Today, I received the new edition of Feynman’s classic work, Quantum Mechanics and Path Integrals, sent by editor Wang Chao from Higher Education Press. I am feeling quite excited...
Quantum Mechanics and Path Integrals is a classic work by Feynman, and more importantly, a foundational text in quantum mechanics. It is currently the only book I have read that starts from path integrals and treats them as the first principle of quantum mechanics. (Anthony Zee’s Quantum Field Theory in a Nutshell seems to be the only book I’ve read that uses path integrals purely as a method for quantum field theory, and it is also excellent.) Other types of quantum mechanics textbooks do discuss path integrals to some extent, but without exception, they all derive path integrals from the Hamiltonian formalism. In those cases, the path integral is merely a corollary. However, since the path integral is clearly one of the three formulations of quantum mechanics, it should be possible to propose it as a fundamental principle of quantum mechanics rather than a derivation from another form. Feynman made this attempt—explaining quantum mechanics starting from path integrals—and clearly, this attempt was very successful. At least for me, the path integral is a very easy-to-understand form of quantum mechanics. (This might be related to my mathematical background.)
The publication of this new edition of Quantum Mechanics and Path Integrals can be traced back to this time last year. As a Feynman fan, I have always tried to collect as many of Feynman’s books and materials as possible to read, while keeping an eye on the publication of his works. Feynman’s Quantum Electrodynamics had already been published, and I bought a copy. Previously, I had also purchased Landau’s Mechanics and The Classical Theory of Fields. Through these, I connected with the Weibo account “Landau Collection” and further discovered that the blogger was Wang Chao, a natural science editor at Higher Education Press. Through various coincidences, we began discussing Quantum Mechanics and Path Integrals.
According to the original expectations, Quantum Mechanics and Path Integrals was supposed to be published last September. However, plans changed; first it was delayed, and then Landau’s Quantum Electrodynamics was published first. Consequently, Quantum Mechanics and Path Integrals was pushed back until now. During this period, I kept a close eye on the publication progress. From the initial re-editing to the halfway point, then to the final review and publication, I stayed in touch with Wang Chao and provided some suggestions for the re-edition of Quantum Mechanics and Path Integrals. I am honored that Wang Chao appreciated my input, and some of my suggestions were incorporated into the book. Feynman is the scientist I admire most, and even though I only suggested minor modifications to his book, it gave me the joy of walking alongside him.
Furthermore, Wang Chao kindly gifted me this new edition of Quantum Mechanics and Path Integrals, making me the first general reader to receive the new book. This makes me feel both excited and quite humbled. Throughout the process, it might seem like I was helping Wang Chao with the editing, but in fact, I gained much more from this experience, including a deeper understanding of path integrals. This promotion had both tangible and intangible effects. Regardless, it was a very precious experience and a rare “Feynman journey.” My thanks go to editor Wang Chao.
In future blog posts, I will try to update more content regarding path integrals, including the relationship between path integrals and stochastic differential equations, among other topics. Readers are also welcome to discuss and share issues related to path integrals on this blog. Any reader interested in learning about path integrals should carefully read Feynman’s Quantum Mechanics and Path Integrals. It is the best book on path integrals, bar none, because the path integral was proposed by Feynman himself. Only a scientist with his unique, adventurous spirit could interpret it so beautifully. (Of course, limited by the era, Feynman’s theory has seen significant development since then, but this does not prevent us from understanding the most fundamental physical ideas from his book.)
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