PHYS441: Quantum Physics

Instructor

Vladi Chaloupka, Professor of Physics, PAB room B309, 206-543-8965, vladi@u.washington.edu, office hours before and after class, and by appointment

Required Text:

"Quantum Physics" by Gasiorowicz (3rd ed.)

"Quantum Mechanics" by Yoav Peleg, Reuven Pnini and Elyahu Zaarur (so that you don't think 'Vladi Chaloupka' sounds too exotic ...). This is not your typical textbook: it is part of the Schaum's Outline series: very compact in the presentation of the theory (for the rest you have to come to class) but very rich in solved examples. It comes closest to the way I teach Quantum Mechanics.

Optional texts:

Bransden/Joachain: Quantum mechanics (2nd ed.)

 I used this text last time I taught this course, and covered Chapters 1-6, with some omissions and some additions. Chapter 1 is a very useful recap of Modern Physics.. Very good chapters on various applications of Quantum Physics.

Griffiths: Introduction to Quantum Mechanics. Very popular text, written almost as a transcript of actual lectures.

(EXAMPLE:

".... Physically realizable states correspond to the 'square-integrable' solution to Schroedinger equation.
           But wait a minute! Suppose I have normalized the wave function ..." )

If you like to be talked to, then this is a book for you.

General Notes

This course is a core (required) course for participants in the "MS in Applied Physics" program. Some resulting features of the course may be attractive to a wider audience, including students from outside the Physics Department. Since many of our evening students have been out of school for several years, both this course and the E&M course (PHYS543) are designed to help re-fresh some possibly forgotten math and physics skills. This means that the subject matter is covered "from scratch", and extensive help is available to students who might need it. At the same time, since the audience is more mature and better motivated than typical Junior class, the tempo is brisk, and level is quite rigorous. In short, you can expect to learn a lot (if you are willing to work on it.)

Note: In Summer of 2006, I will be teaching a sequel to this course: PHYS541. This course will be re-designed, with the main new feature being an introduction to Quantum Computing. PHYS 441 will be adjusted to provide a suitable preparation for this.