Book Description

Following on from the successful MPEG-2 standard, MPEG-4 Visual is enabling a new wave of multimedia applications from Internet video streaming to mobile video conferencing. The new H.264 ‘Advanced Video Coding’ standard promises impressive compression performance and is gaining support from developers and manufacturers.  The first book to cover H.264 in technical detail, this unique resource takes an application-based approach to the two standards and the coding concepts that underpin them.

• Presents a practical, step-by-step, guide to the MPEG-4 Visual and H.264 standards for video compression.
• Introduces the basic concepts of digital video and covers essential background material required for an understanding of both standards.
• Provides side-by-side performance comparisons of MPEG-4 Visual and H.264 and advice on how to approach and interpret them to ensure conformance.
• Examines the way that the standards have been shaped and developed, discussing the composition and procedures of the VCEG and MPEG standardisation groups.

Focussing on compression tools and profiles for practical multimedia applications, this book ‘decodes’ the standards, enabling developers, researchers, engineers and students to rapidly get to grips with both H.264 and MPEG-4 Visual.

Dr Iain Richardson leads the Image Communication Technology research group at the Robert Gordon University in Scotland and is the author of over 40 research papers and two previous books on video compression technology.
... Read more

Reviews (1)

First on the subject, rough around the edges
This is the first text book published on H.264. It has a nice overview of digital video compression techniques followed by chapters focusing on the specifics of each of the MPEG-4 and H.264 standards. Buying this book relays much of the same information but is more cost effective than buying each of the papers and articles on the subject from IEEE and others.

It appears that this book was rushed to publication in order to be first. Particularly in the chapter on H.264, there are many typos and incomplete figures. In some places, a new technical term is used without proper introduction. I look forward to a cleaner second edition in the future. ... Read more

Reviews (23)

A modern classic
I have used this book for the past five years, teaching a one
semester course on Intro to Quantum Field Theory.
I also taught the second half of the book two times.
I am still amazed by how well written and enlightening this book
is, and I regard it as a modern classic. After a years
worth of study, the student is really able to dive into research.
They know the Standard Model in enough detail to
perform radiative corrections in the electroweak model, and
where the Feynman rules come from in different gauges.
The book is accessible to experimental and theoretical students
in all areas of physics, and drives home all the essential
points. I wish this book had been around twenty years ago
when I was first trying to learn the material.

A major step since Bjorken/Drell
The book of Peskin/Schroeder represents in my view a major stepforward since Bjorken/Drell. Not only do they cover everything in moredetails but their book also reflect the considerable advancement and refinement of quantum field theory. In any case, one should still start with Bjorken/Drell in order to get a good understanding before moving over to Peskin/Schroeder. This is not to say that Peskin/Schroeder is difficult to read, quite the contrary, but the physics embedded in the mathematics will be much easier to master. The problems are very well tied to each chapter and are also clearly written for a further and deeper understanding of the subjects. Also, Peskin/Schroeder cover quite a bit in quantum field theory and one will never have the feeling that something was left out. This also makes it an excellent reference book as well.

Good but could be better
I used P&S for an intro QFT course. I learned much from the text as I found it clear and full of helpful examples. Particularly nice sections were those introducing free quantum fields, functional methods (path integrals), and non-abelian gauge theories and their quantization. In other sections, however, P&S often take many pages and indirect paths towards deriving basic results, which is particularly frustrating when one wishes to use the text for reference. The chapter introducing interacting fields seems disorganized, and the treatments of infrared and uv divergences (renormalization) seem to go on forever, with interesting or important results scattered through hundreds of pages. The discussion of the Standard Model is likewise overly verbose yet incomplete, and there is no discussion of susy. In this and other ways this text is less advanced than Ryder's, though I found its presentations clearer than Ryder's.

Overall, I found this a nice book to learn from, but horrible to return to when I try to fill in the gaps of my understanding of QFT.

The best book on QFT
This is the best book for learning and teaching quantum field theory. Although it doesn't cover philosophical or very formal aspects of QFT, it is very readable and more than sufficient to teach a year long introductory course.

This book is also excellent for self study. Unlike Weinberg which is too formal or several others that are too specialized, Peskin & Schroeder presents a nice general overview of the topic.

Horrible book!
This is by far the worst book on QFT that I know of. There is absolutely no logic or motivation. One doesn't learn concepts or computational techniques. There are many other modern texts available which are much better. Try Weinberg or Sterman, for example. ... Read more

Book Description

Filing an important gap in the literature, this comprehensive text develops conformal field theory from first principles. The treatment is self-contained, pedagogical, and exhaustive, and includes a great deal of background material on quantum field theory, statistical mechanics, Lie algebras and affine Lie algebras. The many exercises, with a wide spectrum of difficulty and subjects, complement and in many cases extend the text. The text is thus not only an excellent tool for classroom teaching but also for individual study.

Intended primarily for graduate students and researchers in theoretical high-energy physics, mathematical physics, condensed matter theory, statistical physics, the book will also be of interest in other areas of theoretical physics and mathematics.It will prepare the reader for original research in this very active field of theoretical and mathematical Physics. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

This is a great book for beginners to learn CFT.
This book is really well done. It introduce the theory of conformal fields in a really pedagogical way so that any person not familiar at all with the subject can enjoy it. The review of quantum field theory and statistical mechanics at the begining is excellent and it is of great help if you haven't work with these subjects recently. The book is also filled with many basic applications that make the theory closer to real life.

Congratulations for this nice book!

A definite "must have" for those interested in CFT.
This book is a fine contribution to the literature on conformal field theory and will no doubt become one of the standard references on the subject. It is well worth the price as it gives a comprehensive introduction to the subject. Chapter 5 is a good discussion of local conformal invariance and clears up some of my own misunderstandings of this invariance. The later chapters discuss affine Lie algebras and algebraic considerations in detail.

Very complete, the reference in the field
Probably the best book to introduce you to conformal field theory. It starts from basics and go up to coset constrcutions, WZW models. More than a textbook, it is a necessary reference! ... Read more

Reviews (12)

A classical text but good foundations in Math needed.
I had this book as my text book in Purdue University. Frankly speaking, most people will have no clue what it is talking after reading it for the first time because this book describes electromagnetism more from a mathematical point of view. From the start it just throws hypothesis, derivations and formulae to the reader and there are few examples, therefore readers without adequate and solid background in maths(especially in vector calculus) will be quickly confused by this book and lose the big picture. This book serves nicely as a reference but if you are not that familiar in this field, I would recommend other books. One of them is 'electromagnetics' by Kraus which is not as mathematical rigorous as this book, but more readable.

Short and Concise- An Engineer's Book!
I used this book for an introductory couse on Electromagnetics. I like books which are concise and have a lot of pictures and solved problems because I am not interested in the details which are probably more important to a Physics Major. The sample problems are a must if you want to master Electromagnetics. I found this subject very difficult and also used Schaums Outline of Electromagnetics by Edminister for additional practice problems.

Excellent and unique development, but lacking in some areas
Although this is my favorite exposition of fields and waves, Cheng sort of violates what he set out to do. This text is supposed to proceed more logically than others, yet it provides no basis for the basic postulates he introduces. He describes the postulates with one sentence, provides no motivation for them, and does not even describe any experimental basis for them. This is in stark contrast to other books. Also, he incorrectly treats the Lorentz condition from a logical point of view. The Lorentz condition is what helps link electromagnetic fields with electromagnetic waves travelling through space in the time-varying case. Cheng simply states the Lorentz condition because it simplifies another equation for potentials and says that we are at liberty to specify the equation because it contains the divergence of a variable whose curl is already specified earlier; and specifying both the divergence and curl of a vector field uniquely defines the field. This is abrupt, arbitrary reasoning with almost no motivation behind it. He should have at least stated where the Lorentz condition really comes from -- from the theory of relativity and its relation to electromagnetic fields. This would be a more lucid and correct way of linking electromagnetic fields to electromagnetic waves. Besides these shortcomings, this book is unique and excellent overall. For the serious student of electromagnetics, applied scientists, and engineers I recommend getting this book along with Essentials of Electromagnetics for Engineering by Wolf and Electromagnetic Fields and Waves by Lorrain and Corson; Lorrain and Corson's text correctly treats the Lorentz condition and derives it using the theory of relativity. These three texts, when first supplanted by a course in electromagnetism at a reasonable level, will leave one ready for any new encounters in this field, research or applied.

Most Elegant Engineering Book I Have Seen
Electromagnetism is a hard subject for many people, including myself. The best approach is to get a few good books on the subject rather than rely on one book. After doing a survey, I finally bought the following books suitable for my level: (i) Introductory Electromagnetics by Popovic and Popovic; (ii) Field and Wave Electromagnetics by Cheng; (iii) Electromagnetics with Applications by Kraus; (iv) Schaums Outline of Electromagnetics by Edminister. I give five stars to all these books. (There is another book which I will not review or identify, because it turned out to be unsatisfactory.)

I am reviewing these four books in one go because they are interrelated. Each of these book is strong in its own unique area.

Introductory Electromagnetics by Popovic and Popovic is the best of these book for gaining an intuitive understanding of the difficult subject of electromagnetism. Its clarity and elegance reminds me of Feynman's Lectures in Physics. Every chapter is a work of inspiration. The carefully chosen examples are designed to impart understanding of electromagnetic principles rather than calculation skills. The book is excellent for those who are new to the subject. It is also excellent for those who have already learned some electromagnetics, but who feel that their understanding is still shaky.

Field and Wave Electromagnetics by Cheng is the best of these books in terms of the mathematical development of electromagnetics. Although this approach may seem difficult at first glance, ironically the mathematical rigour makes the subject much easier to grasp. That is because mathematical precision goes a long way towards illuminating subtle principles of electromagnetism. As a result, this book, more so than any other book, has given me the confidence to handle the difficult subject of electromagnetism.

Electromagnetics With Application by Kraus is the least systematic of these books, with some of the discussions being disjoint and abrupt. It is, however, valuable for its interesting and practical examples. It is a must-have book for anyone who is serious about electromagnetism.

Schaums Outline of Electromagnetics, by Edminister, is an outstanding collection of problems and solutions, as well as summaries. It mirrors the excellence of Edminister's other Schaums Outline, namely, Electric Circuits.

In summary, these four books have different strengths, respectively the following: (i) intuitive development; (ii) systematic development; (iii) practical application; and (iv) problem solving. These books form an awesome quartet, covering all the bases, and will provide you with a good foundation for advanced studies. A useful supplement for these books is Schaums Mathematical Handbook of Formulas and Tables.

Graet!
It is the most comprehensive book in this area I have seen yet,
specially for the undergraduate Electromagnetics course. ... Read more

Amazon.com

How many dimensions do you live in? Three? Maybe that's all your commonsense sense perception perceives, but there is growing and compelling evidence to suggest that we actually live in a universe of ten real dimensions. Kaku has written an extraordinarily lucid and thought-provoking exploration of the theoretical and empirical bases of a ten-dimensional universe and even goes so far as to discuss possible practical implications--such as being able to escape the collapse of the universe. Yikes. Highly Recommended. ... Read more

Reviews (170)

An Introduction to Hyperspace
This is an odyssey into the history of development of the concept of hyperspace that includes fourth and higher spatial dimensions to account for the riddles and unsolved problems of unified field theory. Since the postulation of special theory of relativity, Einstein and subsequent physicists until now have struggled to explain the four natural forces; the electromagnetic force (explained by Maxwell's field equations for electricity & magnetism); the strong and weak nuclear forces (explained by Yang - Mills field equations for subatomic forces); and the gravitational force (explained by Einstein's field equations of gravitation and relativity) by one unified field theory (theory of everything: String Theory). In other words, unifying the forces of the big, the cosmos, and the laws of the small, the microcosm (subatomic forces) by one single theory. The first part of the book describes how laws of nature become so simple to understand if higher dimensions are invoked; the author gives us a good historical background to build his case for hyperspace concept. The second part of the book describes the evolution of quantum mechanics and String theory. An introduction to wormholes, black holes and the use of these cosmic bodies for interstellar travel is given in the third part. The fourth part rambles through the future of the universe with irrelevant and some times out of focus narrative. The book is entirely free of physics and mathematics; from the point of understanding the basic concepts this approach is welcome. This book also gives an insight into the poignant story of Riemann (p.42) and Ramanujan (p.174) who sustained enormous personal and family hardships to contribute significantly in the field of mathematics. We also get a glimpse of academic rat race that involves professional rivalry, name & work recognition, and personal ego that is prevalent in academics. This is illustrated when Einstein delays Kaluza's paper for publication for 2 years (p.102). Bohr calling Pauli's lecture crazy (p.137); Sheldon Glashow ridiculing t'Hooft's work (p.121); a superior discouraging Mahahiko Suzuki's publication about Euler's Beta function (p.161); and Pauli being furious about Eisenberg's claim, Einstein - Bohr argument, and Schrodinger frustrated with Bohr's interpretation (p.261).

The author rambles about symmetry in arts; what is that got to do with hyperspace? The reader can find this discussion in any art book. Time travel has been described in layman's language in many books in depth; this discussion is unnecessary for this book. Throughout the book, the author refers to standard model and the equations of quantum mechanics as ugly; Equations are not ugly, they are complex or non-symmetrical.

The author could have devoted one chapter to describing the field equations in layman's terms; it would have helped a more enthusiastic reader to build a bridge to physics and tensor calculus. The reader should not be discouraged about mathematics in understanding relativity; many physicists themselves are heading to the library to learn about mathematics in String theory (Part 2). More appropriate title of the book could be hyperspace - a historical development of String theory. Despite the minor concerns, this book has strong points as observed above. I encourage the reader to buy this book; if you are not happy with this book, it is less than two-lunch money (page numbers from 1994 edition).

Beyond the Third Dimension
Everyone of us were born to comprehend the 3-dimensional world that we live in, and most of us would view time as the forth. In "Hyperspace", Kaku introduces the concept of dimensions beyond the third, and what these dimensions mean to us. Apart from talking about the possibilities of deriving a unified theory of all physical laws in higher dimensions, wormholes were also described in details as to how they could be used for travelling between different dimensions and universes, and more interestingly, how they could be used to travel through time. Most of the concepts were backed by examples and stories (including those of Kaku's childhood memories) which, not only allows the readers to easily grasp them, but also makes them more interesting to follow. However, one may start to wonder how on earth could Kaku's parents allow (and assist) their child to perform such horrific experiments!

This book was written primarily for the general public. Having said this, some moderate background and interests in physics are necessary, but then again you probably wouldn't be reading this review to start with if you weren't interested in "Hyperspace", right?

To sum up, I would definitely recommend this book for anyone who wants to find out more about the higher dimensions. Although there were occasions when I felt that Kaku has gone into too much details on the stories he quoted, which themselves could have been another interesting read if I wasn't told of the endings...

Great Book
VERY GOOD book written by the extremely smart and well-rounded scientist. Very easy to follow.

A Rambling Tour of Modern Phsyics
This book was written ten years ago but it still holds up well. Michio Kaku examines the theories of multi-dimensional space in an entertaining and educational book. His explanations are so clear that 10-dimensional space actually made sense. The book is somewhat a rambling adventure. Kaku takes us on a tour, introducing us to an interesting cast of characters including the sad story of Georg Bernhard Riemann who developed key equations for analyzing multi-dimensional space in the 1800's. The tour differs from a typical physics book in that instead of giving us the basic lecture of the advance of physics, Kaku approaches everything from a slightly different angle. In trying to help us understand multi-dimensional space, he looks not just at science but in art and literature. To emphasize a point he might explain it using something from his own career or from a science fiction story. The main problem with the book is that the author does tend to get off topic and ramble at certain points in the book. Stories about what an intelligent culture might do as the Universe ends doesn't really fit into the flow of the book and since we really have no idea how the Universe will end, it all seemed a bit pointless. I started to get the idea that Kaku had a number of pages in mind and was trying to fill the book with a lot of different ideas he has had floating around to reach that number. But don't let me scare you away. At least two-thirds of this book is brilliant writing that will make you think, help you understand modern theories of physics, and entertain you. I can forgive the author's ramblings when he provides that much in a few hundred pages.

An effective and truly genius approach!
Michio Kaku does an excellent job of mixing a touch of history and introductory ideas with detailed and concrete physics information. Packed with a sort of "timeline" approach to the changing world of physics, from the "mainstream" ideas of Einstein, Newton and Maxwell to newer ideas such as string theory and the multiverse. An excellent addition to any physics library, this book will broaden your physics vocabulary and knowledge of physics history ; including its influences on society and the art world alike. Sure to open up new dimensions of thought in an easy-to-understand format. ... Read more

Book Description

This volume is the only book to describe in detail all aspects of plastic optics from design issues to production technology and quality control aspects. Throughout, the focus is firmly set on practical applications, making this an indispensable source of information for all those working in optics research and development.

Topics covered in this volume include:

• Opto-mechanical design
• Processing
• Tooling
• Materials
• Metrology
• Equipment
• Applications

Book Description

Includes chapters on orbital mechanics, spacecraft construction, satellite-path radio wave propagation, modulation techniques, multiple access, and a detailed analysis of the communications link. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

This is NOT 'Satellites for Dummies'...
I recently took a Satellite Communications course at the university I attend and this was the textbook. I must say this book is really expensive for what you're likely to get out of it; as the book doesn't really seem to have much of a point. It isn't very well written/edited for a book you would want to learn the subject matter from if you didn't know anything about satellite communications; and it doesn't include enough usable, pertinent data for keeping as a reference book for experienced users. Mostly the book explains concepts in a convoluted and confusing manner, doesn't fully explain them, or adds all sorts of extraneous material not explained in the book into the review sections (which we used as some of our assignments). If you like taking Microsoft computer certification tests, enjoy brain-teasers and riddles, you're already an electrical engineer/astrophysics major with a few years experience, or your last name is "Hawking" you may find this to be a good book. But, if you know little to nothing about satellite communications (orbital mechanics, transmission encoding methods, frequency spectrums, theory of radio transmissions, etc.) my suggestion is look for another book on the subject and get this one from your local library. If you MUST buy this book like I did, do yourself a favor by getting it 'Used' and save yourself some money. By the way, I was told this book is no longer used for this course for some of these same reasons.

Not a bad book but needs significant improvement
I am a lecturer and used this book for my class.

I like the material presented in this book. It contains many examples and discussion on real applications. However the organization of this book is not good. It is just like putting several people's work together without appropriate coordination of the material.

As a second edition of the book, it contains too much errors. You can find many errors in almost each chapter. I have to check carefully before I use their examples, equations and solutions. Otherwise I will get embarassed by letting the students pointing it out in my lecture. It is absolutely a shame.

If you are an engineer who are already familiar with data communications and can tell those errors, this book is a good choice. But if you are a student, I sugget you stay away from it unless it is the textbook chosen by your lecturer.

Great for a beginner
I read this book as a reference rather than a formal class textbook. As a self-studying student, the first book I bought to study satellite communications was the famouns 'Digital Satellite Communications' ritten by Dr. Tri t. Ha. It is actually a quite good book. However it was just too much for a eginner. Too much mathmatical fomulars and too less literatual explanation for a new concept. It took 8 months to read just one third of the book during my militarry service. Since I have been assigned to a digital satellite earthstation construction project recently, I needed a new book that explains more practically and easilly. This 'Satellite Communications' by Dr. Timothy Pratt and Dr. Charles W. Bostian.

To cover allmost all area of the satellite communications, the overall composition is simillar to other books. At charper 3, 'SPACECRAFT', I could find fine explanation on the satellite beam and coverage. Especially, this helps me with understanding and analyzing the SRS-CDROM data. This is really great for me. Some basic and important concepts like Noise, C/N and G/T are very well descibed in chapter 4, 'SATELLITE LINK DESIGN'. Freankly, most books tend to jump to mathmatical method to explain concepts. The author spared more pages to explain the concept and the physical meaning of the terminology. I know this is a very eficient and simple way to show the existing and potential meaning of terminology. But there are hundreds of good reasons to have this kind of kind book for a slowly understanding engineer like me. :-) At chapter 5 and 6 to explain the modulation, multiplexing and multiple access, there are less fomulas and more tables and graphs. First, I read over those two chapters and went back to Dr. Ha's book above to learn the mathmatical expression. That's how you can expand the concept to individual field applications. The 'Design of Large Antennas' in chapter 9, 'EARTH STATION TECHNOLOGY' was helpful for me, too. It is pretty hard to find propper information about large antennas ahtough you have to face a bunch of confusing terminologies when you visit antenna company web sites like Vertex, RSI (recently merged to Vertex to make VertexRSI), or Datron.

I believe the combination of this ook, 'Satellite Communications' and 'Digital Satellite Communications' will give you almost all knowledge you need from fundamental to practical level in satellite communications engineering field. ... Read more

Book Description

With solid theoretical foundations and numerous potential applications, Blind Signal Processing (BSP) is one of the hottest emerging areas in Signal Processing. This volume unifies and extends the theories of adaptive blind signal and image processing and provides practical and efficient algorithms for blind source separation,
Independent, Principal, Minor Component Analysis, and Multichannel Blind Deconvolution (MBD) and Equalization. Containing over 1400 references and mathematical expressions Adaptive Blind Signal and Image Processing delivers an unprecedented collection of useful techniques for adaptive blind signal/image separation, extraction, decomposition and filtering of multi-variable signals and data.
* Offers a broad coverage of blind signal processing techniques and algorithms both from a theoretical and practical point of view
* Presents more than 50 simple algorithms that can be easily modified to suit the reader's specific real world problems
* Provides a guide to fundamental mathematics of multi-input, multi-output and multi-sensory systems
* Includes illustrative worked examples, computer simulations, tables, detailed graphs and conceptual models within self contained chapters to assist self study
* Accompanying CD-ROM features an electronic, interactive version of the book with fully coloured figures and text. C and MATLAB(r) user-friendly software packages are also provided
MATLAB(r) is a registered trademark of The MathWorks, Inc.
By providing a detailed introduction to BSP, as well as presenting new results and recent developments, this informative and inspiring work will appeal to researchers, postgraduate students, engineers and scientists working in biomedical engineering,
communications, electronics, computer science, optimisations, finance, geophysics and neural networks. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Useful Book
Never before has such a large array of methods and algorithms for blind source
separation and independent component analysis (ICA) been put together
with such a coherent analysis.
The attached CD-ROM contains : MATLAB software and beautiful
interactive version of electronic book in pdf format
with with very illustrative fully colored figures and graphs.

Blind Signal and Image Processing is an exciting and emerging research topic in fields such
biomedical signal/image processing, advanced statistics, unsupervised adaptive filtering
and neural networks with solid theoretical foundations and many real world applications.
This book is practical and reference guide to wide spectrum of blind signal processing problems
including Independent Component Analysis (ICA), blind source separation (BSS),
blind recovery, blind signal extraction (BSE) and multi-channel blind deconvolution with
channel blind equalization (MBD/E).
The new corrected and fully revised edition (June 2003) consists of several revised features
and developments.
In my opinion, the most important features of the book include:
* Independent component analysis using various criteria, models and higher order statistics techniques

* Multistage robust blind separation of colored sources using second order statistics

* Robust blind decorrelation, whitening and orthogonalization

* Adaptive and information theoretic approaches to multi-channel blind deconvolution with channel blind equalization

* Natural gradient, Stiefel manifolds and Lie group approaches

* Extended total and data least squares problems (ETLS/DLS)

* Sparse representation of signals, constrained matrix factorization and minimum p-norm problems

* MATLAB packages illustrating performance of a large number of ICA/BSS algorithms both for signals and colored images. ... Read more

Book Description

* Highly readable paperback reprint of one of the great time-tested classics in the field of signal processing
* Together with the reprint of Part III and the new Part IV, this will be the most complete treatment of the subject available
* As imperative today as it was when it originally published
* Has important applications in radar, sonar, communications, seismology, biomedical engineering, and astronomy
* Includes section summaries, examples, and a large number of problems ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A Classic Text
I have just taken this course from Dr. Van Trees at GMU. Est&Det organized many concepts taught in other graduate engineering courses into a coherent philosophy. The result is not only a rich understanding of estimation and detection, but also random processes, Wiener filtering, Kalman filtering, radar and communications theory etc.

The course was taught directly from the text with little outside material. Very little has become obsolete in the 30+ years since it was written.

The strong positives of this book are the philosophical organization, clear concise writing, and incredibly well conceived homework problems.

The only negative of the book is that there are many proofs done in great detail. This provides the necessary foundation for the material, but also makes it easy for the student to lose track of the bigger picture.

Dr. Van Trees tends to try to drive home the higher level concepts while glossing over many of the details when he is lecturing. The exercise problems then force the student to give the necessary attention to pertinent details. In my opinion, this is an excellent approach to teaching the material.

Overall, this course was as good as any I've every taken. The text is as important and useful as any other I have. ... Read more

Book Description

The Finite-Difference Time-domain (FDTD) method allows you to compute electromagnetic interaction for complex problem geometries with ease. The simplicity of the approach coupled with its far-reaching usefulness, create the powerful, popular method presented in The Finite Difference Time Domain Method for Electromagnetics. This volume offers timeless applications and formulations you can use to treat virtually any material type and geometry.The Finite Difference Time Domain Method for Electromagnetics explores the mathematical foundations of FDTD, including stability, outer radiation boundary conditions, and different coordinate systems. It covers derivations of FDTD for use with PEC, metal, lossy dielectrics, gyrotropic materials, and anisotropic materials. A number of applications are completely worked out with numerous figures to illustrate the results. It also includes a printed FORTRAN 77 version of the code that implements the technique in three dimensions for lossy dielectric materials. There are many methods for analyzing electromagnetic interactions for problem geometries. With The Finite Difference Time Domain Method for Electromagnetics, you will learn the simplest, most useful of these methods, from the basics through to the practical applications. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

The classics of FD-TD method
A good text for studying basics of FD-TD method for Electromagnetics. Especially, the chapters about surface impedance & dispersive materials were useful for me. But some misprint keep out of sight, you have to read carefully. ... Read more

Book Description

Field Quantization is a thorough introduction to the physical ideas and techniques of this subject, starting from an elementary level. The initial chapters deal with the quantum mechanics of systems having many degrees of freedom and with classical Lagrangian field theory. Subsequently, both the traditional method of canonical quantization and the modern approach using path integrals are studied. The material is presented in considerable detail and accompanied by a large number of worked examples and exercises. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Great Introduction
This book starts with classical field theory and moves on to some simple, but very relevent examples of nonrelativistic field quantization. Greiner works through all important relativistic system of free particles before a spectactular introduction to Feynman rules via quantum electrodynamics as the primer. The book finishes with a nice introduction to path-integral quantization. This book covers mathematical detail of relativistic field theory in a simple way, making it an excellent introductory text.

Detailed guide to QFT
The book's focus is on carefully explaining what quantum field theory is. Starting from classical field theories, ie. the harmonic chain, Greiner goes on to discuss 2nd quantization for spin 0, 1/2, and spin 1 fields. The results are then applied to derive the perturbation expansion for interacting fields. The last sections on quantization with path integrals is also well written, and contains more details than eg. Sakurai. Throughout, many (sometimes tedious, but) instructive examples are presented that lots of other authors just assume to be understood already. ... Read more

Book Description

The two volumes that comprise String Theory provide an up-to-date, comprehensive account of string theory. Volume 1 provides a thorough introduction to the bosonic string, based on the Polyakov path integral and conformal field theory.The first four chapters introduce the central ideas of string theory, the tools of conformal field theory, the Polyakov path integral, and the covariant quantization of the string.The book then treats string interactions: the general formalism, and detailed treatments of the tree level and one loop amplitudes.Toroidal compactification and many important aspects of string physics, such as T-duality and D-branes are also covered, as are higher-order amplitudes, including an analysis of their finiteness and unitarity, and various nonperturbative ideas.The volume closes with an appendix giving a short course on path integral methods, followed by annotated references, and a detailed glossary. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Enlightening text on a murky topic
This book succeeds in what seems to be the impossible. It actually presents a clear, up to date, and entertaining version of a field that is still very much in a state of active research and is still, after all these years, on quite uncertain ground. By studying this, the reader who thinks intelligently about the material presented will be able to form his/her own opinions on this still somewhat controversial topic and will be able to converse intelligently with others who have opinions on the topic. I know that for me personally, this text opened up beautiful ideas which, to a large extent, are still unexplored. Before I read this book, my gut feelings about the topic were that it was rather dubious at best, but now that I understand (I think) the basic ideas of the field, I feel quite comfortable in it, indeed almost as if it is completely natural. What I think is one of the best things about this book is that it does not assume the pretense that string theory is on firm ground, that everything is quite certain and that string theory HAS to be the final theory of nature in all its glory. I find this attitude EXTREMELY pretensious and annoying. Instead, it simply covers what we know about string theory, and explains in detail just why it is consistent, and why it offers an explanation for what we see in nature. In short, it leaves just enough room for the imagination of an intelligent reader to philosophize as to the meaning of the theory and as to its ultimate place in nature
As for practical details, it seems to me that the reader should at the very least have a firm understanding of Quantum Field Theory (at least at the level of Weinberg's first volume, see my review on that modern masterpiece), and to a lesser extent of General Relativity, before even attempting to tackle this. I know that I myself, despite the fact that I have read several texts on QFT, had to reread several sizeable chunks of the book to fully digest it.

Good try, but too dense
Lets face it, string theory is a difficult subject. But the only reason this book is the best string theory text is because they are all lousy. What it comes down to is string theory is too new for a good textbook writer to have tackled the task. What has happened, is string theory is currently populated by a small group of elite geniuses. So some of these elite geniuses take to writing a book, which turns out to be clear to other geniuses, but maybe not so clear to others, who are nonetheless capable of learning the theory. This happens in all fields, you will find that modern quantum mechanics books are much more readable than volumes written by the founders of the theory. Polchinski has clear writing, but can you solve the problems? If it seems clear but solving the problems is a mystery, it isn't a good book. Why can't people put in lots of examples? Why can't they include solutions to at least odd numbered problems? If they went to all the trouble to write the book they could at least do that. After all the goal is to teach, not to be mysterious. What needs to happen is some physicist with a talent for writing needs to A)Write an undergraduate level text on field theory, and B)write a more accessible book about string theory aimed at people who aren't at the level of Weinberg intelligence wise.

very thorough and complete
Polochinski presents upto date developments (mostly in 2nd volume) in string theory such as D-branes and dualities that are not discussed in Green, Witten, Schwarz's Superstring theory text. However, I found GWS's arguments easier to follow because they were intuitively and physically motivated. Although Polchinski's books lack physical insights, he more than makes up for them by completeness of the material, mathematical rigor and helpful exercises. However, I highly recommend that you first get Di Francesco's conformal field theory and read chapters 3-7 , 10 and 12 to get a better feel for stuff like state-operator mappings, Virasoro algebra, OPE's, etc. Although Polchinski claims the books are pretty much self-contained, I would say QFT (probably around lvl of 1st vol. of Weinberg) and GR are min prereq and some knowledge of SUSY, rep. theory of Lie alg, alg. toplogy wouldn't hurt. Lastly, the first edition had many many typos but corrections are frequently updated and you can download them through a website whose address is given in the book (the address in the book has a typo and should read "ucsb").

Very thorough and upto date
The two volumes introduce many important recent developments in string theory not covered in Green, Schwarz & Witten's Superstring text such as D-branes, dualities, etc. However, I found GSW's treatment of basic materials easier to follow because the authors try to explain things intuitively. Although many physical insight in Polchinski's book is sacrificed, it makes up for them through completeness and mathematical rigor. However, I highly recommend that you read Di Francesco et al's conformal field theory book (read chapters 3-7, 10 and 12-13) to get a better feel for stuff like operator state mapping, OPE's, Virasoro algebra, vertex operators, etc. Of course a good course in QFT, GR and some basic familiarity with SUSY, Rep. theory, & some algebraic topology are probably a prereq although Polchinski claims the book is pretty much self-contained. Lastly, the book suffers a little from numerous typos (atleast the 1st edition) but corrections are updated frequently on a ucsb website address.

The best introduction to strings.
I think there is no other book with so clear and precise explanations of string theory. All equations are carefully derived, all non-trivial conclusions are reached by a sequence of trivial thoughts. It exhibits the author's great pedagogical talent. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (6)

Still a Standard Text
Very well written and with a comprehensive explanation of the basics of advanced quantum theory. This is the place for understanding about computing propagators and Feynman diagrams to arbitrary order.

Plus, the Dyson equation! At last, you can find out what made Freeman Dyson famous amongst physicists. You can decide whether this ranks in importance to Feynman's and Schwinger's discoveries.

The problem sets are nontrivial. Which will be appreciated by you, AFTER you have attempted them. (Whilst you are in an allnighter, trying to finish a problem set, your opinion may differ!)

The book does not cover superstrings, because those came after its publication.

classical text for many particle theory
This book is one of the most famous textbooks for the many
particle theory. I like it and recommend to anyone who studies
many particle theory for the first time. But, I should make some
comments on this book. First, this book does not contain any
descriptions for the path integral method, which is now very
popular in the field of many particle theory and is compactly
explained in Negele and Orland. Second, applications seems to be
somewhat old. This is inevitable and not author's fault. For
example, modern nuclear theory goes far beyond the RPA. Third,
authors focused on the perturbational expansion of the Green's
function and did not give explanations how to use the Feynman
diagrams to calculate the energy corrections for the fermion
systems, which is found in March, Raimes and Gross.

Anyway, this is a good book. I hope everyone likes it!

A second year graduate student
Very consistent and easy to learn book. I like this book much more than famous one by Abrikosov,Gorkov, Dzyaloshinskii.

Excellent Book
Do you want to learn basics in many-body physics? This book will provide your needs!

Green's function in many-body systems: ABC
This book is especially suitable for junior grads and senior undergrads who want to know the diagramatic techniques of Green's function method. ... Read more

Book Description

Ultra Wideband (UWB) is the hot new topic in wireless communication engineering today. High-speed communication over short distances using sub-nanosecond pulses, rather than conventional sinusoidal waves, has paved the way for cheap wireless transceivers, capturing the imagination of both academics and engineers in industry alike. Ultra Wideband Signals and Systems in Communication Engineering focuses on the basic signal processing that underlies current and future ultra wideband systems ensuring this text will be essential reading even as UWB applications mature and change or regulations regarding ultra wideband systems are modified.

• Provides everything you need to know about Ultra Wideband Communications in one compact volume
• Explains, in an easy to understand manner, the basics of UWB and its applications
• Covers, in detail, the generation of UWB waveforms through to the position and location of UWB signals
• Discusses the issues that must be solved for UWB devices to explode onto the consumer communication market
• Includes examples and problems in each chapter to aid understanding
• Features a companion website including Solutions manual, Matlab programs, Electronic versions of the figures and a sample chapter

This enlightening text is a must for senior undergraduates and postgraduate students interested in studying UWB, and the emphasis on UWB development for commercial consumer communications products means that any communication engineer or manager cannot afford to be without it! ... Read more

Book Description

Power electronic circuits for modern industrial applications
Offering a remarkable variety of exercises, examples, and problems, including design-oriented problems, Issa Batarseh's POWER ELECTRONIC CIRCUITS will help you develop the skills and knowledge you need to analyze and design power electronic circuits for modern industrial applications. Batarseh presents detailed explanations of circuit operations, clear discussions of the theory behind power electronic circuits, and an effective problem-solving approach.
The text first prepares you with necessary background material on devices, switching circuit analysis techniques, and converter types and methods of conversion, and then covers high-frequency non-isolated dc-to-dc converters, isolated dc-to-dc converters, and resonant soft-switching converters. The final chapters address traditional diode and SCR converters and dc-ac inverters.
Highlights
* Each chapter features at least 10 exercises, which will help you understand basic concepts, equations, and circuit operations.
* Throughout the text, more than 250 problems of varying levels of difficulty give you the opportunity to use what you've learned.
* Special design problems (highlighted with a "D") offer open-ended opportunities to apply design techniques.
* Solved examples help you refine your problem-solving skills.
* Introductory material on devices, switching circuit analysis techniques, and converter types provides the background you need to understand power electronics concepts.
* Features detailed discussion on resonant and soft-switching dc-to-dc converters.
* Provides a simplified discussion of Pulse Wide Modulation (PWM) Technique.
* A Web site is provided with detailed lecture notes and practice quizzes. ... Read more

Book Description

* Well-known authority, Dr. Van Trees updates array signal processing for today's technology
* This is the most up-to-date and thorough treatment of the subject available
* Written in the same accessible style as Van Tree's earlier classics, this completely new work covers all modern applications of array signal processing, from biomedicine to wireless communications ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Great academic reference - Practitioners: Use with caution!
This book is the fourth book in Dr van Trees' series "Detection, Estimation, and Modulation Theory". It relies extensively on volumes I and III (but not volume II), and the reader of volume IV will want to have volumes I and III available.

As for the book itself, it is BIG. For some reason, it gives the impression of being somewhat inflated. I can't pinpoint the exact reason for this, but I suspect it must have something to do with the relation between font size and paper size. The publishers claim there are 2000 references in the book. This may very well be true, as the bibliographies after each chapter generally are 10 to 15 pages long. Unfortunately, there is no overall bibliography in the book. While such a bibliography would inflate the book by somewhere between 100 and 150 pages (it is ~1500 pages in the current version), I think it would be worth adding it.

What the contents is concerned, it is a definite academic angle on the material and the presentation. The practitioner may want to pay attention to the fact that the book title is "_Optimum_ Array processing", not "_Practical_ Array Processing". The "Multiple Signal Classification" (MUSIC) method and "Estimation of Signal Parameters via Rotational Invariant Techniques" (ESPRIT) algorithm are discussed extensively in the later chapters, but some details that turn out to be cruical when putting these methods to practical use appear to be missing in this book. The very motivation for developing the ESPRIT algorithm is that the MUSIC algorithm is extremely sensitive to array calibration data, i.e. that the array calibration matrix must be known with very high presicion. The inventors of ESPRIT, Roy and Kailath, pay meticulous attention to this problem in their journal articles (which are cited by van Trees). The problem of lacking array calibration data has indeed spawned an entire research field known as "blind source estimation". This is not mentioned at all in this book.

The second issue I would like to point out is that alternative, SUBoptimum array processing techniques are very breafly commented in section 9.4 (which all in all is half a page long). I find one sentence in that section somewhat annoying:

"We found that, for estimating the [Direction of Arrivals] of plane-wave signals the [suboptimum] algorithms did not perform as well as MUSIC and ESPRIT"

and then the author defer from discussing these algorithms further. I am sure this decision can be defended from the point of view that the scope of the book is optimum array processing. However, I would like to see how the author tests the suboptimum methods, how they perform, and what he bases his conclusions on. There is a vast difference between tests with synthetic data, generated by the computer, and working with data measured in the real world. My experience from working with real-world data from short arrays at low signal-to-noise ratios, is the exact opposite: The optimum algorithms work bad, if at all, while suboptimum algorithms do the job.

All in all, this book gives an as complete overview of the state-of-the-art in array processing as practically possible by one man to give in one volume. There are a couple of shortcommings, though. If this book was written by any other author and was published in any other series, it would be a clear five-star. However, Dr van Trees has, with his "Detection, Estimation, and Modulation Theory" series, established himself as perhaps _the_ authority in the field, and therefore I believe this book should be measured by somewhat stricter standards. Thus the four stars. ... Read more

Book Description

The leading guide to real-time systems design–revised and updated

This third edition of Phillip Laplante’s bestselling, practical guide to building real-time systems maintains its predecessors’ unique holistic, systems-based approach devised to help engineers write problem-solving software. Dr. Laplante incorporates a survey of related technologies and their histories, complete with time-saving practical tips, hands-on instructions, C code, and insights into decreasing ramp-up times.

Real-Time Systems Design and Analysis, Third Edition is essential for students and practicing software engineers who want improved designs, faster computation, and ultimate cost savings. Chapters discuss hardware considerations and software requirements, software systems design, the software production process, performance estimation and optimization, and engineering considerations.

This new edition has been revised to include:

• Up-to-date information on object-oriented technologies for real-time including object-oriented analysis, design, and languages such as Java, C++, and C#
• Coverage of significant developments in the field, such as:
  New life-cycle methodologies and advanced programming practices for real-time, including Agile methodologies
  Analysis techniques for commercial real-time operating system technology
  Hardware advances, including field-programmable gate arrays and memory technology
• Deeper coverage of:
  Scheduling and rate-monotonic theories
  Synchronization and communication techniques
  Software testing and metrics

Real-Time Systems Design and Analysis, Third Edition remains an unmatched resource for students and practicing software engineers who want improved designs, faster computation, and ultimate cost savings. ... Read more

Book Description

"FOUNDATIONS FOR MICROWAVE ENGINEERING, Second Edition, covers the major topics of microwave engineering. Its presentation defines the accepted standard for both advanced undergraduate and graduate level courses on microwave engineering. An essential reference book for the practicing microwave engineer, it features:

• Planar transmission lines, as well as an appendix that describes in detail conformal mapping methods for their analysis and attenuation characteristics
• Small aperture coupling and its application in practical components such as directional couplers and cavity coupling
• Printed circuit components with an emphasis on techniques such as even and odd mode analysis and the use of symmetry properties
• Microwave linear amplifier and oscillator design using solid-state circuits such as varactor devices and transistors

FOUNDATIONS FOR MICROWAVE ENGINEERING, Second Edition, has extensive coverage of transmission lines, waveguides, microwave circuit theory, impedance matching and cavity resonators. It devotes an entire chapter to fundamental microwave tubes, in addition to chapters on periodic structures, microwave filters, small signal solid-state microwave amplifier and oscillator design, and negative resistance devices and circuits. Completely updated in 1992, it is being reissued by the IEEE Press in response to requests from our many members, who found it an invaluable textbook and an enduring reference for practicing microwave engineers.

About the Author

Robert E. Collin is the author or coauthor of more than 150 technical papers and five books on electromagnetic theory and applications. His classic text, Field Theory of Guided Waves, is also a volume in the series. Professor Collin has had a long and distinguished academic career at Case Western Reserve University. In addition to his professional duties, he has served as chairman of the Department of Electrical Engineering and as interim dean of engineering.

Professor Collin is a life fellow of the IEEE and a member of the Microwave Theory and Techniques Society and the Antennas and Propagation Society (APS). He is a member of U.S. Commission B of URSI and a member of the Geophysical Society. Other honors include the Diekman Award from Case Western Reserve University for distinguished graduate teaching , the IEEE APS Distinguished Career Award (1992), the IEEE Schelkunoff Prize Paper Award (1992), the IEEE Electromagnetics Award (1998), and an IEEE Third Millennium Medal in 2000. In 1990 Professor Collin was elected to the National Academy of Engineering."

Sponsored by:
IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society, IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Good for Microwave Filter Understanding
I really like this book- especially the chapter on periodic structures and filters. The book helped me understand how K and J inverters are incorporated into filters and how the equations are formulated.

Forget it
Save your money with this one.....Pozar book is much better!

Very good text for the microwave engineer!
This is the standard text for the microwave engineer student.The author makes a very comprehensive survey of the field,beginning from basic electromagnetics and circuit theory and analyzing both passive and active devices and circuit.Very good coverage of the microstrip line basic theory which is very hard to find elsewhere.In my opinion professor Collin is a very gifted scientifical writer,both clear and accurate.If you want to be a first rate Microwave engineer then you surely need this book.Very good text! ... Read more

Book Description

Classification, Parameter Estimation and State Estimation is a practical guide for data analysts and designers of measurement systems and postgraduates students that are interested in advanced measurement systems using MatLab. 'Prtools' is a powerful MatLab toolbox for pattern recognition and is written and owned by one of the co-authors, B. Duin of the Delft University of Technology.

After an introductory chapter, the book provides the theoretical construction for classification, estimation and state estimation. The book also deals with the skills required to bring the theoretical concepts to practical systems, and how to evaluate these systems. Together with the many examples in the chapters, the book is accompanied by a MatLab toolbox for pattern recognition and classification. The appendix provides the necessary documentation for this toolbox as well as an overview of the most useful functions from these toolboxes. With its integrated and unified approach to classification, parameter estimation and state estimation, this book is a suitable practical supplement in existing university courses in pattern classification, optimal estimation and data analysis.

• Covers all contemporary main methods for classification and estimation.
• Integrated approach to classification, parameter estimation and state estimation
• Highlights the practical deployment of theoretical issues.
• Provides a concise and practical approach supported by Matlab toolbox.
• Offers exercises at the end of each chapter and numerous worked out examples.
• PRtools toolbox (MatLab) and code of worked out examples available from the internet
• Many examples showing implementations in MatLab
• Enables students to practice their skills using a MatLab environment

Book Description

Now in an accessible paperback edition, this classic work is just as relevant as when it first appeared in 1974, due to the increased use of nonlinear waves. It covers the behavior of waves in two parts, with the first part addressing hyperbolic waves and the second addressing dispersive waves. The mathematical principles are presented along with examples of specific cases in communications and specific physical fields, including flood waves in rivers, waves in glaciers, traffic flow, sonic booms, blast waves, and ocean waves from storms. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

good backround
Most treatment of waves involves their role in electromagnetic spectra. The writer provides the historical account of