Quantum Theory Of The Solid State

Quantum Theory of the Solid State

Quantum Theory of the Solid State A

Quantum Theory of the Solid State, Part A, describes the concepts and methods, and introduces some of the central problems of the quantum theory of solids. This work is intended to be a single intellectual unit, although for reasons of convenience it has been divided into two parts. Part A contains much of the formalism required for the theoretical study of solids; Part B is oriented toward more specific problems. The present volume includes phenomenological treatments of lattice vibrations and magnetic order; a discussion of symmetry groups; and a description of the properties of one-electron wave functions and the principal techniques for calculating energy levels. Fairly lengthy bibliographies have been included at the end of each chapter to assist readers in making their way through the more specialized periodical literature. This book should be suitable as a textbook for students who have completed a one-year course in quantum mechanics and have some familiarity with the experimental facts of solid state physics. It should also be useful as a reference work.

Quantum Theory of the Solid State

"Quantum Physics of the Solid State: an Introduction" Draft foreword: 26/09/03 If only this book had been available when I was starting out in science! It would have saved me countless hours of struggle in trying to apply the general ideas of the standard solid-state text-books to solve real problems. The fact is that most of the texts stop at the point where the real difficulties begin. The great merit of this book is that it describes in an honest and detailed way what one really has to do in order to understand the multifarious properties of solids in terms of the fundamental physical theory of quantum mechanics. University students of the physical sciences are taught about the fundamental the ories, and know that quantum mechanics, together with relativity, is our basis for understanding the physical world. But the practical difficulties of using quantum mechanics to do anything useful are usually not very well explained. The truth is that the application of quantum theory to achieve our present detailed understand ing of solids has required the development of a large array of mathematical tech niques. This is closely analogous to the challenge faced long ago by theoretical astronomers in trying to apply Newton's equations of motion to the heavens -they too had to develop a battery of theoretical and computational techniques to do cal culations that could be compared with observation.