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Shanker's Quantum Mechanics book is a very valuable and informative resource, but I think it's a bit difficult, especially for a beginner like me. Most universities rely on it to explain quantum mechanics classes.

So my question is:

Are there any courses available (on YouTube or as pdf) that provide a simplified explanation of Shanker's book?

I know there are tons of resources available online on quantum mechanics but I would like to get resources for Shanker's book specifically where my university relies on it.

Qmechanic
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Bekaso
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  • To be clear, you’re not asking for a simplified introduction to quantum mechanics below the level of Shankar, but rather for a resource which literally explains Shankar’s book in simpler language? – J. Murray Dec 05 '21 at 02:43
  • Yes, if it is actually available. – Bekaso Dec 05 '21 at 02:52
  • Possible duplicates: https://physics.stackexchange.com/q/33215/2451 and links therein. – Qmechanic Dec 05 '21 at 04:45

1 Answers1

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Here are online resources I know of that covers the topics in Shankar:

  1. MIT 8.04: taught by allan adams. https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/physics/8-04-quantum-physics-i-spring-2013/ He is an very enthusiastic and entertaining lecturer. The course zooms through a lot of topics for an introductory course which may not be what you are looking for

  2. MIT 8.05/8.06 by Barton Zwiebach: https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/physics/8-05-quantum-physics-ii-fall-2013/

8.05/8.06 forms the core MIT quantum sequence. 8.05 lecture 3-10 in particular covers all the linear algebra and dirac bra-ket notation that forms roughly the first 100 pages or so of shankar's book.

Rotational invariance is a difficult topic because it is usually the first time one has to think abstractly about transformation properties and symmetry. Angular momentum is covered in lecture 21 of 8.05 attached, the perspective is slightly different from Shankar's book (which imo is very clear).

For a slightly less sophisticated treatment of angular momentum, you can consult griffiths section 4.2 or lecture 15/16 of the 8.04 the course attached.

physicsdude
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  • Thank you very much for providing me with these resources. It covers a lot of topics that I want. In particular, I find it somewhat difficult to understand chapters 11 and 12 which talk about Rotational Invariance. I would be grateful if you could direct me to sources related to this topic. – Bekaso Dec 05 '21 at 03:32
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    Actually I just rewatched lecture 16 of 8.04 because of this comment and 30 minutes went by in a whizz, amazing lecture. highly recommended. – physicsdude Dec 05 '21 at 04:43