Quantum Physics - A First Encounter

Quantum physics is often perceived as a weird and abstract theory, which physicists must use in order to make correct predictions. But many recent experiments have shown that the weirdness of the theory simply mirrors the weirdness of phenomena: it is Nature itself, and not only our description of it, that behaves in an astonishing way. This book selects those, among these typical quantum phenomena, whose rigorous description requires neither the formalism, nor an important background in physics. The first part of the book deals with the phenomenon of single-particle interference, covering the historical questions of wave-particle duality, objective randomness and the boundary between the quantum and the classical world, but also the recent idea of quantum cryptography. The second part introduces the modern theme of entanglement, by presenting two-particle interference phenomena and discussing Bell's inequalities. A concise review of the main interpretations of quantum physics is provided.

ISBN 0198570473   DEWEY edition DC22 ISBN13 9780198570479 (What's this?)   Pages 144 Publisher Oxford University Press   Volumes 1 Imprint Oxford University Press   Weight (grammes) 266 Format Hardback   Published in Oxford Publication date 05 Jan 2006   Height (mm) 205 Translator Rachael Thew   Width (mm) 135 Library of Congress 2005020818   Spine width (mm) 13 DEWEY 530.12   Academic level Professional / Scholarly

		Foreword by Alain Aspect
1		At the heart of the problem		3
2		Let's step back		12
3		Dimensions and boundaries		24
4		Authority contradicted		37
5		A nice idea		45
6		Indistinguishability at a distance		57
7		On the origin of correlations		67
8		Orsay, Innsbruck, Geneva		81
9		Attempts at explanation		89
10		In my end is my beginning		100

Overall though, for a quick (100pp) introduction to some of the more esoteric aspects of Quantum Physics for someone without any prior knowledge of physics training, the book is superb. J.Garibaldi, Journal of the Operational Research Society (2007) 58

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