APhysicsBookList

Varioussmallupdatesovertheyears.
Updated19941997bySIC,PEG.
OriginalbyVijayFafat.

APhysicsBookList:RecommendationsfromtheNet
Thisarticleisacompilationofbooksrecommendedbysci.physicsparticipantsasthe"standard"or"classic"
textsonawidevarietyoftopicsofgeneralinteresttophysicistsandphysicsstudents.Asaguidetofindingthe
rightbookforyou,manyofthecommentsfromthecontributorshavebeenretained.
Allentrieshereareincomplete,andmanygoodbooksarenotyetlisted.Pleasefeelfreetocontributetothis
projectbycontactingushere.Whenyousubmitabook,pleasetrytokeepyournoteshortliketheentries
alreadyonthispagesothatIcaneasilycutandpastethemin.
Detailssuchaspublisher,dateandISBNnumbersbelowarefarandfewbetween.Thisispartlybecausewe
aretoolazytotypethemin,butalsobecausethesethingscanchangewithneweditionsanddifferentcountries
(slightlybetterexcuse).Ifyouwanttoknowmore,doasearchatoneoftheinternetbookshopsacomparison
ofseveralsitescanbehadatbooksprice.com.
Ifyouarelookingforabookthatisoutofprint,try:

GeneralPhysics(soevenmathematicianscanunderstandit!)
1.M.S.Longair:Theoreticalconceptsinphysics,1986.
Analternativeviewoftheoreticalreasoninginphysicsforfinalyearundergrads.
2.ArnoldSommerfeld:LecturesonTheoreticalPhysics
SommerfeldisGodformathematicalphysics.
3.RichardFeynman:TheFeynmanlecturesonPhysics(3vols)
HighlyrecommendedtextscompiledfromtheundergraduatelecturecoursegivenbyFeynman.
4.JearleWalker:TheFlyingCircusofPhysics
5.ThereistheentireLandauandLifshitzseries.Theyhavevolumesonclassicalmechanics,classicalfield
theory,E&M,QM,QFT,statisticalphysics,andmore.Verygoodseriesthatspanstheentiregraduatelevel
curriculum.
6.TheNewPhysicseditedbyPaulDavies.
Thisisonebigbookandittakestimetolookthroughtopicsasdiverseasgeneralrelativity,astrophysics,
particletheory,quantummechanics,chaosandnonlinearity,lowtemperaturephysicsandphasetransitions.
Nevertheless,thisisanexcellentbookofrecent(1989)physicsarticles,writtenbyseveral
physicists/astrophysicists.

7.RichardFeynman:TheCharacterofPhysicalLaw
Inhisuniquenononsensestyle,Feynmanlecturesaboutwhatphysicsisallabout.Downtoearthexamples
keephimfromstrayingintothekindofmetaphysicsofwhichheisoftencritical.
8.DavidMermin:Boojumsallthewaythrough:Communicatingscienceinprosaiclanguage
9.FrankWilczekandBetsyDevine:LongingfortheHarmonies:Themesandvariationsfrommodernphysics
10.GregEgan:PermutationCity
Thisisasciencefictionnovelwhichhasmoretosayaboutthephilosophyofphysicsthandomost
philosophersandphysicists.
11.Don'tread:ThePhysicist'sWorld,byThomasGrissom.Weincludethisbookasanexampleofabookthat
containsmostlyincorrectphysics.Grissomisaphilosopherwhohasmanagedtopublishabookabout
physicswithoutknowingmuchphysics,andit'sashamethathehastaughtthecontentofthisbookforsome
(many?)yearstophilosophystudents,whomust'vegoneoutintothebigworldthinkingthatphysicistsmust
beincrediblydumbiftheyreallybelievethenaveconceptsthatGrissomthinksphysicsisallabout.This
bookgetsallthebigtenetsofthesubjectwrong:Grissomthinksthatspecialrelativityisallaboutwhatis
seenwiththeeye,amistakethatonlyfirstyearstudentsareexpectedtomakehethinksthatthe
HeisenbergUncertaintyPrincipleconcernsthelimitsofmeasurementofquantitiesthatareotherwise
perfectlywelldefinedhethinksthattheSecondLawofThermodynamicsisanactuallawthatmustbe
obeyed.Andapparentlyhethinksthatphysicistsspendagreatdealoftheirtimeponderingthephilosophy
oftheAncientGreeks.Allcompletelywrong.

ClassicalMechanics
1.HerbertGoldstein:ClassicalMechanics,2nded,1980.
Intermediatetoadvancedexcellentbibliography.
2.Introductory:TheFeynmanLectures,vol1.
3.KeithSymon:Mechanics,3rded.,1971undergrad.level
4.H.CorbinandP.Stehle:ClassicalMechanics,2nded.,1960
5.V.I.Arnold:Mathematicalmethodsofclassicalmechanics,translatedbyK.VogtmannandA.Weinstein,2nd
ed.,1989.
Theappendicesaresomewhatmoreadvancedandcoverallsortsofniftytopics.Dealswithgeometrical
aspectsofclassicalmechanics
6.R.ResnickandD.Halliday:Physics,vol1,4thEd.,1993
Excellentintroductionwithoutmuchcalculus.Lotsofproblemsandreviewquestions.
7.Marion&Thornton:ClassicalDynamicsofParticlesandSystems,2nded.,1970.
Undergradlevel.Ausefulintrotoclassicaldynamics.NotasadvancedasGoldstein,butwithrealworked
outexamples.
8.A.FetterandJ.Walecka:Theoreticalmechanicsofparticlesandcontinua
graduateleveltext,alittlelessimpressivethanGoldstein(andsometimesalittlelessobtuse)
9.KiranGupta:ClassicalMechanicsofParticlesandRigidBodies(1988)
AtthelevelofGoldsteinbuthasmanymoreworkedoutproblemsattheendofeachchapterasagood
illustrationofthematerial.VeryusefulforpreparationsforthePhDQualifyingExamination(Ipresumethisis
Americaonlyed.).

ClassicalElectromagnetism
1.Jackson:ClassicalElectrodynamics,2nded.,1975
Intermediatetoadvanced,thedefinitivegraduate(US)/undergraduate(UK)text.
2.Purcell:BerkeleyPhysicsSeriesVol2.
Youcan'tbeatthisfortheintelligent,reasonablysophisticatedbeginningphysicsstudent.Hetellsyouonthe
veryfirstpageabouttheexperimentalproofofhowchargedoesnotvarywithspeed.
plus...Chen,Min,BerkeleyPhysicsproblemswithsolutions.
3.Reitz,MilfordandChristy:FoundationsofElectromagneticTheory4thed.,1992
Undergraduatelevel.Prettydifficulttolearnfromatfirst,butgoodreference,forsomecalculationsinvolving
stacksofthinfilmsandtheirreflectanceandtransmissionproperties,fore.g.It'sagood,rigoroustextasfar
asitgoes,whichisprettyfar,butnotalltheway.Forexample,theyhaveagreatsectiononoptical
propertiesofasinglethinfilmbetweentwodielectricsemiinfinitemedia,butnogeneralizationtostacksof
films.
4.Feynman:TheFeynmanLectures,Vol.2
5.Lorrain&Corson:Electromagnetism,PrinciplesandApplications,1979
6.ResnickandHalliday:Physics,vol2,4thed.,1993
7.IgorIrodov:ProblemsinPhysicsExcellentandextensivecollectionofEMproblemsforundergrads.
8.WilliamSmythe:StaticandDynamicElectricity,3rded.,1968
Fortheextrememasochists.SomeofthemosthairraisingEMproblemsyou'lleversee.Definitelynotfor
theweakofheart.
9.Landau,Lifshitz,andPitaevskii:ElectrodynamicsofContinuousMedia,2nded.,1984
SamelevelasJacksonandwithlotsofmaterialnotinJackson.
10.MarionandHeald:ClassicalElectromagneticRadiation,2nded.,1980.
Undergraduateorlowlevelgraduate.

QuantumMechanics
1.QED:ThestrangetheoryoflightandmatterRichardFeynman.
Oneneednolongerbeconfusedbythisbeautifultheory.RichardFeynmangivesanexpositionthatisonce
againandbyitselfabeautifulexplanationofthetheoryofphotonmatterinteractions.Takenfromapopular,
nontechnicallecture.
2.CohenTannoudji:QuantumMechanicsI&II&,1977.
Introductorytointermediate.
3.Liboff:IntroductoryQuantumMechanics,2nded.,1992
Elementarylevel.Makesafewmistakes.
4.Sakurai:ModernQuantumMechanics,1985
5.Sakurai:AdvancedQuantumMechanics1967
Goodasanintroductiontotheverybasicbeginningsofquantumfieldtheory,exceptthatithasthe
unfortunatefeatureofusing"imaginarytime"tomakeMinkowskispacelookEuclidean.
6.J.WheelerandW.Zurek(eds.):QuantumTheoryandMeasurement,1983
Onthephilosophicalend.Peoplewhowanttoknowaboutinterpretationsofquantummechanicsshould

definitelylookatthiscollectionofrelevantarticles.
7.C.DeWittandN.Graham:TheManyWorldsInterpretationofQuantumMechanics
Philosophical.Collectionofarticles.
8.H.Everett:TheoryoftheUniversalWavefunction
Anexpositionwhichhassomegemsonthermodynamicsandprobability.Worthreadingforthisalone.
9.BjorkenandDrell:RelativisticQuantumMechanics/RelativisticQuantumFields
(forcomments,seeunderParticlePhysics)
10.Ryder:QuantumFieldTheory,1984
11.Guidry:GaugeFieldTheories:anintroductionwithapplications1991
12.Messiah:QuantumMechanics,1961
13.Dirac:
a]PrinciplesofQM,4thed.,1958
b]LecturesinQM,1964
c]LecturesonQuantumFieldTheory,1966
14.ItzyksonandZuber:QuantumFieldTheory,1980
Advancedlevel.
15.Slater:Quantumtheory:Address,essays,lectures.
GoodfollowontoSchiff.
note:Schiff,BjorkenandDrell,FetterandWalecka,andSlaterareallvolumesin"InternationalSeriesinpure
andAppliedPhysics"publishedbyMcGrawHill.
16.PierreRamond:FieldTheory:AModernPrimer,2ndedition.Volume74intheFiPseries.
Thesocalled"revisedprinting"isamust,astheymust'verushedthefirstprintingofthe2ndeditionbecause
it'sfullofinexcusablemistakes.
17.Feynman:TheFeynmanLectures,Vol.3
Anontraditionalapproach.AgoodplacetogetanintuitivefeelforQM,ifonealreadyknowsthetraditional
approach.
18.Heitler&London:Quantumtheoryofmolecules
19.J.Bell:SpeakableandUnspeakableinQuantumMechanics,1987
AnexcellentcollectionofessaysonthephilosophicalaspectsofQM.
20.Milonni:Thequantumvacuum:anintroductiontoquantumelectrodynamics1994.
21.Holland:TheQuantumTheoryofMotion
AgoodbetforastrongfoundationinQM.
22.JohnvonNeumann:Mathematicalfoundationsofquantummechanics,1955.
Forthemoremathematicalsideofquantumtheory,especiallyforthosewhoaregoingtobearguingabout
measurementtheory.
23.Schiff:QuantumMechanics,3rded.,1968
Alittleold.NotmuchemphasisonairyfairythingslikemanyworldsorexcessiveangstoverHeisenbergUP.
StraightupQMforpeoplewhowanttodocalculations.Introductorygraduatelevel.MostlySchrodinger
eqn.Spinincluded,butonlyinanadjuncttoSchrodinger.NotmuchemphasisonthingslikeDiraceqn,etc.
24.EisbergandResnick:QuantumPhysicsofAtoms,Molecules,Solids,Nuclei,andParticles,2nded.,1985.
Thisisabasicintro.toQM,anditisexcellentforundergrads.Itisnotthoroughwiththemathematics,but
fillsinalotoftheintuitivestuffthatmosttextbooksdonotpresent.

25.DavidSaxon:ElementaryQuantumMechanics
Adecentundergraduate(seniorlevel)text.
26.BetheandJackiw:IntermediateQuantumMechanics
27.P.W.Atkins:Quanta:AHandbookofconcepts
Shortentries,arrangedalphabetically,emphasisonstuffrelevanttoquantumchemistry.Concentrateson
theintuitionandnotthemathematics.
28.JamesPeebles:QuantumMechanics(1993)
Intermediatelevel,basedonlecturesgivenbytheauthoratPrinceton.Verylucidexpositionofthestandard
materialwithoutstandingselectionofmostlyoriginalproblemsattheendofeachchapter.

StatisticalMechanicsandEntropy
1.DavidChandler:IntroductiontoModernStatisticalMechanics,1987
2.R.Tolman:PrinicplesofStatisticalMechanics.Dover
3.Kittel&Kroemer:StatisticalThermodynamics
Bestofabadlot.
4.Reif:Principlesofstatisticalandthermalphysics.
ThebigandlittleReifstatisticalmechanicsbooks.BigReifismuchbetterthanKittel&Kroemer.Heuses
clearlanguagebutavoidsthehandwavingthatthermodynamicsoftengivesriseto.MoreclassicalthanQM
oriented.
5.FelixBloch:FundamentalsofStatisticalMechanics.
6.RaduBalescu:StatisticalPhysics
GraduateLevel.Gooddescriptionofnonequilibriumstat.mech.butdifficulttoread.Itisallthere,butoften
youdon'trealizeituntilafteryouhavelearneditsomewhereelse.Nicedevelopmentinearlychaptersabout
parallelsbetweenclassicalandquantumstatisticalmechanics.
7.Abrikosov,Gorkov,andDyzaloshinski:MethodsofQuantumFieldTheoryinStatisticalPhysics
8.HuwPrice:Time'sArrowandArchimedes'Point
Semipopularbookonthedirectionoftimebyaphilosopher.Ithasbeencontroversialbecauseofits
criticismofphysicistssuchasHawkingfortheir"doublestandards"indealingwiththeoldproblemonthe
originofthearrowoftime.Itisthoughtprovokingandclearlywritten.
Thefollowing6booksdealwithmoderntopicsin(mostly)classicalstatisticalmechanics,namely,thecentral
notionsoflinearresponsetheory(Forster)andcriticalphenomena(therest)atlevelsuitableforbeginning
graduatestudents.
9.Thermodynamics,byH.Callen.
10.StatisticalMechanics,byR.K.Pathria
11.HydrodynamicFluctuations,BrokenSymmetry,andCorrelationFunctions,byD.Forster
12.IntroductiontoPhaseTransitionsandCriticalPhenomena,byH.E.Stanley
13.ModernTheoryofCriticalPhenomena,byS.K.Ma
14.LecturesonPhaseTransitionsandtheRenormalizationGroup,byN.Goldenfeld

CondensedMatter

1.CharlesKittel:IntroductiontoSolidStatePhysics(ISSP),
introductory
2.AshcroftandMermin:SolidStatePhysics,
intermediatetoadvanced
3.CharlesKittel:QuantumTheoryofSolids.
ThisisfrombeforethedaysofhisISSPitisamoreadvancedbook.Atasimilarlevel...
4.SolidStateTheory,byW.A.Harrison
(agreatbargainnowthatit'spublishedbyDover)
5.TheoryofSolids,byZiman.
6.FundamentalsoftheTheoryofMetals,byAbrikosov
Halfofthebookisonsuperconductivity.
7.ManyParticlePhysics,G.Mahan.
Advanced.

SpecialRelativity
1.TaylorandWheeler:SpacetimePhysicsStillthebestintroductionoutthere.
2.Relativity:Einstein'spopularexposition.
3.WolfgangRindler:EssentialRelativity.Springer1977
Withaheavybiastowardsastrophysicsandthereforeonamoremoderatelevelformally.Quitestrongon
intuition.
4.A.P.French:SpecialRelativity
Athoroughintroductorytext.Gooddiscussionofthetwinparadox,poleandthebarnetc.Plentyof
diagramsillustratingLorentztransformedcoordinates,givingbothanalgebraicandgeometricalinsightto
SR.(Seemstobeoutofprint)
5.AbrahamPais:SubtleistheLord:TheScienceandLifeofAlbertEinstein
ThebesttechnicalbiographyofthelifeandworkofAlbertEinstein.
6.SpecialRelativityanditsExperimentalFoundationsYuanZhongZhang
Specialrelativityissowellestablishedthatitsexperimentalfoundationisoftenignored.Thisbookfillsthe
gapandwillbeofrelevancetomanydiscussionsinsci.physics.relativity

ParticlePhysics
1.KersonHuang:Quarks,leptons&gaugefields,WorldScientific,1982.
Goodonmathematicalaspectsofgaugetheoryandtopology.
2.L.B.Okun:Leptonsandquarks,translatedfromRussianbyV.I.Kisin,NorthHolland,1982.
3.T.D.Lee:Particlephysicsandintroductiontofieldtheory.
4.Itzykson:ParticlePhysics
5.Bjorken&Drell:RelativisticQuantumMechanics
Oneofthemoretersebooks.Thefirstvolumeonrelativisticquantummechanicscoversthesubjectina
blinding300pages.Verygoodifyoureallywanttoknowthesubject.

6.FrancisHalzen&AlanD.Martin:Quarks&Leptons,
Beginnertointermediate,thisisastandardtextbookforgraduatelevelcourses.Goodknowledgeof
quantummechanicsandspecialrelativityisassumed.Averygoodintroductiontotheconceptsofparticle
physics.Goodexamples,butnotalotofFeynmandiagramcalculation.Forthis,seeBjorken&Drell.
7.DonaldH.Perkins:Introductiontohighenergyphysics
Regardedbymanypeopleinthefieldasthebestintroductorytextattheundergraduatelevel.Covers
basicallyeverythingwithalmostnomathematics.
8.Close,Marten,andSutton:TheParticleExplosion
Apopularexpositionofthehistoryofparticlephysicswithterrificphotography.
9.ChristineSutton:SpaceshipNeutrino
Agood,historical,largelyintuitiveintroductiontoparticlephysics,seenfromtheneutrinoviewpoint.
10.Mandl,Shaw:QuantumFieldTheory
Introductorytextbook,conciseandpracticallyorientated.Usedatmanygraduatedepartmentsasatextbook
forthefirstcourseinQFTandabareminimumforexperimentalistsinhighenergyphysics.Chapterson
Feynmandiagramsandcrosssectioncalculationsparticularlywellwrittenanduseful.
11.F.Gross:RelativisticQuantumMechanicsandFieldTheory
Iamfamiliarwithfirstpartonly(rel.QM)whichIwarmlyrecommendinconjunctionwithMandl,sinceKlein
GordonandDiracEquationareexplainedingreaterdetailthaninMandl.Oneofmyprofessorslikesalot
therestofthebooktoo,butIhaven'tspentmuchtimeonitandcan'tcomment.Publishedin1993.
12.S.Weinberg:TheQuantumTheoryofFields,VolI,II,1995It'stheusualWeinbergstuff:refreshing,
illuminatingviewpointsoneverypage.Perhapsmostsuitableforgraduatestudentswhoalreadyknowsome
basicsofQFT.Unfortunately,thisbookdoesnotconformtoBjorkenDrellmetric.
13.M.B.Green,J.H.Schwarz,E.Witten:SuperstringTheory(2vols)
Althoughthesetwovolumesdonottouchtheimportantnewdevelopmentsinstringtheoriestheyarestillthe
besttextsforthebasics.Tokeepupwiththisfastdevelopingsubjectitisnecessarytodownloadthepapers
andreviewsasheptheprints.
14.M.Kaku:Strings,ConformalFieldsandTopology
JustalittlemoreuptodatethanGSW
15.Superstrings:ATheoryofEverythingedP.C.W.Davies
ThroughtranscriptsofinterviewswithSchwarz,Witten,Green,Gross,Ellis,Salam,Glashow,Feynmanand
WeinbergwelearnaboutstringtheoryandhowdifferentphysicistsfeelaboutitsprospectsasaTOE.This
alsopredatesthenewdevelopmentswhichrevolutionisedstringtheoryafter1993.
16.APais:InwardBound
ThiscanberegardedasacompanionvolumetohisbiographyofEinstein(seespecialrelativitysection).It
coversthehistoryofparticlephysicsthroughthetwentiethcenturybutisbestfortheearlierhalf.
17.R.P.Crease,C.C.Mann:TheSecondCreation1996
Anotherhistoryofparticlephysicsinthetwentiethcentury.Thisoneisespeciallygoodonthedevelopment
ofthestandardmodel..Fullofpersonalstoriestakenfromnumerousinterviews,itisdifficulttoputdown.
18.L.Lederman,D.Teresi:TheGodParticle:IftheUniverseIstheAnswer,WhatIstheQuestion?2006
ThisbookdescribesthesearchfortheHiggsBosonatFermilab.ItdescribeswhattheHiggsisandgives
somebackgroundtothesubjectofparticlephysics.Italsogivesanaccountofsomemoregeneralphysics
history.

GeneralRelativity
1.Meisner,ThorneandWheeler:GravitationW.H.Freeman&Co.,SanFrancisco1973
UsuallyreferredtoasMTW.Ithastwotracksfordifferentlevels.Afamousworkinthesubjectwhosemain
strengthisprobablyitsvariousasides,historicalandotherwise.Whileithasmuchinterestingreading,itis
notabooktolearnrelativityfrom:itsapproachisallovertheplace,anditpushesgawdynotationwhichno
oneactuallyusestodoanythinguseful.
2.RobertM.Wald:Space,Time,andGravity:theTheoryoftheBigBangandBlackHoles.
Agoodnontechnicalintroduction,withanicemixofmathematicalrigorandcomprehensiblephysics.
3.Schutz:AFirstCourseinGeneralRelativity.
Areadableandusefulbook,toapoint.The1988edition,atleast,unfortunatelyhasatangledapproachto
itsLambdaindexnotationthatiswronginplaces.Schutzgoestogreatlengthstoconvincethereaderofthe
usefulnessofoneforms,butisclearlyunawarethateverythinghedoeswiththemcanbedoneinshorter
timeusingvectorsalone.BewaretheshowstoppingtyposintheRiemanncomponentsforthe
Schwarzschildmetriconpage315.ThediscussionaboutRiemanntensorsignsonpage171isalsowrong,
andwillgiveyouwrongresultsifyouapplyit.Indeed,thatdiscussionisindicativeofageneralnavetinthe
book'searlymathematicsasawhole.
4.Weinberg:GravitationandCosmology
Agoodbookthattakesasomewhatdifferentapproachtothesubject.
5.HansOhanian:Gravitation&Spacetime(recentlybackinprint)
Forsomeonewhoactuallywantstolearntoworkproblems,idealforselfteaching,andmathisintroduced
asneeded,ratherthaninacolossalblast.
6.RobertWald:GeneralRelativity
AmoreadvancedtextbookthanWald'searlierbook,appropriateforanintroductorygraduatecourseinGR.
Itstrikesjusttherightbalance,inmyopinion,betweenmathematicalrigorandphysicalintuition.Ithasgreat
mathematicsappendicesforthosewhocareaboutprovingtheoremscarefully,andagoodintroductionto
theproblemsbehindquantumgravity(althoughnottotheirsolutions).Ithinkit'sMUCHbetterthaneither
MTWorWeinberg.
7.CliffordWill:WasEinsteinRight?PuttingGeneralRelativitytotheTest
NontechnicalaccountoftheexperimentalsupportforGR,includingthe"classicthreetests",butgoingwell
beyondthem.
8.KipThorne:BlackHolesandTimeWarps:Einstein'sOutrageousLegacy
Anawardwinningpopularaccountofblackholesandrelatedobjectswithmanyhistoricalanecdotesfrom
theauthor'spersonalexperiences.Thebookisfamousforthefinalsectionsabouttimetravelthrough
wormholes.
9.IgnoreDirac'ssmallbookonlecturesinGR,unlessyoulikereadingbooksthathavealmostnodiscussionof
theirmathematicalcontent(andalmostnodiscussionofanythingelse,either).It'sasurebetthatthisbook
wasonlypublishedbecauseDiracwroteit.

MathematicalMethods

1.MorseandFeshbach:MethodsofTheoreticalPhysics.Thisbookusedtobehardtofind,butcannowbe
boughtatfeshbachpublishing.com.
2.MathewsandWalker:MathematicalMethodsofPhysics.Anabsolutejoyforthosewholovemath,andvery
informativeevenforthosewhodon't.[Thishasbeenseverelydisputed!ed]
3.Arfken:MathematicalMethodsforPhysicistsAcademicPress
Goodintroductionatgraduatelevel.Notcomprehensiveinanyarea,butcoversmanyareaswidely.Arfken
istomathmethodswhatnumericalrecipesistonumericalmethodsgoodintro,butnotthelastword.
4.Zwillinger:HandbookofDifferentialEquations.AcademicPress
KindoflikeCRCtablesbutforODEsandPDEs.Goodreferencebookwhenyou'vegotadifferential
equationandwanttofindasolution.
5.GradshteynandRyzhik:TableofIntegrals,Series,andProductsAcademic
THEbookofintegrals.Huge,butusefulwhenyouneedanintegral.
6.F.W.ByronandR.Fuller:MathematicsofClassicalandQuantumPhysics(2vols)
isareallyterrifictextforselfstudyitislikeababyversionofMorse&Feshbach.

NuclearPhysics
1.PrestonandBhaduri:StructureoftheNucleus
2.BlattandWeisskopf:TheoreticalNuclearPhysics
3.DeShalitandFeshbach:TheoreticalNuclearPhysics
Thisisseriousstuff.Alsoquiteexpensiveeveninpaper.Ithinkthehardcoverisoutofprint.Thisisvolume
I(structure).VolumeII(scattering)isalsoavailable.
4.Satchler:DirectNuclearReactions
5.Walecka:TheoreticalNuclearandSubnuclearPhysics(1995)
Coversadvancedtopicsintheoreticalnuclearphysicsfromamodernperspectiveandincludesresultsof
past20yearsinafieldwhichmakesitunique.Notaneasymaterialtoreadbutinvaluableforpeople
seekinganupdatedreviewofthepresentstatusinthefield.
6.Krane:Introductorynuclearphysics
Introductorytointermediateleveltextbookinbasicnuclearphysicsforseniorundergraduates.Good,clear
andrelativelycomprehensiveexpositionof"standard"material:nuclearmodels,alfa,beta,gamma
radioactivity,nuclearreactions...Lasteditionissuedin1988.

Cosmology
1.J.V.Narlikar:IntroductiontoCosmology.1983Jones&BartlettPubl.
Forpeoplewithasolidbackgroundinphysicsandhighermath,THEintroductorytext,IMHO,becauseithits
thebalancebetweenmathematicalaccuracy(tensorcalculusandstuff)andintuitiveclarity/geometrical
modelsverywellforgradstudentlevel.Ofcourse,ithasflawsbutonlynoticeablebytheRealExperts(TM).
..
2.Hawking:ABriefHistoryofTime
TheghostwrittenbookthatmadePopularSciencepopular,butanoddmixtureofeasyphysicsandvery
advancedphysics.

3.Weinberg:FirstThreeMinutes
Averygoodbook.It'sprettyold,butmostoftheinformationinitisstillcorrect.
4.TimothyFerris:ComingofAgeintheMilkyWayandTheWholeShebang
MorePopularScience,andveryreadable.
5.KolbandTurner:TheEarlyUniverse.
Atamoreadvancedlevel,astandardreference.Asthetitleimplies,K&Tcovermostlythestrangephysics
ofveryearlytimes:it'sheavyontheparticlephysics,andskimpsontheastrophysics.There'saprimeron
largescalestructure,whichisthemostactiveareaofcosmologicalresearch,butit'sreallynotallthatgood.
6.Peebles:PrinciplesofPhysicalCosmology.Comprehensive,andonthewholeit'squiteagoodbook,butit's
ratherpoorlyorganized.IfindmyselfjumpingbackandforththroughthebookwheneverIwanttofind
anything.
7.BlackHolesandWarpedSpacetime,byWilliamJ.KaufmannIII.
Thisisagreat,fairlythorough,thoughnonmathematicaldescriptionofblackholesandspacetimeasit
relatestocosmology.IwasimpressedbyhowfewmistakesKaufmannmakesinsimplifying,whilemost
suchbookstendtosacrificeaccuracyforsimplicity.
8.M.V.Berry:PrinciplesofCosmologyandGravitation
Thisisverywellwritten,andusefulasanundergradtext.
9.DennisOverbye:LonelyHeartsoftheCosmosTheunfinishedhistoryofconvergeonHubble'sconstantis
presented,fromtheperspectiveofcompetingastrophysicsrivalteamsandinstitute,alongwithalotof
backgroundoncosmology(alotoninflation,forinstance).Agoodinsightintothescientificprocess.
10.JosephSilk:TheBigBang
IconsiderSilk'sbookanabsolutemustforthosewhowantaquickrunatthecurrentstateofbigbang
cosmologyandsomeoftherecent(1988)issueswhichhavegivensomanyofuslotsofproblemstosolve.
[ofcoursethat'seonsoutofdatenowed.]
11.Bubbles,voids,andbumpsintime:thenewcosmologyeditedbyJamesCornell.
Thisisquiteaniceandrelativelyshortreadforsomeofthepressingissues(asof198788)inastrophysical
cosmology.
12.T.Padmanabhan:Structureformationintheuniverse
Anononsensebookforthosewhowanttocalculatesomeproblemsstrictlyrelatedtotheformationof
structureintheuniverse.Thebookevencomescompletewithproblemsattheendofeachchapter.Abad
thingaboutthisbookisthatthereisn'tanycoverageonclustersofgalaxiesandtheonereallybigthingthat
annoysthehellouttameisthatthebibliographyforeachchapterisallcombinedinonebigbibliography
towardstheendofthebookwhichmakesforlotsofpageflipping.
13.P.J.E.Peebles:Thelargescalestructureoftheuniverse
Thisisadefinitivebookforanyonewhodesiresanunderstandingofthemathematicsrequiredtodevelop
thetheoryformodelsoflargescalestructure.Theessentialtechniquesinthedescriptionofhowmassis
abletoclusterundergravityfromasmoothearlyuniversearediscussed.WhileIfinditdryinsomeplaces,
therearenoteworthysections(e.g.statisticaltests,npointcorrelationfunctions,etc.).
14.AndrzejKrasinski:InhomogeneousCosmologicalModels
Ifyouareblindedbythedogmaofthecosmologicalprinciple,thisbookisarealeyeopener.Atechnical,
historicalandbibliographicalsurveyofpossibleinhomogeousuniversesfromsolutionsofgeneralrelativity.

15.AlanLightmanandRobertaBrawer:Origins:Thelivesandworldsofmoderncosmologists,1990
Transcriptsofinterviewwith27ofthemostinfluentialcosmologistsfromthepastfewdecades.Thisbook
providesauniquerecordofhowtheircosmologicaltheorieshavebeenformed.

Astronomy
1.HannuKarttunenetal.(eds.):FundamentalAstronomy.
Theverygoodbookcoveringallofastronomy(alsoforabsolutebeginners)ANDstillgoingintoalotofdetail
forspecialworkforpeoplemoreinvolvedANDpresentingexcellentgraphicsandpictures.
2.Pasachoff:ContemporaryAstronomy
Goodintroductorytextbookforthenontechnicalreader.Itgivesaprettygoodoverviewoftheimportant
topics,andithasgoodpictures.
3.FrankShu:Thephysicaluniverse:anintroductiontoastronomy
Thisisareallygrandbook,whichcoversahugesweepofphysicsinits600oddpages.Notonlydoesit
describethefieldofastronomyingreatdetail,butitalsocoversindetailthelawsofclassicalandquantum
mechanics,atrophysicsandstellarevolution,cosmology,specialandgeneralrelativityandlastbutnotleast,
thebiochemicalbasisoflife.Infactthelastfewchapterswouldmakeagreatadditiontoabiochemist's
library!
4.KennethR.Lang:Astrophysicalformulae:acompendiumforthephysicistandastrophysicist
Hereiseverythingyouwantedtoknow(andmore!)aboutastrophysicalformulaeonaoneline/one
paragraph/oneshotdeal.Ofcourse,theformulaecomecompletewithreferences(atadold,mindyou)but
it'samustforeveryonewho'sworkinginastronomyandastrophysics.Youlearnsomethingneweverytime
youflipthroughthepages!

PlasmaPhysics
(SeeRobertHeeter'ssci.physics.fusionFAQfordetails)

NumericalMethods/Simulations
1.JohnsonandRees:NumericalAnalysisAddisonWesley
Undergraduatelevelbroadintro.
2.NumericalRecipesinX(X=C,Fortran,Pascal,etc.)TuekloskyandPress
3.YoungandGregory:AsurveyofNumericalMathematicsDover2volumes.
Excellentoverviewatgrad.level.EmphasistowardsolutionofellipticPDEs,butgooddescriptionofmethods
togetthereincludinglinearalgebra,matrixtechniques,ODEsolvingmethods,andinterpolationtheory.
Biggeststrengthisitprovidesacoherentframeworkandstructuretoattachmostcommonlyusednumerical
methods.Thishelpsunderstandingaboutwhytouseonemethodoranother.2volumes.
4.HockneyandEastwood:ComputerSimulationUsingParticlesAdamHilger
Goodexpositionofparticleincell(PIC)methodandextensions.Applicationstoplasmas,astronomy,and
solidstatearediscussed.Emphasisisondescriptionofalgorithms.Someresultsshown.

5.BirdsallandLangdon:PlasmaPhysicsviaComputerSimulations
PICsimulationappliedtoplasmas.Sourcecodesshown.FirstpartisalmostatutorialonhowtodoPIC.
SecondpartislikeaseriesofreviewarticlesondifferentPICmethods.
6.Tajima:ComputationalPlasmaPhysics:WithApplicationstoFusionandAstrophysicsAddisonWesley
FrontiersinphysicsSeries.
Algorithmsdescribed.Emphasisonphysicsthatcanbesimulated.Applicationslimitedtoplasmas,but
subjectareasverybroad,fusion,cosmology,solarastrophysics,magnetosphericphysics,plasma
turbulence,generalastrophysics.

FluidDynamics
1.D.J.Tritton:PhysicalFluidDynamics
2.G.K.Batchelor:IntroductiontoFluidDynamics
3.S.Chandrasekhar:HydrodynamicsandHydromagneticStability
4.Segel:MathematicsAppliedtoContinuumMechanicsDover.

NonlinearDynamics,Complexity,andChaos
ThereisaFAQpostedregularlytosci.nonlinear.
1.Prigogine:ExploringComplexity
OranyotherPrigoginebook.Ifyou'vereadone,youreadmostofofthem(APoincarrecurrencemaybe?).
2.GuckenheimerandHolmes:NonlinearOscillations,DynamicalSystems,andBifurcationsofVectorFields
Springer
Borderlinephys./math.Advancedlevel.Anutsandbolts"howto"textbook.Theyletthetopicprovideallthe
razzmatazz,whichisplentyifyoupayattentionandrememberthephysicsthatitappliesto.
3.Lichtenberg,A.J.andM.A.Lieberman(1982):RegularandStochasticMotion.NewYork,SpringerVerlag.
4.IoosandJoseph:ElementaryStabilityandBifurcationTheory.NewYork,Springer.
5.HeinzPagels:TheDreamsOfReason
Heisaveryclearandinteresting,captivatingwriter,andpresentstheconceptsinaveryintuitiveway.The
levelispopularscience,butitisstillusefulforphysicistswhoknowlittleofcomplexity.
6.M.MitchellWaldrop:Complexity
Apopularintrotothesubjectofspontaneousorders,complexityandsoon.Coversimplicationsfor
economics,biologyetcandnotjustphysics.

Optics(ClassicalandQuantum),Lasers
1.MaxBornandEmilWolf:PrinciplesofOptics:ElectromagneticTheoryofPropagation
Standardreference.
2.Sommerfeld:
Forthemoreclassicallyminded.
3.AllenandEberly:OpticalResonanceandTwoLevelAtoms.
Forquantumoptics,themostreadablebutmostlimited.

4.Goodman:IntroductiontoFourierOptics.
Ifitisn'tinthisbook,itisn'tFourieroptics.
5.QuantumOpticsandElectronics(LesHouchesSummerSchool1963or1964,butsomeonehasclaimed
thatGordonandBreach,NY,aregoingtorepublishitin1995),editedbyDeWitt,Blandin,andCohen
Tannoudji,isnoteworthyprimarilyforGlauber'slectures,thatformthebasisofquantumopticsasitisknown
today.
6.Sargent,Scully,&Lamb:LaserPhysics
7.Yariv:QuantumElectronics
8.Siegman:Lasers
9.Shen:ThePrinciplesofNonlinearOptics
10.Meystre&Sargent:ElementsofQuantumOptics
11.CohenTannoudji,DupontRoc,&Grynberg:Photons,AtomsandAtomPhotonInteractions.
12.Hecht:Optics
Averygoodintroductoryopticsbook.
13.PracticalHolographybyGrahamSaxby,PrenticeHall:NewYork1988.
Thisisaveryclearanddetailedbookthatisanexcellentintroductiontoholographyforinterested
undergraduatephysicspeople,aswellasadvancedreaders,especiallythosewhoareinterestedinthe
practicaldetailsofmakinghologramsandthetheorybehindthem.

MathematicalPhysics
LieAlgebra,Topology,KnotTheory,Tensors,etc.
Thesearebooksthataresortoftalkyandfuntoread(butstillsubstantialsomeharderthanothers).These
includethingsmathematicianscanreadaboutphysicsaswellasviceversa.Thesebooksaredifferentthanthe
"bibles"onemusthaveonhandatalltimestodomathematicalphysics.
1.YvonneChoquetBruhat,CecileDeWittMorette,andMargaretDillardBleick:Analysis,manifolds,and
physics(2volumes)
Somethingeverymathematicalphysicistshouldhaveathisbedsideuntilheknowsitinsideandoutbut
somepeoplesayit'snotespeciallyeasytoread.
2.JeanDieudonne:Apanoramaofpuremathematics,asseenbyN.Bourbaki,translatedbyI.G.Macdonald.
Givesthebigpictureinmathematics.
3.RobertHermann:Liegroupsforphysicists,BenjaminCummings,1966.
4.GeorgeMackey:Quantummechanicsfromthepointofviewofthetheoryofgrouprepresentations,
MathematicalSciencesResearchInstitute,1984.
5.GeorgeMackey:Unitarygrouprepresentationsinphysics,probability,andnumbertheory.
6.CharlesNashandS.Sen:Topologyandgeometryforphysicists.
7.B.BoossandD.D.Bleecker:Topologyandanalysis:theAtiyahSingerindexformulaandgaugetheoretic
physics.
8.BambergandS.Sternberg:ACourseofMathematicsforStudentsofPhysics
9.Bishop&Goldberg:TensorAnalysisonManifolds.
10.Dodson&Poston:TensorGeometry.

11.Abraham,Marsden&Ratiu:Manifolds,TensorAnalysisandApplications.
12.M.Nakahara:Topology,GeometryandPhysics.
13.Morandi:TheRoleofTopologyinClassicalandQuantumPhysics
14.Singer,Thorpe:LectureNotesonElementaryTopologyandGeometry
15.L.Kauffman:KnotsandPhysics,WorldScientific,Singapore,1991.
16.C.YangandM.Ge:Braidgroup,KnotTheory&StatisticalMechanics.
17.D.Kastler:CalgebrasandtheirapplicationstoStatisticalMechanicsandQuantumFieldTheory.
18.CourantandHilbert:MethodsofMathematicalPhysicsWiley
Reallyamathematicsbookindisguise.EmphasisonODEsandPDEs.Provesexistence,etc.Very
comprehensive.2volumes.
19.CecilleDewittispublishingabookonmanifoldsthatshouldbeoutsoon(maybealreadyis).Veryhighlevel,
butsupposedlyofgreatimportanceforanyoneneedingtosettheFeynmanpathintegralinafirm
foundation.
20.HowardGeorgi:LieGroupsforParticlePhyiscsAddisonWesleyFrontiersinPhysicsSeries.
21.SyngeandSchild.

AtomicPhysics
1.MaxBorn:AtomicPhysics
Aclassic,thoughalittleold.
2.GerhardHerzberg:Atomicspectraandatomicstructure,TranslatedwiththecooperationoftheauthorbyJ.
W.T.Spinks.NewYork,Doverpublications,1944
Oldbutgood.
3.E.U.CondonandG.H.Shortley:Thetheoryofatomicspectra,CUP1951
4.G.K.Woodgate:Elementaryatomicstructure,2ded.Oxford:NewYork:ClarendonPress,OxfordUniversity
Press,1983,c1980
Introductorylevel.
5.AlanCorney:Atomicandlaserspectroscopy,Oxford,NewYork:ClarendonPress,1977
Excellent,fairlyadvanced,largeexperimentalbent,butgooddevelopmentofbackground.Goodstuffon
lasers(gas,dye)

LowTemperaturePhysics,Superconductivity
1.TheTheoryofQuantumLiquids,byD.PinesandP.Nozieres
2.SuperconductivityofMetalsandAlloys,P.G.DeGennesAclassicintroduction.
3.TheoryofSuperconductivity,J.R.Schrieffer
4.Superconductivity,M.Tinkham
5.Experimentaltechniquesinlowtemperaturephysics,byGuyK.White.
Thisisconsideredbymanyasa"bible"forthoseworkinginexperimentallowtemperaturephysics.
Thankstothe30+contributorswhomadethiscompilationpossible.