Quantum Mechanics

IUCAA - NCRA Graduate School

01 August - 23 September 2016

Things to remember:

• To contact me any time, remember that my office number in NCRA is F236; the phone number is (020) 25719270. In case you want to contact me and do not find me in office, send me an email to tirth-at-ncra-dot-tifr-dot-res-dot-in.
• Any information/updates/news about the course will be put up at the webpage http://www.ncra.tifr.res.in:8081/~tirth/Teaching/QM/index.html. Make sure you check the webpage periodically.
  
• The course is supposed to be consisting of 14 contact hours. The lectures will be held at the rate of 3 lectures per week, so that they are over by 13 September (accounting for any loss of lectures due to holidays etc).
• There will be three take-home assignments and one final examination which will be used for evaluating the course.
• The take-home assignments would be distributed to you on 9 August, 23 August and 8 September, respectively. You will get one week to return them back.
• The final examination is tentatively scheduled on 20 September 14:30 - 17:00.
• You will be allowed to consult your class notes during the final examination.
• The evaluation procedure for the course is as follows:
  • If you get 40% or less in the final examination, you will fail the course irrespective of how well you have performed in the take-home assignments. In this case, your final score will be equal to the score of the final exam.
  • If you score more than 40% in the final examination and your average score in the take-home assignments is greater than that in the final examination, then your final average score will be computed giving 50% weightage to the final exam and 50% to the take-home assignments.
  • If you score more than 40% in the final examination and your average score in the take-home assignments is less than that in the final examination, then your final average score will be equal to the score of the final exam.

Course Outline:

• Review of basic quantum mechanics
• Single-electron atoms
• Spin angular momentum
• Perturbation theory
• Radiative transitions
• Fine and hyperfine structures

Reading List:

• David J. Griffiths (2005), Introduction to Quantum Mechanics, Pearson Education
• R. Shankar (1994), Principles of Quantum Mechanics, Plenum Press
• B. H. Brandsen & C. J. Joachen (1983), Physics of atoms and molecules, Longman Scientific & Technical, Chaps 1-5
• J. J. Sakurai (1994), Modern Quantum Mechanics, Addison-Wesley Publishing Company
• Frank H. Shu (1991), The Physics of Astrophysics (Volume I: Radiation), University Science Books, Part III