What Undervalued Books Have You Discovered?

  • Context: Other 
  • Thread starter Thread starter Demystifier
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Books
Click For Summary
SUMMARY

This discussion highlights several undervalued books in the fields of physics and mathematics, emphasizing their quality and relevance despite being lesser-known. Key recommendations include H. Muirhead's "The Physics of Elementary Particles," which parallels Bjorken and Drell's "Relativistic Quantum Field Theory," and Radu Paul Lungu's "Thermodynamics," praised for its thorough treatment of thermodynamics under electric and magnetic fields. Other notable mentions are "Waves and Distributions" by Jonsson and Yngvason, and the theory series by Sommerfeld and Pauli, which remain valuable resources for classical theoretical physics. The conversation also touches on the teaching of relativistic quantum mechanics versus modern quantum field theory, advocating for a focus on the latter due to its practical applications in contemporary physics.

PREREQUISITES
  • Familiarity with quantum mechanics concepts, particularly Clebsch-Gordan coefficients.
  • Understanding of thermodynamics, especially in the context of electric and magnetic fields.
  • Knowledge of distribution theory and Fourier analysis as applied in physics.
  • Basic grasp of classical theoretical physics, including quantum field theory (QFT) and its historical context.
NEXT STEPS
  • Explore "Waves and Distributions" by Jonsson and Yngvason for advanced mathematical methods in physics.
  • Study "Thermodynamics" by Radu Paul Lungu to deepen understanding of thermodynamic principles in complex fields.
  • Investigate the theory series by Sommerfeld and Pauli for insights into classical physics and its modern applications.
  • Learn about modern quantum field theory (QFT) and its implications in contemporary physics research.
USEFUL FOR

Physicists, graduate students in theoretical physics, educators in quantum mechanics, and anyone interested in discovering valuable yet overlooked academic resources in physics and mathematics.

  • #61
There is another book by John R. Taylor which doesn't get mentioned much anywhere:
Scattering Theory: The Quantum Theory of Nonrelativistic Collisions

I remember it to be really well-written. In principle, I think that it is a virtue that it doesn't include QFT because you don't get sidetracked from the fundamentals of scattering this way. The only drawback is that it has 500 pages so I didn't have the time to read much of it. ;-)
 
Physics news on Phys.org
  • #62
kith said:
There is another book by John R. Taylor which doesn't get mentioned much anywhere:
Scattering Theory: The Quantum Theory of Nonrelativistic Collisions

I remember it to be really well-written. In principle, I think that it is a virtue that it doesn't include QFT because you don't get sidetracked from the fundamentals of scattering this way. The only drawback is that it has 500 pages so I didn't have the time to read much of it. ;-)
There are books with way more than 500 pages... :-D
 
  • #63
Yes but it depends on how deep you can dig into a subject during university. Most books on quantum mechanics hardly spend any pages at all on non-relativistic scattering, so 500 pages are a lot.
 
  • #64
kith said:
Not really undervalued in comparison to similar books but I know many phycicists who've never read a single book on its topic:
John Taylor - Introduction to Error Analysis

kith said:
There is another book by John R. Taylor which doesn't get mentioned much anywhere:
Scattering Theory: The Quantum Theory of Nonrelativistic Collisions

I remember it to be really well-written. In principle, I think that it is a virtue that it doesn't include QFT because you don't get sidetracked from the fundamentals of scattering this way. The only drawback is that it has 500 pages so I didn't have the time to read much of it. ;-)

Both of these books are on my shelf. I haven't completely read either, but I have read bits of both. When I was a grad student, my university offered a grad course on scattering, and Taylor was used as the text. I didn't take the course, but a friend did, and she gave me the book.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: kith
  • #65
George Jones said:
I ordered these books yesterday from amazon.com and was charged $29.08 and $28.83 respectively. Today, the prices are $116.95 and $115.70. (All prices in Canadian dollars; amounts would be less in US dollars.)
Ah! You might be tempted to resell them and make a hefty profit :-)

I hope you enjoy them, I now feel a bit responsible for suggesting them. Knowing you a bit, I fear the book by Garrity may be a bit too basic, but I still hope you will enjoy some of it.

Talking about QFT (since you mentioned wanting to learn more about it in another post), here is another book that I consider good and undervalued:

The conceptual Framework of Quantum Field Theory by A. Duncan.

He has a very original and deep presentation of the concepts of QFT.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: Demystifier and dextercioby
  • #66
nrqed said:
I just got the two volumes by Manioukan, I am looking forward to reading them.

I would also not call Cohen-Tannoudji undervalued, it was even the textbook used in my undergrad QM one year class. Maybe it is less known in English speaking universities though.
Did you like the two-volume textbook on QFT by Manoukian?
 

Similar threads

  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
2K
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
5K
  • · Replies 38 ·
2
Replies
38
Views
11K
  • · Replies 7 ·
Replies
7
Views
4K
Replies
62
Views
56K
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
4K
  • · Replies 11 ·
Replies
11
Views
15K
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
4K
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
7K
Replies
26
Views
18K