Related papers: Enrico Fermi and the Old Quantum Physics
We review Bohr's atomic model and its extension by Sommerfeld from a mathematical perspective of wave mechanics. The derivation of quantization rules and energy levels is revisited using semiclassical methods. Sommerfeld-type integrals are…
In the Italian education system, secondary students (ages 14-19) are confronted with the foundations of quantum physics during the final term of scientific high school (pre-university year). The Italian Ministry of Education, University and…
This Perspective focuses on the several overlaps between quantum algorithms and Monte Carlo methods in the domains of physics and chemistry. We will analyze the challenges and possibilities of integrating established quantum Monte Carlo…
I. Introduction II. Electrons at the Fermi level III. Conductance quantization of a quantum point contact IV. Optical analogue of the conductance quantization V. Classical electron focusing VI. Electron focusing as a transmission problem…
We discuss the status and some perspectives of relativistic quantum physics.
Motivated by the sharp contrast between classical and quantum physics as probability theories, in these lecture notes I introduce the basic notions of operator algebras that are relevant for the algebraic approach to quantum physics.…
This perspective provides a succinct history of Fermi's golden rule (FGR), overview of its derivation, assumptions, and representative forms. Major applications of FGR, mostly in the field of chemical physics, are reviewed. These illustrate…
After World War II, a hyper-pragmatic paradigm was established in physics in most of the western countries, within which foundations of quantum mechanics were vastly dismissed as pointless speculations. In this paper, we show that in Italy,…
These notes offer a basic introduction to the primary mathematical concepts of quantum physics, and their physical significance, from the operator and Hilbert space point of view, highlighting more what are essentially the abstract…
The conceptual bases of Fermi's $\beta$-ray theory (at its 90th anniversary) are examined, highlighting the innovative drive and inspirational role for the progress that followed just afterwards. Moreover, the three different ideas of the…
It is shown that quantum mechanics is a plausible statistical description of an ontology described by classical electrodynamics. The reason that no contradiction arises with various no-go theorems regarding the compatibility of QM with a…
We suggest that not only quanta may have played a role in Einstein's ideas on relativity, but that they themselves may be related to the dynamical and relativistic behaviour of the electromagnetic field exhibited in a Poincar\'e's 1900…
Quantum Monte Carlo methods have proven to be valuable in the study of strongly correlated quantum systems, particularly nuclear physics and cold atomic gases. Historically, such ab initio simulations have been used to study properties of…
The year 1953 is pivotal for computational physics: the first application of the Monte-Carlo method is published and calculations of the so-called Fermi-Pasta-Ulam-Tsingou experiment are started. It is the beginning of the massive use in…
On the base of years of experience of working on the problem of the physical foundation of quantum mechanics the author offers principles of solving it. Under certain pressure of mathematical formalism there has raised a hypothesis of…
This is an introductory set of lecture notes on quantum cosmology, given in 1995 to an audience with interests ranging from astronomy to particle physics. Topics covered: 1. Introduction: 1.1 Quantum cosmology and quantum gravity; 1.2 A…
In this paper we suggest to anticipate the introduction of concepts such as quantum state and the operators connected to their transformations well in advance of what is usually done.
Starting with Einstein's famous papers of 1905, we review some of the ensuing developments and their impact on present-day physics. We attempt to cover topics that are of interest to historians and philosophers of science as well as to…
"Ever since the advent of modern quantum mechanics in the late 1920's, the idea has been prevalent that the classical laws of probability cease, in some sense, to be valid in the new theory. [...] The primary object of this presentation is…
We present some basic inequalities between the classical and quantum values of free energy, entropy and mean energy. We investigate the transition from the deterministic case (classical mechanics) to the probabilistic case (quantum…