The presentation is almost entirely concerned with the quantized electromagnetic field. Topics covered include single-mode field quantization in a cavity, quantization of multimode fields, quantum phase, coherent states, quasi-probability distribution in phase space, atom-field interactions, the Jaynes-Cummings model, quantum coherence theory, beam splitters and interferometers, nonclassical field states with squeezing etc., tests of local realism with entangled photons from down-conversion, experimental realizations of cavity quantum electrodynamics, trapped ions, decoherence, and some applications to quantum information processing, particularly quantum cryptography. The book
\7eUw,~Q> contains many homework problems and a comprehensive bibliography.
c]<5zyl"j1 This text is designed for upper-level undergraduates taking courses in quantum optics who have already taken a course in quantum mechanics, and for first- and second-year graduate students.
wu6;.xTLl A solutions manual is available to instructors via
solutions@cambridge.org.
s) t@ol Christopher Gerry is Professor of Physics at Lehman College, CityUniversity of New York. He was one of the first to exploit the use of group theoretical methods in quantum optics and is also a frequent contributor to Physical Review A. In 1992 he co-authored, with A. Inomata and H. Kuratsuji, Path Integrals and Coherent States for Su (2) and SU (1, 1). Peter Knight is a leading figure in quantum optics, and in addition to being President of the Optical Society of America in 2004, he is a Fellow of the Royal Society. In 1983 he co-authored Concepts of Quantum Optics with L. Allen. He is currently Head of the Physics Department of Imperial College and Chief Scientific Advisor at the UK National Physical Laboratory.
