This engaging text takes the reader along the trail of light from Newton's particles to Einstein's relativity. Like the best detective stories, it presents clues and encourages the reader to draw conclusions before the answers are revealed. The first seven chapters cover the behavior of light, Newton's particle theory, waves and an electromagnetic wave theory of light, the photon, and wave-particle duality. Baierlein goes on to develop the special theory of relativity, showing how time dilation and length contraction are consequences of the two simple principles underlying the theory. An extensive chapter derives the equation E = mc2 clearly from first principles and then explores its consequences.

Suitable for both undergraduates and graduates, this textbook provides an up-to-date, accessible introduction to thermal physics. The material provides a comprehensive understanding of thermodynamics, statistical mechanics, and kinetic theory, and has been extensively tested in the classroom by the author who is an experienced teacher. This book begins with a clear review of fundamental ideas and goes on to construct a conceptual foundation of four linked elements: entropy and the Second Law, the canonical probability distribution, the partition function, and the chemical potential. This foundation is used throughout the book to help explain new topics and exciting recent developments such as Bose-Einstein condensation and critical phenomena. The highlighting of key equations, summaries of essential ideas, and an extensive set of problems of varying degrees of difficulty will allow readers to fully grasp both the basic and current aspects of the subject. A solutions manual is available for instructors. This book is an invaluable textbook for students in physics and astronomy.