This book explains what quantum states of light look like. Of special interest, a single photon state is explained by using a wave picture, showing that it corresponds to the complementarity of a quantum. Also explained is how light waves are created by photons, again corresponding to the complementarity of a quantum. The author shows how an optical wave is created by superposition of a "vacuum" and a single photon as a typical example. Moreover, squeezed states of light are explained as "longitudinal" waves of light and Schrödinger's cat states as macroscopic superposition states.

Appendix A: Semiclassical approximation

Quantum information describes the new field which bridges quantum physics and information science. The quantum world allows for completely new architectures and protocols. While originally formulated in continuous quantum variables, the field worked almost exclusively with discrete variables, such as single photons and photon pairs. The renaissance of continuous variables came with European research consortia such as ACQUIRE (Advanced Coherent Quantum Information Research) in the late 1990s, and QUICOV (Quantum Information with Continuous Variables) from 2000OCo2003. The encouraging research results of QUICOV and the new conference series CVQIP (Continuous Variable Quantum Information Processing) triggered the idea for this book. This book presents the state of the art of quantum information with continuous quantum variables. The individual chapters discuss results achieved in QUICOV and presented at the first five CVQIP conferences from 2002OCo2006. Many world-leading scientists working on continuous variables outside Europe also contribute to the book.

Covering some of the most exciting trends in quantum optics - quantum entanglement, teleportation, and levitation - this textbook is ideal for advanced undergraduate and graduate students. The book journeys through the vast field of quantum optics following a single theme: light in media. A wide range of subjects are covered, from the force of the quantum vacuum to astrophysics, from quantum measurements to black holes. Ideas are explained in detail and formulated so that students with little prior knowledge of the subject can follow them. Each chapter ends with several short questions followed by a more detailed homework problem, designed to test the reader and show how the ideas discussed can be applied. Solutions to homework problems are available at www.cambridge.org/9780521869782.

The term 'nonclassical states' refers to the quantum states that cannot be produced in the usual sources of light, such as lasers or lamps, rather than those requiring more sophisticated apparatus for their production. Theory of Non-classical States of Light describes the current status of the theory of nonclassical states of light including many new and important results as well as introductory material and the history of the subject. The authors concentrate on the most important types of nonclassical states, namely squeezed, even/odd ('Schrodinger cat') and binomial states, including their generalizations. However, a review of other types of nonclassical is also given in the introduction, and methods for generating nonclassical states on various processes of light-matter interaction, their phase-space description, and the time evolution of nonclassical states in these processes is presented in separate chapters. This contributed volume contains all of the necessary formulae and references required to gain a good understanding of the principles and current status of the field. It will provide a valuable information resource for advanced students and researchers in quantum physics.

This compact but exhaustive textbook, now in its significantly revised and expanded second edition, provides an essential introduction to the field quantization of light and matter with applications to atomic physics and strongly correlated systems. Following an initial review of the origins of special relativity and quantum mechanics, individual chapters are devoted to the second quantization of the electromagnetic field and the consequences of light field quantization for the description of electromagnetic transitions. The spin of the electron is then analyzed, with particular attention to its derivation from the Dirac equation. Subsequent topics include the effects of external electric and magnetic fields on the atomic spectra and the properties of systems composed of many interacting identical particles. The book also provides a detailed explanation of the second quantization of the non-relativistic matter field, i.e., the Schrödinger field, which offers a powerful tool for the investigation of many-body problems, and of atomic quantum optics and entanglement. Finally, two new chapters introduce the finite-temperature functional integration of bosonic and fermionic fields for the study of macroscopic quantum phenomena: superfluidity and superconductivity. Several solved problems are included at the end of each chapter, helping readers put into practice all that they have learned.

As part of the Physics 2010 decadal survey project, the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation requested that the National Research Council assess the opportunities, over roughly the next decade, in atomic, molecular, and optical (AMO) science and technology. In particular, the National Research Council was asked to cover the state of AMO science, emphasizing recent accomplishments and identifying new and compelling scientific questions. Controlling the Quantum World, discusses both the roles and challenges for AMO science in instrumentation; scientific research near absolute zero; development of extremely intense x-ray and laser sources; exploration and control of molecular processes; photonics at the nanoscale level; and development of quantum information technology. This book also offers an assessment of and recommendations about critical issues concerning maintaining U.S. leadership in AMO science and technology.

Quantum Optics gives a comprehensive coverage of developments in quantum optics over the past twenty years. In the early chapters the formalism of quantum optics is elucidated and the main techniques are introduced. These are applied in the later chapters to problems such as squeezed states of light, resonance fluorescence, laser theory, quantum theory of four-wave mixing, quantum non-demolition measurements, Bell's inequalities, and atom optics. Experimental results are used to illustrate the theory throughout. This yields the most comprehensive and up-to-date coverage of experiment and theory in quantum optics in any textbook.

Covering a number of important subjects in quantum optics, this textbook is an excellent introduction for advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate students, familiarizing readers with the basic concepts and formalism as well as the most recent advances. The first part of the textbook covers the semi-classical approach where matter is quantized, but light is not. It describes significant phenomena in quantum optics, including the principles of lasers. The second part is devoted to the full quantum description of light and its interaction with matter, covering topics such as spontaneous emission, and classical and non-classical states of light. An overview of photon entanglement and applications to quantum information is also given. In the third part, non-linear optics and laser cooling of atoms are presented, where using both approaches allows for a comprehensive description. Each chapter describes basic concepts in detail, and more specific concepts and phenomena are presented in 'complements'.