Better than most, 08 May 2008
It is a pity this book has not been written with a consistent level of care and attention to detail (as regards exposition, language); otherwise it would have been splendid. The overall plan and the emphasis on physics is excellent. There is a lot in this book which you would not easily find in other sources. In particular the exercises are very well done as miniprojects containing substantial further topics. There is an element of trendiness in the title: look up "Entropy" or "Order parameter" in the index and you'll find lots of page references, as behooves key terms appearing in the book's title; but look up "complexity" and you are referred to a series of exercises; one feels "complexity" was added to the title for want of a sexy buzzword that would distinguish this from any number of other stat mechs books.

Better than most, 08 May 2008
It is a pity this book has not been written with a consistent level of care and attention to detail (as regards exposition, language); otherwise it would have been splendid. The overall plan and the emphasis on physics is excellent. There is a lot in this book which you would not easily find in other sources. In particular the exercises are very well done as miniprojects containing substantial further topics. There is an element of trendiness in the title: look up "Entropy" or "Order parameter" in the index and you'll find lots of page references, as behooves key terms appearing in the book's title; but look up "complexity" and you are referred to a series of exercises; one feels "complexity" was added to the title for want of a sexy buzzword that would distinguish this from any number of other stat mechs books.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

Better than most, 08 May 2008
It is a pity this book has not been written with a consistent level of care and attention to detail (as regards exposition, language); otherwise it would have been splendid. The overall plan and the emphasis on physics is excellent. There is a lot in this book which you would not easily find in other sources. In particular the exercises are very well done as miniprojects containing substantial further topics. There is an element of trendiness in the title: look up "Entropy" or "Order parameter" in the index and you'll find lots of page references, as behooves key terms appearing in the book's title; but look up "complexity" and you are referred to a series of exercises; one feels "complexity" was added to the title for want of a sexy buzzword that would distinguish this from any number of other stat mechs books.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

One of the best in its field, but..., 30 Dec 2006
The book contains some wrong references. For example, if the author refers to equation (1.4.1) or section (1.6), you cannot find it because it does not exist. If the equation exists, sometimes it is completely irrelevant. The situation is understandable since it is the first edition. Later edition may have correction to this problem.

However, considering the quality of the texts, I think this book excellently explains Bose-Einstein condensation and its consequences. Worth buying.

Better than most, 08 May 2008
It is a pity this book has not been written with a consistent level of care and attention to detail (as regards exposition, language); otherwise it would have been splendid. The overall plan and the emphasis on physics is excellent. There is a lot in this book which you would not easily find in other sources. In particular the exercises are very well done as miniprojects containing substantial further topics. There is an element of trendiness in the title: look up "Entropy" or "Order parameter" in the index and you'll find lots of page references, as behooves key terms appearing in the book's title; but look up "complexity" and you are referred to a series of exercises; one feels "complexity" was added to the title for want of a sexy buzzword that would distinguish this from any number of other stat mechs books.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

One of the best in its field, but..., 30 Dec 2006
The book contains some wrong references. For example, if the author refers to equation (1.4.1) or section (1.6), you cannot find it because it does not exist. If the equation exists, sometimes it is completely irrelevant. The situation is understandable since it is the first edition. Later edition may have correction to this problem.

However, considering the quality of the texts, I think this book excellently explains Bose-Einstein condensation and its consequences. Worth buying.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

Better than most, 08 May 2008
It is a pity this book has not been written with a consistent level of care and attention to detail (as regards exposition, language); otherwise it would have been splendid. The overall plan and the emphasis on physics is excellent. There is a lot in this book which you would not easily find in other sources. In particular the exercises are very well done as miniprojects containing substantial further topics. There is an element of trendiness in the title: look up "Entropy" or "Order parameter" in the index and you'll find lots of page references, as behooves key terms appearing in the book's title; but look up "complexity" and you are referred to a series of exercises; one feels "complexity" was added to the title for want of a sexy buzzword that would distinguish this from any number of other stat mechs books.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

One of the best in its field, but..., 30 Dec 2006
The book contains some wrong references. For example, if the author refers to equation (1.4.1) or section (1.6), you cannot find it because it does not exist. If the equation exists, sometimes it is completely irrelevant. The situation is understandable since it is the first edition. Later edition may have correction to this problem.

However, considering the quality of the texts, I think this book excellently explains Bose-Einstein condensation and its consequences. Worth buying.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

Just buy it!, 01 May 2004
This book is an essential for anybody wanting to conduct low temperature experiments. Along with the other two 'bibles' of this science (Pobell, Lounasmaa) it will provide you with anything you ever wanted to know about cryogenics (which is not freezing people by the way). All in all...it's all you ever needed to construct your very own highly pressurized fridges (and so not recommended for the accident prone) to reach subkelvin temperatures (if that's what you're into)...just buy it!

Better than most, 08 May 2008
It is a pity this book has not been written with a consistent level of care and attention to detail (as regards exposition, language); otherwise it would have been splendid. The overall plan and the emphasis on physics is excellent. There is a lot in this book which you would not easily find in other sources. In particular the exercises are very well done as miniprojects containing substantial further topics. There is an element of trendiness in the title: look up "Entropy" or "Order parameter" in the index and you'll find lots of page references, as behooves key terms appearing in the book's title; but look up "complexity" and you are referred to a series of exercises; one feels "complexity" was added to the title for want of a sexy buzzword that would distinguish this from any number of other stat mechs books.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

One of the best in its field, but..., 30 Dec 2006
The book contains some wrong references. For example, if the author refers to equation (1.4.1) or section (1.6), you cannot find it because it does not exist. If the equation exists, sometimes it is completely irrelevant. The situation is understandable since it is the first edition. Later edition may have correction to this problem.

However, considering the quality of the texts, I think this book excellently explains Bose-Einstein condensation and its consequences. Worth buying.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

Just buy it!, 01 May 2004
This book is an essential for anybody wanting to conduct low temperature experiments. Along with the other two 'bibles' of this science (Pobell, Lounasmaa) it will provide you with anything you ever wanted to know about cryogenics (which is not freezing people by the way). All in all...it's all you ever needed to construct your very own highly pressurized fridges (and so not recommended for the accident prone) to reach subkelvin temperatures (if that's what you're into)...just buy it!

Just buy it!, 01 May 2004
This book is an essential for anybody wanting to conduct low temperature experiments. Along with the other two 'bibles' of this science (Pobell, Lounasmaa) it will provide you with anything you ever wanted to know about cryogenics (which is not freezing people by the way). All in all...it's all you ever needed to construct your very own highly pressurized fridges (and so not recommended for the accident prone) to reach subkelvin temperatures (if that's what you're into)...just buy it!

Better than most, 08 May 2008
It is a pity this book has not been written with a consistent level of care and attention to detail (as regards exposition, language); otherwise it would have been splendid. The overall plan and the emphasis on physics is excellent. There is a lot in this book which you would not easily find in other sources. In particular the exercises are very well done as miniprojects containing substantial further topics. There is an element of trendiness in the title: look up "Entropy" or "Order parameter" in the index and you'll find lots of page references, as behooves key terms appearing in the book's title; but look up "complexity" and you are referred to a series of exercises; one feels "complexity" was added to the title for want of a sexy buzzword that would distinguish this from any number of other stat mechs books.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

One of the best in its field, but..., 30 Dec 2006
The book contains some wrong references. For example, if the author refers to equation (1.4.1) or section (1.6), you cannot find it because it does not exist. If the equation exists, sometimes it is completely irrelevant. The situation is understandable since it is the first edition. Later edition may have correction to this problem.

However, considering the quality of the texts, I think this book excellently explains Bose-Einstein condensation and its consequences. Worth buying.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

Just buy it!, 01 May 2004
This book is an essential for anybody wanting to conduct low temperature experiments. Along with the other two 'bibles' of this science (Pobell, Lounasmaa) it will provide you with anything you ever wanted to know about cryogenics (which is not freezing people by the way). All in all...it's all you ever needed to construct your very own highly pressurized fridges (and so not recommended for the accident prone) to reach subkelvin temperatures (if that's what you're into)...just buy it!

Just buy it!, 01 May 2004
This book is an essential for anybody wanting to conduct low temperature experiments. Along with the other two 'bibles' of this science (Pobell, Lounasmaa) it will provide you with anything you ever wanted to know about cryogenics (which is not freezing people by the way). All in all...it's all you ever needed to construct your very own highly pressurized fridges (and so not recommended for the accident prone) to reach subkelvin temperatures (if that's what you're into)...just buy it!

A very cool book! Didn't leave me cold!, 26 Mar 2003
Having worked in superfluids for the past three years it's refreshing to finally read a book that doesn't try to baffle you with copious amounts of mathematics. This book takes a slightly lighter way of teaching the various intricacies of superfluids with regards to what they are, how to make them and what to do with them once you have some. The author is genuinely funny in parts with a humour that seems natural and unforced. I highly recommend this book to all degree level students and above for whom superfluids may be slightly confusing.

Better than most, 08 May 2008
It is a pity this book has not been written with a consistent level of care and attention to detail (as regards exposition, language); otherwise it would have been splendid. The overall plan and the emphasis on physics is excellent. There is a lot in this book which you would not easily find in other sources. In particular the exercises are very well done as miniprojects containing substantial further topics. There is an element of trendiness in the title: look up "Entropy" or "Order parameter" in the index and you'll find lots of page references, as behooves key terms appearing in the book's title; but look up "complexity" and you are referred to a series of exercises; one feels "complexity" was added to the title for want of a sexy buzzword that would distinguish this from any number of other stat mechs books.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

One of the best in its field, but..., 30 Dec 2006
The book contains some wrong references. For example, if the author refers to equation (1.4.1) or section (1.6), you cannot find it because it does not exist. If the equation exists, sometimes it is completely irrelevant. The situation is understandable since it is the first edition. Later edition may have correction to this problem.

However, considering the quality of the texts, I think this book excellently explains Bose-Einstein condensation and its consequences. Worth buying.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

Just buy it!, 01 May 2004
This book is an essential for anybody wanting to conduct low temperature experiments. Along with the other two 'bibles' of this science (Pobell, Lounasmaa) it will provide you with anything you ever wanted to know about cryogenics (which is not freezing people by the way). All in all...it's all you ever needed to construct your very own highly pressurized fridges (and so not recommended for the accident prone) to reach subkelvin temperatures (if that's what you're into)...just buy it!

Just buy it!, 01 May 2004
This book is an essential for anybody wanting to conduct low temperature experiments. Along with the other two 'bibles' of this science (Pobell, Lounasmaa) it will provide you with anything you ever wanted to know about cryogenics (which is not freezing people by the way). All in all...it's all you ever needed to construct your very own highly pressurized fridges (and so not recommended for the accident prone) to reach subkelvin temperatures (if that's what you're into)...just buy it!

A very cool book! Didn't leave me cold!, 26 Mar 2003
Having worked in superfluids for the past three years it's refreshing to finally read a book that doesn't try to baffle you with copious amounts of mathematics. This book takes a slightly lighter way of teaching the various intricacies of superfluids with regards to what they are, how to make them and what to do with them once you have some. The author is genuinely funny in parts with a humour that seems natural and unforced. I highly recommend this book to all degree level students and above for whom superfluids may be slightly confusing.

Review of Pobell, 08 Feb 2005
I am currently in my final year of an undergraduate masters degree in astrophysics, and this book was recommended to me by my project supervisor (the work I'm doing being in the field of cryogenics). In my opinion it is a bible for this subject area.
Everything is layed out in a clear and logical manner, with plenty of clear diagrams where necessary. It runs through the basics of cryoliquids, the behaviour of solids at low temperature, cooling systems and there components as well as low temperature thermometry.
I would suggest that undergraduate physics students should be able to get to grips with the content of this book with relative ease, and would recommend this book to students in a similar position to my own, or those undertaking a course in cryogenics or experimental low temperature physics.
Having used a fair number of text books throughout my course, to me at least, I found this to be a very readable text book.
Hope this helps!

Better than most, 08 May 2008
It is a pity this book has not been written with a consistent level of care and attention to detail (as regards exposition, language); otherwise it would have been splendid. The overall plan and the emphasis on physics is excellent. There is a lot in this book which you would not easily find in other sources. In particular the exercises are very well done as miniprojects containing substantial further topics. There is an element of trendiness in the title: look up "Entropy" or "Order parameter" in the index and you'll find lots of page references, as behooves key terms appearing in the book's title; but look up "complexity" and you are referred to a series of exercises; one feels "complexity" was added to the title for want of a sexy buzzword that would distinguish this from any number of other stat mechs books.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

One of the best in its field, but..., 30 Dec 2006
The book contains some wrong references. For example, if the author refers to equation (1.4.1) or section (1.6), you cannot find it because it does not exist. If the equation exists, sometimes it is completely irrelevant. The situation is understandable since it is the first edition. Later edition may have correction to this problem.

However, considering the quality of the texts, I think this book excellently explains Bose-Einstein condensation and its consequences. Worth buying.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable!, 21 Oct 2007
I wish this book had been published when I first started as a grad student! Instead there was Loudon's "The Quantum Theory of Light" and Marlan Scully's "Quantum Optics" - both excellent books, but both lose sight of the fundamental physics, and do not really bridge the gap between most physics degrees and the subtle mathematical world of quantum optics. This is a book which really introduces the subject from a concise fundamental physics footing, taking into account that new grad students are not experts in the field - it is enough work for some students to come to terms with a lot of new mathematics, let alone try and understand where many physical approximations creep in - some quantum optics lectures simply introduce expressions without explanation, and this book seems to answer most of them.

A case in point is the quantum treatment of the Hanbury Brown-Twiss experiment, where in the treatement of one of the beamsplitter output ports, a subtraction appears. This book is the only place where I've clearly seen sufficient explanation, in a margin note, that this arises through conservation of energy (actually you are not handed this on a plate, but given a guided problem that shows how it arises, which is a good idea).

And here lies the only complaint about the book, that it uses margin notes. It might sound a strange complaint, perhaps its just me being stupid, but if you've spent a few years reading books and papers where you're used to scanning through single column blocks of text for a vital bit of information, your eyes don't immediately notice an off-set, small block of margin text (in small font, so it looks like a figure caption). A few times I've been caught out searching for explanations in the main body of the text, only to realise after much head scratching that its in the margin notes!

In all, I find this the best book I've ever read - it makes quantum optics enjoyable, simply because of the grass-roots physics. Not everybody in quantum optics is a theorist, some people actually have to do experiments, which is the hardest part of quantum optics.

Thankyou Mark Fox for making Quantum Optics accessible and enjoyable to all!

Just buy it!, 01 May 2004
This book is an essential for anybody wanting to conduct low temperature experiments. Along with the other two 'bibles' of this science (Pobell, Lounasmaa) it will provide you with anything you ever wanted to know about cryogenics (which is not freezing people by the way). All in all...it's all you ever needed to construct your very own highly pressurized fridges (and so not recommended for the accident prone) to reach subkelvin temperatures (if that's what you're into)...just buy it!

Just buy it!, 01 May 2004
This book is an essential for anybody wanting to conduct low temperature experiments. Along with the other two 'bibles' of this science (Pobell, Lounasmaa) it will provide you with anything you ever wanted to know about cryogenics (which is not freezing people by the way). All in all...it's all you ever needed to construct your very own highly pressurized fridges (and so not recommended for the accident prone) to reach subkelvin temperatures (if that's what you're into)...just buy it!

A very cool book! Didn't leave me cold!, 26 Mar 2003
Having worked in superfluids for the past three years it's refreshing to finally read a book that doesn't try to baffle you with copious amounts of mathematics. This book takes a slightly lighter way of teaching the various intricacies of superfluids with regards to what they are, how to make them and what to do with them once you have some. The author is genuinely funny in parts with a humour that seems natural and unforced. I highly recommend this book to all degree level students and above for whom superfluids may be slightly confusing.

Review of Pobell, 08 Feb 2005
I am currently in my final year of an undergraduate masters degree in astrophysics, and this book was recommended to me by my project supervisor (the work I'm doing being in the field of cryogenics). In my opinion it is a bible for this subject area.
Everything is layed out in a clear and logical manner, with plenty of clear diagrams where necessary. It runs through the basics of cryoliquids, the behaviour of solids at low temperature, cooling systems and there components as well as low temperature thermometry.
I would suggest that undergraduate physics students should be able to get to grips with the content of this book with relative ease, and would recommend this book to students in a similar position to my own, or those undertaking a course in cryogenics or experimental low temperature physics.
Having used a fair number of text books throughout my course, to me at least, I found this to be a very readable text book.
Hope this helps!

A very cool book! Didn't leave me cold!, 26 Mar 2003
Having worked in superfluids for the past three years it's refreshing to finally read a book that doesn't try to baffle you with copious amounts of mathematics. This book takes a slightly lighter way of teaching the various intricacies of superfluids with regards to what they are, how to make them and what to do with them once you have some. The author is genuinely funny in parts with a humour that seems natural and unforced. I highly recommend this book to all degree level students and above for whom superfluids may be slightly confusing.