Luca Salasnich is Full Professor of Condensed Matter Theory at the Department of Physics and Astronomy "Galileo Galilei," University of Padova, Italy. He was awarded an M.Sc. in Physics by the University of Padova in 1991, and his Ph.D. in Theoretical Physics by the University of Florence in 1995. His fields of research are condensed matter theory and statistical physics, in particular nonlinear phenomena and macroscopic quantum effects (like superfluidity and superconductivity) in ultra-cold atomic gases and other many-body systems. He has written more than 200 peer-reviewed scientific papers in international journals, with over 4700 citations.

This book offers an introduction to statistical mechanics, special relativity, and quantum physics. It is based on the lecture notes prepared for the one-semester course of "Quantum Physics" belonging to the Bachelor of Science in Material Sciences at the University of Padova.

The first chapter briefly reviews the ideas of classical statistical mechanics introduced by James Clerk Maxwell, Ludwig Boltzmann, Willard Gibbs, and others. The second chapter is devoted to the special relativity of Albert Einstein. In the third chapter, it is historically analyzed the quantization of light due to Max Planck and Albert Einstein, while the fourth chapter discusses the Niels Bohr quantization of the energy levels and the electromagnetic transitions. The fifth chapter investigates the Schrodinger equation, which was obtained by Erwin Schrodinger from the idea of Louis De Broglie to associate to each particle a quantum wavelength. Chapter Six describes the basic axiomsof quantum mechanics, which were formulated in the seminal books of Paul Dirac and John von Neumann. In chapter seven, there are several important application of quantum mechanics: the quantum particle in a box, the quantum particle in the harmonic potential, the quantum tunneling, the stationary perturbation theory, and the time-dependent perturbation theory. Chapter Eight is devoted to the study of quantum atomic physics with special emphasis on the spin of the electron, which needs the Dirac equation for a rigorous theoretical justification. In the ninth chapter, it is explained the quantum mechanics of many identical particles at zero temperature, while in Chapter Ten the discussion is extended to many quantum particles at finite temperature by introducing and using the quantum statistical mechanics.

The four appendices on Dirac delta function, complex numbers, Fourier transform, and differential equations are a useful mathematical aid for the reader.

Classical Statistical Mechanics.- Special and General Relativity.- Quantum Properties of Light.- Quantum Properties of Matter.- Wavefunction of a Quantum Particle.- Axiomatization of Quantum Mechanics.- Solvable Problems in Quantum Mechanics.- Modern Quantum Physics of Atoms.- Quantum Mechanics of Many-Body Systems.- Quantum Statistical Mechanics.