Introductory Quantum Optics

This established textbook provides an accessible but comprehensive introduction to the quantum nature of light and its interaction with matter. The field of quantum optics is covered with clarity and depth, from the underlying theoretical framework of field quantization, atom–field interactions, and quantum coherence theory, to important and modern applications at the forefront of current research such as quantum interferometry, squeezed light, quantum entanglement, cavity quantum electrodynamics, laser-cooled trapped ions, and quantum information processing. The text is suitable for advanced undergraduate and graduate students and would be an ideal main text for a course on quantum optics. This long-awaited second edition builds upon the success of the first edition, including many new developments in the field, particularly in the area of quantum state engineering. Additional homework problems have been added, and content from the first edition has been updated and clarified throughout.

• Provides a detailed introduction to the key conceptual ideas underlying the growing and fast-moving field of quantum optics
• Includes a large number of homework problems spanning a range of difficulties, with a full solutions manual available for instructors
• Covers key applications of quantum optics in state-of-the-art quantum information processing, with further reading and references clearly indicated to readers