V2500: Quantum Mechanics I
FALL 2019
Instructor: Professor V.P. NAIR
Office: Room J-1320, J-309 B, Marshak
Office hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM
E-mail: vpnair@ccny.cu %6ey.edu" rel="nofollow"> vpnair@ccny.cuny.edu
Webpage: http://nair.ccny.cuny.edu (You will need this to download lecture notes, problem sets, etc.)
Class Schedule: 10:00 AM to 11:40 AM, Tuesdays & Thursdays, Room NAC4/157
Text: R. Shankar, Principles of Quantum Mechanics, Second (Recommended only) Edition, Kluwer Academic Publishers, ISBN 9780306447907
Supplementary Eisberg, R. and Resnick, R., Quantum Physics of Atoms,
(recommended) Book: Molecules, Solids, Nuclei, and Particles, Second Edition
Catalogue description of the course
Historical foundations. The Schroedinger formulation, wave packets, and uncertainty principle. Harmonic oscillator and potential barrier problems. W.K.B. approximation. Operators and eigenfunctions. Central forces and orbital angular momentum. Scattering, Born approximation, partial waves. Linear vector spaces. The Heisenberg formulation. Spin and total angular momentum. Perturbation theory: bound state, time-dependent. Systems of identical particles. Introduction of relativistic quantum mechanics.
V-2500 will cover only the earlier topics given here, V-2600 will complete the set of topics.
Variations
The lectures will follow a slightly different sequence starting with the physics which led to quantum mechanics, followed by a mathematical introduction. A set of notes will be posted on my webpage. Please download and go through the relevant pages before each class.
Grading
There will be two midterm examinations (on October 15, November 12) and a final examination. They will contribute to your final grade with weights of approximately 20%, 20% and 40%, respectively. These will be closed~book exams, but I will give you a formula sheet with all the formulae which I consider will be useful for the exam.
Homework
There will be homework assignments, approximately one set for each week. They will be given out in class, and will also be listed on my website. These will be graded, and they do contribute to your final grade with a weight of 20%. It is very important (for you) that you do these problems. It has almost always been true that students who do not work out the problems find the exams difficult and end up getting a low grade for the course.
Attendance
Regular attendance is very important. There will be variations in my lectures compared to the book, for this reason, attendance is important and you should keep good class notes. If you are absent for an exam, your grade for that exam will be zero. There will be no make-up exams, except in dire medical emergencies, supported by a doctor’s certificate.
Schedule of lectures
A precise schedule of lectures will not be given. Apart from the initial part, the lectures will roughly follow the sequence in my lecture notes, posted on my webpage. Depending on how the class progresses, I will speed up or slow down, as appropriate.
Working out problems will be part of the course, integrated into the lectures. Additional problem sessions will be scheduled when appropriate.
Last Updated: 08/19/2019 14:21