Professor Manuel Drees

Lectures

WS 21/22:

Advanced Quantum Theory (physics606)

Time and Place : Monday, 12:15 to 14:00, and Wednesday, 13:15 to 14:00, both times HS 1, PI (i.e., in the big lecture hall inside the PI).

First Lecture: October 11, 2021.

Last Lecture: February 2, 2022.

Tutorials: Main organiser: Rahul Mehra (rmehra "at" physik.uni-bonn.de).
Tutors:
  Armindokht Afsharipour (s6arafsh "at" uni-bonn.de)
  Rishabh Bubna (rishabh.bubna12 "at" gmail.com)
  Mohamed Ghoneim (s6moghon "at" uni-bonn.de)
  Anubhav Gupta (anubhav1201.gupta "at" outlook.com)
  Fiona Ann Jolly (s6fiannj "at" uni-bonn.de)
  Aristotelis Koutsikos (s6arkout "at" uni-bonn.de)
  Yong Sheng Koay (s6yokoay "at" uni-bonn.de)
  Mritunjay Tyagi (s6mrtyag "at" uni-bonn.de)
  Murillo Vellasco (murillovellasco "at" gmail.com)
First session : In the second week of classes.
The homework problems can be found here. They will also be handed out in class every Monday; the solutions of last week's problems will also be collected in the break of the Monday class, so please bring your solutions with you!
The figures shown on the projector during class can be found here.

First exam: Monday, February 14, 9:00 to 12:00, in the WP Lecture Hall.
Second exam: Monday, March 28, 9:00 to 12:00, in the WP Lecture Hall.

Zoom link for the lecture: Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 924 3711 6882
Passcode: 167047
One tap mobile: +496938079883,,92437116882#,,,,*167047# Germany +496938079884,,92437116882#,,,,*167047# Germany
Please note that this link will be active only during class time (Mondays between 12 o'clock noon and 2 p.m., Wednesdays between 1 and 2 p.m.), although for technical reasons you can enter any time (Zoom doesn't seem to allow scheduling a recurring meeting with two different times slots per week).

Corona rules: The lecture will be held in person in the lecture hall; it will simultaneously be streamed via the above Zoom link. Only people who have been vaccinated against CoViD-19, can prove to have recovered from it, or can show a negative CoViD-19 test that is not older than 48 hours, will be allowed into the lecture hall. (This includes myself: I received my second shot of vaccine in mid-August.) Note that only people who received a vaccine that is admitted in Germany count as vaccinated; currently these are four vaccines, developed by AstraZeneca, Biontech/Pfizer, Johnson&Johnson and Moderna. This means that people who received a vaccine developed in China, Russia or elsewhere currently do not count as vaccinated. (Fortunately students who were vaccinated with a different vaccine can still be tested for free, at least until the end of this year. Most people will have to pay for their tests starting October 11.) I therefore urge you to get vaccinated with one of the four vaccines listed above asap! (Getting vaccinated is now very easy in Germany; there are many places where you can get vaccinated for free without first having to make an appointment. I don't know how easy it is to get into Germany right now if you're not vaccinated, though.)
Two tutors will check at the two entrances of the lecture hall that only people who are vaccinated or tested enter the hall. Please have your certificate ready when entering the lecture hall; we accept both paper and electronic certificates (the latter on your phone).
Please note that you need to wear a face mask inside all university buildings. Once you've reached your place in the lecture hall, you may (but need not) take off your mask.
Note also that exactly the same rules apply to the in-person tutorials.
People who manage to enter the lecture hall, or tutorial room, although they are neither vaccinated, recovered or tested can be fined up to 25,000 Euro.
Tutorials will take place either purely online or purely in-person, the latter being the preferred option. There will nevertheless be at least one purely online group. The other groups will not be streamed or anything, although you can of course contact your tutor (e.g. with physics questions) by e-mail.
Note that this is the current state of planning. If the number of CoViD patients admitted to hospital rises dramatically, further restrictions may be imposed; on the other hand, Denmark -- our neighbour to the North -- just lifted all CoViD restrictions.
From October 18 you'll have to opportunity to get a plastic ID card with your photo and an RFID chip, which certifies that your vaccinated or recovered. (I'll get such a card as well.) This will speed up the checking at the entrances, and at the same time make it more secure (because of the photo).

The online material will (mostly) be provided via eCampus, so please register for this course on the eCampus system! (You need a login ID from our university for this end, which in turn you can get only after enrolling here.)
Moreover, if you want to attend the online tutorial, please sign up on eCampus for that as well; alternatively, sign up for one of the in-person time slots. Note that you can only join either an in-person or an online tutorial group. Depending on the number of students who sign up for the online option, there might be several such groups.

Only students who have done at least 50% of the homework of this class will be admitted to the final exam! The solution need not be perfected in order to be counted, but you must have made a serious attempt at least. Up to two people (but no more!) may sign one set of solutions. However, it is crucial that all students do in fact work on these problems themselves; otherwise the chance of passing the final exam is close to nil. Note also that you will be expected to present your solution to the other members in your tutorial group, at the request of the tutor.

The lecture is aimed at first year Master students, as well as advanced Bachelor students who have already taken the class on introductory quantum mechanics. Bonner Studierenden, die sich für Theorie interessieren, wird empfohlen, die AQT bereits im 5. Semester zu hören, sodass im 6. Semester die QFT1 belegt werden kann; dies erleichtert den Zugang zum Material der einführenden Theorie-Vorlesungen im Master Studium.

Outline:
1) Review of Quantum Mechanics
2) Transformations and Symmetries
3) Path integrals
4) Time dependent perturbation theory
5) Scattering theory
6) Second quantisation
7) Relativistic Quantum Mechanics

Literature:
Shankar, Principles of Quantum Mechanics , is a modern, single volume treatment, starting from the basics, with emphasis on the path integral formulation.
Schwabl, Advanced Quantum Mechanics, (auch auf Deutsch erhältlich) treats many-body systems and relativistic wave equations, but does not use the path integral. Time dependent perturbation theory and scattering theory are treated in the book Quanumtum Mechanics by the same author.
Volumes 3 and 4 of the series by Landau and Lifshitz give a very comprehensive treatment of the material, at a quite advanced level (but not using path integrals).
Schiff, Quantum Mechanics , is another, somewhat older, comprehensive treatment of the field, which however does not treat path integrals.
Relativistic Quantum Mechanics is also treated in the introductory chapters of many text books on quantum field theory.

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