Twentieth century physics

Twentieth Century Physics, Second Edition is a major historical study of the scientific and cultural development of physics in the twentieth century. This unique three-volume work offers a scholarly but highly readable overview of the development of physics, addressing both the cultural and the scientific aspects of the discipline. The three volumes deal with the major themes of physics in a quasi-chronological manner. The first volume covers the early part of the century while the second and third volumes discuss more recent issues. In each case, the development of the theme is traced from its inception to the present day. The list of contributors includes Nobel laureates, fellows of the Royal Society, and other distinguished international physicists. Where appropriate, specialists in the history of physics have written their own commentaries, providing a valuable counterpoint to the physicists' perspectives.

Volume 1: Physics in 1900 (B Pippard). Introducing atoms and their nuclei (A Pais). Quanta and quantum mechanics (H Rechenberg). History of relativity (J Stachel). Nuclear forces, mesons, and isospin symmetry (L M Brown). Solid-state structure analysis (W Cochran). Thermodynamics and statistical mechanics (in equilibrium) (C Domb). Non-equilibrium statistical mechanics or The vagaries of time evolution (M Dresden). Volume 2: Elementary particle physics in the second half of the twentieth century (V L Fitch and J L Rosner). Fluid mechanics (J Lighthill). Superfluids and superconductors (A J Leggett). Vibrations and spin waves in crystals (R A Cowley and B Pippard). Atomic and molecular physics (U Fano). Magnetism (K W H Stevens). Nuclear dynamics (D M Brink). Units, standards and constants (A Bailey). Volume 3: Electrons in solids (B Pippard). A history of optical and optoelectronic physics in the twentieth century (R G W Brown and E R Pike). Physics of materials (R W Cahn). Electron-beam instruments (T Mulvey). Soft matter: birth and growth of concepts (P-G de Gennes). Plasma physics in the twentieth century (R F Post). Astrophysics and cosmology (M S Longair). Computer-generated …