Synopses & Reviews
Originally published in 1972, the twelve articles in this volume discuss various aspects of quantum mechanics that owe their origin to the work of P. A. M. Dirac. Each of the distinguished contributors reviews Dirac's work and discusses its development in some detail. Since Dirac's work ranged widely, the resulting volume constitutes a valuable survey of the state of quantum mechanics. A small part of the book contains personal reminiscences of Dirac in Cambridge and of his early visits to the USA and gives a historical account of the development of quantum mechanics during the decade 1924-1933, aptly termed 'the golden age of theoretical physics'.
Table of Contents
Bibliography of P. A. M. Dirac (p. xiii-xvi) Eden, R. J. and Polkinghorne, J. C. Dirac in Cambridge.--Van Vleck, J. H. Travels with Dirac in the Rockies.--Mehra, J. The golden age of theoretical physics: P.A.M. Dirac's scientific work from 1924 to 1933.--Jost, R. Foundation of quantum field theory.--Pais, A. The early history of the theory of the electron: 1897-1947.--Wightman, A. S. The Dirac equation.--Peierls, R. Fermi-Dirac statistics.--Heisenberg, W. Indefinite metric in state space.--Jauch, J. M. On bras and kets.--Lanczos, C. The Poisson bracket.--Schwartz, L. La fonction Greet letter delta et les noyaux.--Amaldi, E. and Cabibbo, N. On the Dirac magnetic poles.--Dyson, F. J. The fundamental constants and their time variation.--Wigner, E. P. On the time-energy uncertainty relation.--Salam, A. and Strathdee, J. The path-integral quantization of gravity.