Fundamentals of Quantum Mechanics

This book is a comprehensive text in the field of quantum mechanics, covering fundamental concepts including the state of a quantum mechanical system, operators, superposition principle and measurement postulate. The notion of an operator and the algebra of operators are introduced with the help of elementary concepts of mathematical analysis. Mathematical tools developed will help readers in understanding the difficulties encountered in classical physics while trying to explain the experimental results involving atomic spectra and other phenomena. The differential equations that arise while solving eigenvalue problems are solved rigorously, to make the text self-sufficient. The solutions are then physically interpreted and explained. The text offers solved examples, analogous and homework problems to help students in solving practical problems of physics requiring quantum mechanical treatment.

Preface; Acknowledgement; Dedication; 1. Introduction; 2. The postulates of quantum mechanics; 3. One-dimensional problems; 4. Algebraic formulation for quantum mechanics; 5. Quantum mechanics in three spatial dimensions; 6. Quantum mechanical theory of orbital angular momentum; 7. Simple magnetic field effects; 8. Quantum mechanical theory of spin angular momentum; 9. Addition of angular momenta; 10. Quantum mechanics of many particle systems; 11. Symmetry and conservation laws; 12. Relativistic generalization; References; Index.

Ajit Kumar is Professor, Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi. He did his integrated M.Sc. (5 year) in theoretical and mathematical physics and Ph.D. in field theory from Moscow in 1977 and 1980, respectively. He was then a post doctoral Fellow at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Dubna, Moscow. His current research is related to the problems of nonlinear optics, solution of non-linear Schrodinger equation in nonlinear optical media, fiber-optic solitons and their switching dynamics and electromagnetic wave propagation in metamaterials. He has been teaching the basic subjects of theoretical physics including classical mechanics, quantum mechanics, electrodynamics, quantum field theory, group theory and applications, and general theory of relativity for the last 28 years. He has carried out collaborative research work at various universities and research institutes in Europe such as Heinrich Heine University (Institute of Theoretical Physics 1), Dusseldorf, Germany, British Telecom Research Laboratories, Ipswich; Technical University of Darmstadt, Germany; Georg-August University (3rd Physical Institute), Gottingen, Germany, Bourgogne University, Dijon, France, Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics, Garching, Munich, Germany and Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, Erlangen, Germany.