A comprehensive introduction to the scientific principles of a complex topic in which meaning and interpretation never cease to puzzle and surprise. An A-Z guide which is neither too advanced nor oversimplified and which is complete with figures and graphs that illustrate the deeper meaning of the concepts you are unlikely to find elsewhere. The weirdness and paradoxes of quantum physics are explained at an introductory level, from the first principles to modern state-of-the-art experiments. This is for the non-physicist autodidact who is looking for general knowledge about quantum physics, as it furnishes the most rigorous account that an (almost) non-mathematical exposition can provide. It will save you a ton of time in searching elsewhere, trying to piece together a variety of information. Instead of being 'quantum physics for dummies', this is a deeper account that not only summarizes the experiments but also discusses the philosophical arguments while remaining accessible to all. It's a guide for all those who have always been attracted to the fascinating quantum reality and wanted to understand its principles, even if they are not physicists, but have found only either advanced university-level courses filled with complex mathematics or, alternatively, popular science texts that tried to connect with the reader at the cost of crude oversimplification. Considering how the media (and sometimes also physicists) present quantum theory by focusing only on highly dubious ideas and speculations backed by no evidence (or, worse, promote pseudo-scientific hype that falls into and out of fashion), this book fills a void: that of a serious introduction to the conceptual foundations of quantum physics, as it really is, that is accessible to all and yet does not treat readers like idiots.
Moreover, one of the primary motivations of the author was to span an 'arch of knowledge' without giving in to the temptation of taking an excessively one-sided account of the subject. To that end, he has refrained from focusing too much on his personal preferences - something that otherwise would have spoiled the intention of making this a general introduction. It is instead, first and foremost, an effort to provide the reader with the widest possible background on all the basics that everyone interested in quantum physics should have. It is a primer that the public deserves.
What is this strange thing called quantum physics? What is its impact on our understanding of the world? What is 'reality' according to quantum physics? This book addresses these and many other questions through a step-by-step journey into this very weird world. The central mystery of the double slit experiment and the wave-particle duality, the fuzzy world of Heisenberg's uncertainty principle, the weird Schr dinger's cat paradox, the 'spooky action at a distance' of quantum entanglement, the EPR paradox and much more is explained, without neglecting such main contributors as Planck, Einstein, Bohr, Feynman and others who struggled themselves to come up with the mysterious quantum realm. This manual also takes a look at the experiments conducted in recent decades, such as the "which-way," "quantum-erasure" experiments.
Additionally, because schools, colleges and universities teach quantum physics using a dry, mostly technical approach which furnishes only superficial insight into its foundations, this book is recommended to all those students and physicists who would like to look beyond the merely formal aspect and delve deeper into the meaning and essence of quantum mechanics.