The Quantum Mechanics Solver

Professor Jean-Louis Basdevant is a High energy physicist, author of physics textbooks and science history books. A former student of Ecole Normale Supérieure, he was from 1975 to 2005 professor of physics at the Ecole Polytechnique, where he taught quantum physics to generations of students, and also chaired the physics department. In research, his work focused on the three-body problem in quantum mechanics, elementary particles, quantum field theory and astrophysics.

Professor Jean Dalibard is a professor at Collège de France and a member of the Laboratoire Kastler Brossel. He was a professor at Ecole Polytechnique from 1989 to 2015, and taught quantum physics, statistical physics and quantum optics. His current research is devoted to the properties of ultracold quantum matter, like Bose-Einstein condensates and superfluids. He is a member of the French Academy of Sciences.

This textbook presents problems with detailed solutions showing how to apply quantum theory to modern physics. The text is divided in three parts, the first dealing with elementary particles, nuclei and atoms, the second presents quantum entanglement and measurement. Finally complex systems are examinated in depth. The aim of the text is to guide the student towards applying quantum mechanics to research problems. Advanced undergraduates and graduate students will find a rich and challenging source for improving their skills.

This new edition has been extended with sections on neutrino oscillations, quantized vortices in Bose-Einstein condensates, quantum correlations in multi-particle systems, Bloch oscillations in periodic lattices and non-destructive quantum measurements.

Part I Elementary Particles, Nuclei and Atoms.- 1 Matter-wave Interferences with Molecules.- 2 Neutron Interferometry.- 3 Analysis of a Stern-Gerlach Experiment.- 4 Spectroscopic Measurements on a Neutron Beam.- 5 Measuring the Electron Magnetic Moment Anomaly.- 6 Atomic Clocks.- 7 The Spectrum of Positronium.- 8 Neutrino Transformations in the Sun.- 9 The Hydrogen Atom in Crossed Fields.- 10 Energy Loss of Ions in Matter.- Part II Quantum Entanglement and Measurement.- 11 The EPR Problem and Bell's Inequality.- 12 Quantum Correlations in a Multi-Particle System.- 13 A Non-Destructive Bomb Detector.- 14 Direct Observation of Field Quantization.- 15 Schrödinger's Cat.- 16 Quantum Cryptography.- 17 Ideal Quantum Measurement.- 18 The Quantum Eraser.- 19 A Quantum Thermometer.- 20 Laser Cooling and Trapping.- Part III Complex Systems.- 21 Exact Results for the Three-Body Problem.- 22 Properties of a Bose-Einstein Condensate.- 23 Quantized Vortices.- 24 Motion in a Periodic Potential and Bloch Oscillations.- 25 Magnetic Excitons.- 26 A Quantum Box.- 27 Colored Molecular Ions.- 28 Hyperfine Structure in Electron Spin Resonance.- 29 Probing Matter with Positive Muons.- 30 Quantum Reflection of Atoms from a Surface.- Part IV Appendix.- 31 Memento of Quantum Mechanics.