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Books > Science & Mathematics > Physics > Quantum physics (quantum mechanics)
This book addresses the theoretical foundations and the main
physical consequences of electromagnetic interaction, generally
considered to be one of the four fundamental interactions in
nature, in a mathematically rigorous yet straightforward way. The
major focus is on the unifying features shared by classical
electrodynamics and all other fundamental relativistic classical
field theories. The book presents a balanced blend of derivations
of phenomenological predictions from first principles on the one
hand, and concrete applications on the other. Further, it
highlights the internal inconsistencies of classical
electrodynamics, and addresses and resolves often-ignored critical
issues, such as the dynamics of massless charged particles, the
infinite energy of the electromagnetic field, and the limits of the
Green's function method. Presenting a rich, multilayered, and
critical exposition on the electromagnetic paradigm underlying the
whole Universe, the book offers a valuable resource for researchers
and graduate students in theoretical physics alike.
The book focuses on advanced computer algebra methods and special
functions that have striking applications in the context of quantum
field theory. It presents the state of the art and new methods for
(infinite) multiple sums, multiple integrals, in particular Feynman
integrals, difference and differential equations in the format of
survey articles. The presented techniques emerge from
interdisciplinary fields: mathematics, computer science and
theoretical physics; the articles are written by mathematicians and
physicists with the goal that both groups can learn from the other
field, including most recent developments. Besides that, the
collection of articles also serves as an up-to-date handbook of
available algorithms/software that are commonly used or might be
useful in the fields of mathematics, physics or other sciences.
Is it possible to approach quantum theory in a 'therapeutic' vein
that sees its foundational problems as arising from mistaken
conceptual presuppositions? The book explores the prospects for
this project and, in doing so, discusses such fascinating issues as
the nature of quantum states, explanation in quantum theory, and
'quantum non-locality'.
This monograph offers a concise overview of the theoretical
description of various collective phenomena in condensed matter
physics. These effects include the basic electronic structure in
solid state physics, lattice vibrations, superconductivity,
light-matter interaction and more advanced topics such as
martensitic transistions.
Contents: Acknowledgements Introduction 1.Is it Possible to be a Realist About Quantum Mechanics? 2. Quantum Theory and the Logic of Anti-Realism 3. Bell, Bohm and the EPR Debate: a case for nonlocal realism 4. Quantum Worlds Without End: the multiverse according to Deutsch 5. Should Philosophers take Lessons from Quantum Theorists? 6. Putnam's Progress: quantum theory and the flight from realism 7. Can Logic be Quantum-Relativised? Putman, Dummett and the 'Great Quantum Muddle' 8. From Copenhagen to the Stars: some ways of quantum worldmaking Index
New Edition: Introductory Quantum Physics and Relativity (2nd
Edition)This book is based on the lecture courses taught by
Dunningham and Vedral at the University of Leeds. The book contains
all the necessary material for quantum physics and relativity in
the first two years of a typical physics degree course. The choice
of topics complies fully with the Institute of Physics guidelines,
but the coverage also includes more interesting and up-to-date
applications, such as Bose condensation and quantum teleportation.
The book describes state-of-the-art advances in simulators and
emulators for quantum computing. It introduces the main concepts of
quantum computing, defining q-bits, explaining the parallelism
behind any quantum computation, describing measurement of the
quantum state of information and explaining the process of quantum
bit entanglement, collapsed state and cloning. The book reviews the
concept of quantum unitary, binary and ternary quantum operators as
well as the computation implied by each operator. It provides
details of the quantum processor, providing its architecture, which
is validated via execution simulation of some quantum instructions.
This book confirms noncommutative geometry as an increasingly
useful tool for the description of intricate condensed matter
phenomena. It describes the striking progress recently made in
gathering all the interactions and fields of the standard model
into a non-commutative geometry on a simple internal space.
Coverage also details the very recent technique of renormalization
of quantum field theories on non-commutative space-time.
This edited volume examines aspects of the mind/consciousness that
are relevant to the interpretations of quantum mechanics. In it, an
international group of contributors focus on the possible
connections between quantum mechanics and consciousness. They look
at how consciousness can help us with quantum mechanics as well as
how quantum mechanics can contribute to our understanding of
consciousness. For example, what do different interpretations aimed
at solving the measurement problem in quantum mechanics tell us
about the nature of consciousness, such as von Neumann's
interpretation? Each interpretation has, associated to it, a
corresponding metaphysical framework that helps us think about
possible "models" of consciousness. Alternatively, what does the
nature of consciousness tell us about the role of the observer and
time reversibility in the measurement process? The book features 20
papers on contemporary approaches to quanta and mind. It brings
together the work of scholars from different disciplines with
diverse views on the connections between quanta and mind, ranging
from those who are supportive of a link between consciousness and
quantum physics to those who are very skeptical of such link.
Coverage includes such topics as free will in a quantum world,
contextuality and causality, mind and matter interaction, quantum
panpsychism, the quantum and quantum-like brain, and the role of
time in brain-mind dynamics.
This book introduces the quantum mechanical framework to
information retrieval scientists seeking a new perspective on
foundational problems. As such, it concentrates on the main notions
of the quantum mechanical framework and describes an innovative
range of concepts and tools for modeling information representation
and retrieval processes. The book is divided into four chapters.
Chapter 1 illustrates the main modeling concepts for information
retrieval (including Boolean logic, vector spaces, probabilistic
models, and machine-learning based approaches), which will be
examined further in subsequent chapters. Next, chapter 2 briefly
explains the main concepts of the quantum mechanical framework,
focusing on approaches linked to information retrieval such as
interference, superposition and entanglement. Chapter 3 then
reviews the research conducted at the intersection between
information retrieval and the quantum mechanical framework. The
chapter is subdivided into a number of topics, and each description
ends with a section suggesting the most important reference
resources. Lastly, chapter 4 offers suggestions for future
research, briefly outlining the most essential and promising
research directions to fully leverage the quantum mechanical
framework for effective and efficient information retrieval
systems. This book is especially intended for researchers working
in information retrieval, database systems and machine learning who
want to acquire a clear picture of the potential offered by the
quantum mechanical framework in their own research area. Above all,
the book offers clear guidance on whether, why and when to
effectively use the mathematical formalism and the concepts of the
quantum mechanical framework to address various foundational issues
in information retrieval.
This thesis makes significant advances towards an understanding of
superconductivity in the cuprate family of unconventional,
high-temperature superconductors. Even though the high-temperature
superconductors were discovered over 35 years ago, there is not yet
a general consensus on an acceptable theory of superconductivity in
these materials. One of the early proposals suggested that
collective magnetic excitations of the conduction electrons could
lead them to form pairs, which in turn condense to form the
superconducting state at a critical temperature Tc. Quantitative
calculations of Tc using experimental data were, however, not
available to verify the applicability of this magnetic mechanism.
In this thesis, the author constructed an angle-resolved
photoemission apparatus that could provide sufficiently accurate
data of the electronic excitation spectra of samples in the normal
state, data which was furthermore unusually devoid of any surface
contamination. The author also applied the Bethe-Salpeter method to
his uncommonly pristine and precise normal state data, and was able
to predict the approximate superconducting transition temperatures
of different samples. This rare combination of experiment with
sophisticated theoretical calculations leads to the conclusion that
antiferromagnetic correlations are a viable candidate for the
pairing interaction in the cuprate superconductors.
This book investigates Lorentzian structures in the
four-dimensional space-time, supplemented either by a covector
field of the time-direction or by a scalar field of the global
time. Furthermore, it proposes a new metrizable model of gravity.
In contrast to the usual General Relativity theory, where all ten
components of the symmetric pseudo-metric are independent
variables, the gravity model presented here essentially depends
only on a single four-covector field, and is restricted to have
only three-independent components. However, the author proves that
the gravitational field, governed by the proposed model and
generated by some massive body, resting and spherically symmetric
in some coordinate system, is given by a pseudo-metric that
coincides with the well known Schwarzschild metric from General
Relativity. The Maxwell equations and electrodynamics are also
investigated in the framework of the proposed model. In particular,
the covariant formulation of electrodynamics of moving dielectrics
and para/diamagnetic media is derived.
After about a century of success, physicists feel the need to
probe the limits of validity of special-relativity base theories.
This book is the outcome of a special seminar held on this topic.
The authors gather in a single volume an extensive collection of
introductions and reviews of the various facets involved, and also
includes detailed discussion of philosophical and historical
aspects.
Covers the State of the Art in Superfluidity and Superconductivity
Superfluid States of Matter addresses the phenomenon of
superfluidity/superconductivity through an emergent, topologically
protected constant of motion and covers topics developed over the
past 20 years. The approach is based on the idea of separating
universal classical-field superfluid properties of matter from the
underlying system's "quanta." The text begins by deriving the
general physical principles behind superfluidity/superconductivity
within the classical-field framework and provides a deep
understanding of all key aspects in terms of the dynamics and
statistics of a classical-field system. It proceeds by explaining
how this framework emerges in realistic quantum systems, with
examples that include liquid helium, high-temperature
superconductors, ultra-cold atomic bosons and fermions, and nuclear
matter. The book also offers several powerful modern approaches to
the subject, such as functional and path integrals. Comprised of 15
chapters, this text: Establishes the fundamental macroscopic
properties of superfluids and superconductors within the paradigm
of the classical matter field Deals with a single-component neutral
matter field Considers fundamentals and properties of
superconductors Describes new physics of superfluidity and
superconductivity that arises in multicomponent systems Presents
the quantum-field perspective on the conditions under which
classical-field description is relevant in bosonic and fermionic
systems Introduces the path integral formalism Shows how Feynman
path integrals can be efficiently simulated with the worm algorithm
Explains why nonsuperfluid (insulating) ground states of regular
and disordered bosons occur under appropriate conditions Explores
superfluid solids (supersolids) Discusses the rich dynamics of
vortices and various aspects of superfluid turbulence at T 0
Provides account of BCS theory for the weakly interacting Fermi gas
Highlights and analyzes the most crucial developments that has led
to the current understanding of superfluidity and superconductivity
Reviews the variety of superfluid and superconducting systems
available today in nature and the laboratory, as well as the states
that experimental realization is currently actively pursuing
This thesis addresses in a very new and elegant way several
measurements and the extraction of so-called double parton
scattering. The new and elegant way lies in the combination of
measurements and a very smart extraction of double parton
scattering results, which is easy to apply and overcomes many of
the technical difficulties of older methods. Many new phenomena in
particle physics can be observed when particles are collided at the
highest energies; one of the highlights in recent years was the
discovery of the Higgs boson at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN.
Understanding the production mechanism of the Higgs boson at the
LHC requires detailed knowledge of the physics of proton-proton
collisions. When the density of partons in the protons becomes
large, there is a non-negligible probability that more than one
parton participates in the interaction and the so-called double
parton scattering becomes important. In some cases very particular
final state signatures can be observed, which can be regarded as an
indication of such double partonic scattering and where the
different interactions can be separated. Such multiple partonic
interactions play an important role when precise predictions from
known processes are required.
Quantum measurement (Le., a measurement which is sufficiently
precise for quantum effects to be essential) was always one of the
most impor tant points in quantum mechanics because it most
evidently revealed the difference between quantum and classical
physics. Now quantum measure ment is again under active
investigation, first of all because of the practical necessity of
dealing with highly precise and complicated measurements. The
nature of quantum measurement has become understood much bet ter
during this new period of activity, the understanding being
expressed by the concept of decoherence. This term means a physical
process lead ing from a pure quantum state (wave function) of the
system prior to the measurement to its state after the measurement
which includes classical elements. More concretely, decoherence
occurs as a result of the entangle ment of the measured system with
its environment and results in the loss of phase relations between
components of the wave function of the measured system. Decoherence
is essentially nothing else than quantum measurement, but
considered from the point of view of its physical mechanism and
resolved in time. The present book is devoted to the two concepts
of quantum measure ment and decoherence and to their interrelation,
especially in the context of continuous quantum measurement."
Higher dimensional theories have attracted much attention because
they make it possible to reduce much of physics in a concise,
elegant fashion that unifies the two great theories of the 20th
century: Quantum Theory and Relativity. This book provides an
elementary description of quantum wave equations in higher
dimensions at an advanced level so as to put all current
mathematical and physical concepts and techniques at the reader's
disposal. A comprehensive description of quantum wave equations in
higher dimensions and their broad range of applications in quantum
mechanics is provided, which complements the traditional coverage
found in the existing quantum mechanics textbooks and gives
scientists a fresh outlook on quantum systems in all branches of
physics.
In Parts I and II the basic properties of the SO(n) group are
reviewed and basic theories and techniques related to wave
equations in higher dimensions are introduced. Parts III and IV
cover important quantum systems in the framework of
non-relativistic and relativistic quantum mechanics in terms of the
theories presented in Part II. In particular, the Levinson theorem
and the generalized hypervirial theorem in higher dimensions, the
Schrodinger equation with position-dependent mass and the
Kaluza-Klein theory in higher dimensions are investigated. In this
context, the dependence of the energy levels on the dimension is
shown. Finally, Part V contains conclusions, outlooks and an
extensive bibliography."
This monograph deals with the interrelationship between chemistry
and physics, and especially the role played by quantum chemistry as
a theory in between these two disciplines. The author uses
structuralist approach to explore the overlap between the two
sciences, looking at their theoretical and ontological borrowings
as well as their continuity. The starting point of this book is
that there is at least a form of unity between chemistry and
physics, where the reduction relation is conceived as a special
case of this unity. However, matters are never concluded so simply
within philosophy of chemistry, as significant problems exist
around a number of core chemical ideas. Specifically, one cannot
take the obvious success of quantum theories as outright support
for a reductive relationship. Instead, in the context of a suitably
adapted Nagelian framework for reduction, modern chemistry's
relationship to physics is constitutive. The results provided by
quantum chemistry, in partic ular, have significant consequences
for chemical ontology. This book is ideal for students, scholars
and academics from the field of Philosophy of Science, and
particularly for those with an interest in Philosophy of Chemistry
and Physics.
In the past decade, there has been a sudden and vigorous
development in a number of research areas in mathematics and
mathematical physics, such as theory of operator algebras, knot
theory, theory of manifolds, infinite dimensional Lie algebras and
quantum groups (as a new topics), etc. on the side of mathematics,
quantum field theory and statistical mechanics on the side of
mathematical physics. The new development is characterized by very
strong relations and interactions between different research areas
which were hitherto considered as remotely related. Focussing on
these new developments in mathematical physics and theory of
operator algebras, the International Oji Seminar on Quantum
Analysis was held at the Kansai Seminar House, Kyoto, JAPAN during
June 25-29, 1992 by a generous sponsorship of the Japan Society for
the Promotion of Science and the Fujihara Foundation of Science, as
a workshop of relatively small number of (about 50) invited
participants. This was followed by an open Symposium at RIMS,
described below by its organizer, A. Kishimoto. The Oji Seminar
began with two key-note addresses, one by V.F.R. Jones on Spin
Models in Knot Theory and von Neumann Algebras and by A. Jaffe on
Where Quantum Field Theory Has Led. Subsequently topics such as
Subfactors and Sector Theory, Solvable Models of Statistical
Mechanics, Quantum Field Theory, Quantum Groups, and
Renormalization Group Ap proach, are discussed. Towards the end, a
panel discussion on Where Should Quantum Analysis Go? was held."
Making Sense of Inner Sense
"'Terra cognita'" is "terra incognita." It is difficult to find
someone not taken abackand fascinated by the incomprehensible but
indisputable fact: there are material systems which are aware of
themselves. Consciousness is self-cognizing code. During "homo
sapiens's" relentness and often frustrated search for
self-understanding various theories of consciousness have been and
continue to be proposed. However, it remains unclear whether and at
what level the problems of consciousness and intelligent thought
can be resolved. Science's greatest challenge is to answer the
fundamental question: what precisely does a cognitive state amount
to in physical terms?
Albert Einstein insisted that the fundamental ideas of science are
essentially simple and can be expressed in a language
comprehensible to everyone. When one thinks about the complexities
which present themselves in modern physics and even more so in the
physics of life, one may wonder whether Einstein really meant what
he said. Are we to consider the fundamental problem of the mind,
whose understanding seems to lie outside the limits of the mind, to
be essentially simple too? Knowledge is neither automatic nor
universally deductive. Great new ideas are typically
counterintuitive and outrageous, and connecting them by simple
logical steps to existing knowledge is often a hard undertaking.
The notion of a tensor was needed to provide the general theory of
relativity; the notion of entropy had to be developed before we
could get full insight into the laws of thermodynamics; the notice
of information bit is crucial for communication theory, just as the
concept of a Turing machine is instrumental in the deep
understanding of a computer. To understand something, consciousness
must reach an adequate intellectual level, even more so in order to
understand itself. Reality is full of unending mysteries, the true
explanation of which requires very technical knowledge, often
involving notions not given directly to intuition. Even though the
entire content and the results of this study are contained in the
eight pages of the mathematical abstract, it would be unrealistic
and impractical to suggest that anyone can gain full insight into
the theory that presented here after just reading abstract.
In our quest for knowledge we are exploring the remotest areas of
the macrocosm and probing the invisible particles of the microcosm,
from tiny neutrinos and strange quarks to black holes and the Big
Bang. But the greatest mystery is very close to home: the greatest
mystery is human consciousness. The question before us is whether
the logical brain has evolved to a conceptual level where it is
able to understand itself.
Offers a whistle-stop tour through the early part of the 20th
century when the founding fathers of quantum theory forever altered
the frontiers of human thought Provides an example-filled
interpretation of the theory, its applications, and its pinnacle in
quantum field theory (QFT), so crucial in shaping ideas about the
nature of reality Separates fact from speculation regarding quantum
physics' ability to provide a starting point for philosophical
queries into ultimate understanding and the limits of science
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