The course provides the tools to treat diffraction and propagation of coherent and partially coherent light fields. In particular, the problem of light propagation in paraxial conditions is addressed, which formally corresponds to the evolution of the wave function of a quantum particle in two dimensions. Techniques are also introduced to address the study of the non-deterministic fields. Some applications based on diffraction phenomena, such as diffractive optics and holography, for the unconventional manipulation of light fields are also presented.
teacher profile teaching materials
- Black body radiation
- Planck's formula
- The photoelectric effect
- The Compton effect
- Rutherford's atomic model
- Bohr's quantum theory
- De Broglie's waves
Fundamentals of Quantum Mechanics
- Basic probability theory
- Schroedinger equation and wave function
- Probabilistic interpretation of the wave function
- Measurement problem and collapse of the wave function
- Stern-Gerlach and Young’s experiments
- Physical quantities and operators
- Eigenvalues and eigenfunctions
- Stationary states
- Principle of superposition
- Uncertainty principle
Applications to unidimensional problems
- The potential well
- The harmonic oscillator
- The potential barrier and tunnel effect
Several-particles systems
- Identical particles: Fermi–Dirac and Bose-Einstein statistics
- classical limit and Maxwell-Boltzmann statistics
- Electrons in a crystal: Bloch's theorem
- Quantum entanglement
- EPR paradox and Bell’s theorem
- Fundamentals of qubits and quantum computation
Programme
The crisis of the classical physics- Black body radiation
- Planck's formula
- The photoelectric effect
- The Compton effect
- Rutherford's atomic model
- Bohr's quantum theory
- De Broglie's waves
Fundamentals of Quantum Mechanics
- Basic probability theory
- Schroedinger equation and wave function
- Probabilistic interpretation of the wave function
- Measurement problem and collapse of the wave function
- Stern-Gerlach and Young’s experiments
- Physical quantities and operators
- Eigenvalues and eigenfunctions
- Stationary states
- Principle of superposition
- Uncertainty principle
Applications to unidimensional problems
- The potential well
- The harmonic oscillator
- The potential barrier and tunnel effect
Several-particles systems
- Identical particles: Fermi–Dirac and Bose-Einstein statistics
- classical limit and Maxwell-Boltzmann statistics
- Electrons in a crystal: Bloch's theorem
- Quantum entanglement
- EPR paradox and Bell’s theorem
- Fundamentals of qubits and quantum computation
Core Documentation
1) D. J. Griffith, "Introduzione alla meccanica quantistica"Reference Bibliography
2) B.H. Bransden and C.J. Joachain, "Quantum Mechanics" 3) M. A. Nielsen and I. L. Chuang, “Quantum computation and quantum information”Attendance
Attendance is optional but highly recommended.Type of evaluation
The exam consists of a written test, which includes open-ended problems and open-ended theory questions, and of an oral interview.