The Principles of Quantum Mechanics

The Principles of Quantum Mechanics is an influential monograph on quantum mechanics written by Paul Dirac and first published by Oxford University Press in 1930.[1] Dirac gives an account of quantum mechanics by "demonstrating how to construct a completely new theoretical framework from scratch"; "problems were tackled top-down, by working on the great principles, with the details left to look after themselves".[2] It leaves classical physics behind after the first chapter, presenting the subject with a logical structure. Its 82 sections contain 785 equations with no diagrams.[2]

This article is about the book by Paul Dirac. For the book by Ramamurti Shankar, see Principles of Quantum Mechanics.
The Principles of Quantum Mechanics
Title page of the first edition
AuthorPaul Dirac
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
SubjectQuantum mechanics
GenresNon-fiction
PublisherOxford University Press
Publication date
1930
Media typePrint
Pages257

Dirac is credited with developing the subject "particularly in Cambridge and Göttingen between 1925–1927" (Farmelo).[2]

History

The first and second editions of the book were published in 1930 and 1935.[3]

In 1947 the third edition of the book was published, in which the chapter on quantum electrodynamics was rewritten particularly with the inclusion of electron-positron creation.[3]

In the fourth edition, 1958, the same chapter was revised, adding new sections on interpretation and applications. Later a revised fourth edition appeared in 1967.[3]

Beginning with the third edition (1947), the mathematical descriptions of quantum states and operators were changed to use the Bra–ket notation, introduced in 1939 and largely developed by Dirac himself [4]

Laurie Brown wrote an article describing the book's evolution through its different editions,[5] and Helge Kragh surveyed reviews by physicists (including Heisenberg, Pauli, and others) from the time of Dirac's book's publication.[6]

Contents
  • The principle of superposition
  • Dynamical variables and observables
  • Representations
  • The quantum conditions
  • The equations of motion
  • Elementary applications
  • Perturbation theory
  • Collision problems
  • Systems containing several similar particles
  • Theory of radiation
  • Relativistic theory of the electron
  • Quantum electrodynamics
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See also

References
  1. "Paul A.M. Dirac – Biography". The Nobel Prize in Physics 1933. Retrieved September 26, 2011. Dirac's publications include ... The Principles of Quantum Mechanics (1930; 3rd ed. 1947).
  2. Farmelo, Graham (June 2, 1995). "Speaking Volumes: The Principles of Quantum Mechanics" (Book review). Times Higher Education Supplement: 20. Retrieved 2011-09-26.
  3. Dalitz, R. H. (1995). The Collected Works of P. A. M. Dirac: Volume 1: 1924–1948. Cambridge University Press. pp. 453–454. ISBN 9780521362313.
  4. PAM Dirac (1939). "A new notation for quantum mechanics". Mathematical Proceedings of the Cambridge Philosophical Society. 35 (3): 416–418. Bibcode:1939PCPS...35..416D. doi:10.1017/S0305004100021162.
  5. Brown, L.M. (2006), "Paul A.M. Dirac's The Principles of Quantum Mechanics" (PDF), Physics in Perspective, 8 (4): 381–407, Bibcode:2006PhP.....8..381B, doi:10.1007/s00016-006-0276-4
  6. Helge Kragh (2013), Paul Dirac and The Principles of Quantum Mechanics, Research and Pedagogy, Studies 2: A History of Quantum Physics through Its Textbooks
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