EdX

Quantum Mechanics for Everyone (edX)

Offered by Georgetown University, GeorgetownX,
Quantum Mechanics for Everyone (edX)

Learn the fundamental notions of quantum mechanics at a level that is accessible to everyone. Quantum Mechanics for Everyone is a six-week long MOOC that teaches the basic ideas of quantum mechanics with a method that requires no complicated math beyond taking square roots (and you can use a calculator for that).

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Quantum theory is taught without “dumbing down” any of the material, giving you the same version experts use in current research. We will cover the quantum mystery of the two-slit experiment and advanced topics that include how to see something without shining light on it (quantum seeing in the dark) and bunching effects of photons (Hong-Ou-Mandel effect).

To get a flavor for the course and see if it is right for you, watch "Let's get small", which shows you how poorly you were taught what an atom looks like, and "The fallacy of physics phobia."

What you'll learn

  • Understand what a quantum particle is in the world of the ultrasmall
  • Learn the basics of probability theory
  • Discover what spin is and how it is manipulated by magnets
  • Explain what the quantum mystery is
  • Apply quantum ideas to understand partial reflection of light, interaction-free measurements, and particle indistinguishability

Course Syllabus

1. Introduction to the Quantum World

  • Introduction
  • Classical mechanics of moving magnets in a magnetic field
  • Probability
  • Quantum Probability

2. Advanced Quantum Mechanics with Spins

  • Stern-Gerlach analyzer-loop
  • Analog of the two-slit experiment
  • Wheeler’s delayed choice experiment
  • Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen
  • Bell’s inequality
  • NMR and MRI

3. The Quantum Mechanics of Light

  • Wave or particle?
  • Exploring the quantum model for light
  • Developing the quantum model for light
  • Understanding the quantum mystery
  • Applications of the quantum theory of light

4. Advanced Quantum Ideas with Light

  • Introduction to quantum seeing in the dark
  • Mach-Zehnder Interferometer
  • The Quantum Zeno Effect Quantum Seeing in the Dark
  • Identical particles and the Hong-Ou-Mandel experiment
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