Introduction to the Basic Concepts of Modern Physics: Special Relativity, Quantum and Statistical Physics

Introduction to Special Relativity.- Michelson-Morley Experiment and Lorentz Transformations.- Relativistic Kinematics.- Introduction to Quantum Physics.-The Photoelectric Effect.- Bohr’s Quantum Theory.- De Broglie’s Interpretation.- Schrodinger’s Equation.- The Potential Barrier.- Quantum Wells and Energy Levels.- The Harmonic Oscillator.- Periodic Potentials and Band Spectra.- The Schrodinger Equation in a Central Potential.- Introduction to the Statistical Theory of Matter.- Thermal Equilibrium by Gibbs’ Method.- The Pressure and the Equation of State.- A Three Level System.- The Grand Canonical Ensemble and the Perfect Quantum Gas.

Carlo Maria Becchi was Professor of Theoretical Physics at the University of Genoa, Italy, from 1976 until his retirement in 2010. He twice served as Chairman of the Physics Faculty at the university and from 1997 to 2003 he was Chairman of the Theory Committee of the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN). Starting in 1971, Professor Becchi undertook a systematic study of renormalization theory, considering in particular the renormalization of symmetries, and he subsequently devoted much attention to the extension of renormalization techniques to various situations, including string theory. In 2009 he jointly received the Dannie Heineman Prize for Mathematical Physics from the American Physical Society and American Institute of Physics for discovery of the Becchi-Rouet-Stora symmetry.

Massimo D’Elia is Associate Professor in the Physics Department at Pisa University, Italy. His research interests include quantum field theory, strong interactions, lattice quantum chromodynamics (QCD), and QCD in extreme conditions. He is the author of 170 publications in the field.