Pre-req for Ultrafast Optics? (Jackson or Zangwill for Electrodynamics?)

[despaxir]

TL;DR: Jackson or Zangwill for Electrodynamics?

Hi, I want to learn ultrafast optics and I am interested in condensed matter physics, ie using ultrafast optics in condensed matter systems. However, before I get onto ultrafast optics I need to improve my electrodynamics knowledge.

Should I study Jackson or Zangwill for Electrodynamics? My level at the moment is Griffiths. Given my interest in ultrafast optics in condensed matter, I am not sure which book is better suited for me.

If Jackson or Zangwill is not appropriate then please suggest another book.

 

[Muu9]

I hear a lot of people recommend Zangwill over Jackson, but not vice versa.

That being said, URochester's OPT 462 (an EM course for topics grad students) uses Jackson and Max Born: https://www.hajim.rochester.edu/optics/assets/pdf/gradhandbook.pdf

 

[CrysPhys]

TL;DR: Jackson or Zangwill for Electrodynamics?

Hi, I want to learn ultrafast optics and I am interested in condensed matter physics, ie using ultrafast optics in condensed matter systems. However, before I get onto ultrafast optics I need to improve my electrodynamics knowledge.

Should I study Jackson or Zangwill for Electrodynamics? My level at the moment is Griffiths. Given my interest in ultrafast optics in condensed matter, I am not sure which book is better suited for me.

If Jackson or Zangwill is not appropriate then please suggest another book.

Could you clarify your situation? Is this for self-study? Are you a university student? If so, what level, and what text are they using?

 

[despaxir]

I hear a lot of people recommend Zangwill over Jackson, but not vice versa.

That being said, URochester's OPT 462 (an EM course for topics grad students) uses Jackson and Max Born: https://www.hajim.rochester.edu/optics/assets/pdf/gradhandbook.pdf

Okay perhaps I should do Jackson then. My plan was to do Born's book anyway to be fair.

 

[despaxir]

Could you clarify your situation? Is this for self-study? Are you a university student? If so, what level, and what text are they using?

I will start my PhD in experimental condensed matter in a year's time in the UK. Most European Physics PhDs do not have set courses, hence I don't have any text to go off on. So this will be entirely self taught for two reasons: out of interest and the potential opportunity I have to actually do ultrafast optics experiments.

My EM knowledge is at Griffiths level which my BSc had a course in it and we completed the entire book in 2nd year. I didn't do any electrodynamics or optics related stuff in my MSc. So it has been a while since I have studied electrodynamics. I just did condensed matter related stuff in my MSc. For this reason, I want to study Electrodynamics at a higher level before I start studying Ultrafast Optics. I am unsure what book I should use for Electrodynamics given my specific goals.

My interests are to understand Electrodynamics, how they work in materials and solids, how they work in optics and ultrafast instruments.

I hope by doing this I will have a better background to understand the condensed matter applications such as light-matter interactions, non-equilibrium processes which light can induce in quantum materials as well as how they are used with scanning tunnelling microscope instruments to get both time resolved and spatial resolved microscopy and spectroscopy information of quantum materials.