Lectures on Quantum Mechanics

Having read and reviewed the first edition, I finally just received the second edition (Amazon delayed a couple of times - either there is great demand or they didn't print enough books). I purchased the second edition for the following reasons:Several new sections (rigid rotator, Van der Walls forces, Rabbi Oscillators, Open systems etc.) expanding the book by about 15%.First edition had many errors and these have now been corrected.Excuse to reread a wonderful book.My name is mentioned in the new preface.I would give give the book 6 stars (out of 5) for content - Weinberg is the best at covering material that other books miss (quantization of constrained systems, and detailed coverage of scattering theory for example), explains difficult material without handwaving arguments, and explicitly shows the calculations. I give the book 4 stars out of five for appearance (notation and look/feel of equations) - the only negative for the book is idiosyncratic notation (refusal to use the Dirac notation), which requires me to mentally convert scalar products to Dirac Brackets. Also, I am not too thrilled with the fonts/typeface that Weinberg uses in his books.This is definitely an advanced book on quantum mechanics. It is graduate level, doesn't have any pictures or diagrams, and would not be a good choice to learn quantum mechanics for the first time. It is also clearly as titled a lecture book, and not a reference book on QM (for that I would suggest Cohen-Tannoudji). But if you want to review/extend your knowledge of non-relativistic quantum mechanics, whether in a graduate course or by self-study, this is the book I would recommend. Another excellent book which also meets these requirements (and slightly different content coverage) and which also just came out with a second edition is Ballentine's Quantum Mechanics A Modern Development.

In order to fully appreciate the content of Weinberg's book, one needs to study Paul Dirac's Quantum Mechanics or Albert Messiah's Quantum Mechanics before hand. Beginners will have difficulty appreciating the physics behind the mathematical rigor (ie. abstractness). Weinberg took the same approach as Dirac in discussing the complexity of quantum mechanics. However Weinberg discussed additional topics not found in standard quantum mechanics books; such as different interpretation of the quantum world, Open systems using density matrix, quantum measurements, quantum entanglement, Berry phase, Rabi oscillations, Feynman's path integral formulation, gauge invariance, quantum computation. I gained a better understanding of quantum physics from Weinberg's exposition during the course of my research on the foundation of quantum mechanics.

Weinberg's "Lectures on QM" is an excellent, graduate level text on the quantum mechanics that, among other things, will prepare you for studying quantum field theory. The book is authoritative, and very clearly written. Some highlights: (1) He includes some fascinating topics not easily found in other QM texts. These include a very clear discussion of the Heisenberg 'matrix mechanics method' at the beginning of the book, and Pauli's algebraic solution of the energy levels of the hydrogen atom. (2) The book is very valuable for allowing one to see how Weinberg approaches and formulates solutions for standard introductory quantum mechanical problems (the 'easy' problems). (3) Weinberg's discussion of the interpretations of QM is the clearest and most detailed I have seen anywhere. (4) His chapter on isospin symmetry and its generalization is a very clear introduction to the use of symmetry in QFT. Also, his discussion of symmetry breaking in non-relativistic vs. relativistic cases is quite nice.

I am starting the second semester undergrad QM class, and this text fills in a lot of the questions I had on problems we encountered in the first class. For a grad class it would be just right to help fill in some of the background needed and math derivations for equations and problem solutions in the class. clearly written, but it assumes a strong background to understand.

While there are a multitude of QM textbooks available for students and experts, Steven Weinberg's bookis still a great addition to the existing QM books.

Excellent text for new students and experienced physicists. Weinberg's insight into the essential physics of quantum mechanics is unmatched by other texts with similar titles.

The book arrived on time and is new. Weinberg knows exactly what to put in a book on Quantum Mechanics. It covers a lot of topics, traditional as well as modern. It is advanced and seems like a good sequel to Merzbacher's QM.

This was a classic for all ages before it was ever released - Steven Weinberg on Quantum Mechanics, what more can be said. As a plus, the printing/binding quality is superb. It will be cherished by all physicist.