse backgrounds of the 4 major players: Tomonaga, Schwinger, Feynman and Dyson. The backgounds of these personalities is weaved into their astounding developments leading to QED. This book should not only serve as a historical timepiece, but I beleive it could serve very well as an adjunct to even graduate level physics.

Interacting Electrons and Quantum Magnetism (Graduate Texts in Contemporary Physics)

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good magnetism starting point

Interacting Electrons and Quantum Magnetism (Graduate Texts in Contemporary Physics)
Assa Auerbach
Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0387942866

Book Description

This book emphasizes the role that electron interactions play in the properties of condensed matter. It teaches the use of the powerful nonperturbative techniques that have become available in the last decades to discuss such topics as mixed valence systems, Kondo systems, heavy electrons, high-temperature copper oxide superconductors, the quantum Hall effect, and low-dimensional isotropic magnets. Mathematical derivations are self contained. Appendices provide standard many-body tools including second quantization, Grassmann variables, generating functionals, linear response, correlation functions, Fermi and Bose coherent-states path integrals, Matsubara representation, and the method of steepest descents. There are guided bibliographies and exercises at the end of each chapter.

Customer Reviews:

good magnetism starting point.......2006-05-04

I have to be honest and say that I have to spend time with this book to understand everything, but I think this is one of those books that's worth the effort. AFTER a many body class this book is an appropriate way to foray into magnetism. The first thing i'd do is prove eq 2.9 and read chapters 1-3, just read (having some companion text for this 'easier' material is useful here). Once you are beyond chapter 3 you can start to calculate the results yourself. Auerbach talks about the ferro- and antiferro- magnets and different spin representations, RVBs, order and disoder, etc. There is a discussion of the NLsM and some large-N methods. I found it helpful to pull out original references at times. At the end i think you gain perspective on quantitative tools employed in magnetism, but realise also that this book is a text and therefore an introduction to the field. In that sense, i think the point here is to get some basic principle and learn various methods to go apply to new problems. I dont know any other book like it.

Modern Aspects of Spin Physics (Lecture Notes in Physics)

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Modern Aspects of Spin Physics (Lecture Notes in Physics)

Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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General | Physics | Science | Subjects | Books

Quantum Theory | Physics | Science | Subjects | Books

Book Description

The spin degree of freedom is an intrinsically quantum-mechanical phenomenon, leading to both intriguing applications (such as quantum information storage and processing) and unsolved fundamental issues (such as "where does the proton spin come from"). The present volume investigates central aspects of modern spin physics in the form of extensive lectures on semiconductor spintronics, the spin-pairing mechanism in high- temperature semiconductors, spin in quantum field theory and the nucleon spin.

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