2009 Course Handbook
PHYS304: Quantum Physics II
This unit is entirely devoted to quantum mechanics, perhaps the most fundamental of all the theories of modern physics. While its consequences are most readily seen in the microscopic world of elementary particles, atoms and molecules, where quantum mechanics found its first and most familiar applications, the laws of quantum mechanics apply to all physical phenomena occurring on all scales: the universe as a whole is governed by the laws of quantum mechanics. Quantum mechanics is also a theory of information: what information we can gain about the physical world, what the restrictions are on what information we can gain, and how this information can be manipulated.
Quantum information theory is a rapidly growing area with diverse applications to such new developments as quantum computing, quantum teleportation and quantum cryptography, all of which exploit those aspects of the laws of quantum mechanics that are totally at odds with our usual perceptions about the behaviour of the natural world.
PHYS304 deals at a deeper level with the theory and application of quantum mechanics and quantum information. After a formal development of the subject covering such topics as states, observables, time evolution, symmetry and conservation laws, and after reviewing the basic postulates of quantum mechanics, various applications of the theory are discussed. This material is drawn from a broad range of topics which includes the electromagnetic field in quantum mechanics, angular momentum, the theory of identical particles, solid-state physics, Bell's inequalities, entanglement, measurement and further basic concepts of quantum information theory and quantum computing.
| Credit Points: | 3 |
| Contact Hours: | 4 |
| When Offered: | D2 - Day; Offered in the second half-year |
| Staff Contact: | Physics staff |
| Prerequisites: | Permission of Executive Dean of Faculty |
| Corequisites: | |
| NCCWs: | |
| Unit Designations: | Science |
| Assessed As: | Graded |
| Offered By: |
Department of Physics and Engineering |
Timetable Information
For unit timetable information please visit the Timetables@Macquarie Website.