Quantum Physics

PHY 2030

This course is an introduction to quantum physics, the history of its discovery and creation, the basic quantum effects (and experiments demonstrating them), the mathematical formalism of quantum theory, and the applications to information, communication, and computation sciences. We will follow a modern approach, motivated by deep conceptual problems, which takes the viewpoint that quantum effects, such as entanglement, are an information resource for communications and computations. This viewpoint is causing a revival of the interest in quantum theory where now the emphasis is on its information content. We will concentrate mostly on finite systems; thus linear algebra and elementary probability theory will suffice. We will introduce states, observables, quantum dynamics, entanglement, no-cloning, etc., and their applications to cryptography, quantum communication, and computing, etc.