This book is an introduction to the two closely related subjects of quantum optics and quantum information. The book gives a simple, self-contained introduction to both subjects, while illustrating the physical principles of quantum information processing using quantum optical systems. To make the book accessible to those with backgrounds other than physics, the authors also include a brief review of quantum mechanics. Furthermore, some aspects of quantum information, for example those pertaining to recent experiments on cavity QED and quantum dots, are described here for the first time in book form.

This graduate-level text surveys the fundamentals of quantum optics, including the quantum theory of partial coherence and the nature of the relations between classical and quantum theories of coherence.1968 edition.

Publisher Description

An in-depth and wide-ranging introduction to the field of quantum optics.

"This book provides a solid pedagogical background in the techniques used in quantum optics, with an emphasis on open quantum systems. Suitable for undergraduates as a second semester quantum mechanics course or first year graduate students, this book begins with a short summary of quantum mechanics and contains physics of open systems and their application to light/matter interactions. Written in a simplified manner and classroom tested, this book provides the fundamentals of quantum optics and includes recent developments in the field." -- Prové de l'editor.

Quantum optics, i.e. the interaction of individual photons with matter, began with the discoveries of Planck and Einstein, but in recent years it has expanded beyond pure physics to become an important driving force for technological innovation. This book serves the broader readership growing out of this development by starting with an elementary description of the underlying physics and then building up a more advanced treatment. The reader is led from the quantum theory of the simple harmonic oscillator to the application of entangled states to quantum information processing. An equally important feature of the text is a strong emphasis on experimental methods. Primary photon detection, heterodyne and homodyne techniques, spontaneous down-conversion, and quantum tomography are discussed; together with important experiments. These experimental and theoretical considerations come together in the chapters describing quantum cryptography, quantum communications, and quantum computing.

Atomic correlations have been studied in physics for over 50 years and known as collective effects until recently when they came to be recognized as a source of entanglement. This is the first book that contains detailed and comprehensive analysis of two currently extensively studied subjects of atomic and quantum physics-atomic correlations and th