Overview

An accessible introduction to stochastic processes in physics which describes the basic mathematical tools of the trade: probability, random walks, and Wiener and Ornstein-Uhlenbeck processes. It includes end-of-chapter problems and emphasizes applications. The book builds directly upon early-20th-century explanations of the ""peculiar character in the motions of the particles of pollen in water"" as described, in the early 19th century, by the biologist Robert Brown. Lemons has adopted Paul Langevin's 1908 approach of applying Newton's second law to a ""Brownian particle on which the total force included a random component"" to explain Brownian motion. This method builds on Newtonian dynamics and provides an accessible explanation to anyone approaching the subject for the first time. Students should find this book a useful aid to learning the unfamiliar mathematical aspects of stochastic processes while applying them to physical processes that they have already encountered.

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9780801868672

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Reviews

<p> [An Introduction to Stochastic Processes in Physics] presents fundamental ideas with admirable clarity and concision. The author presents in about 100 pages enough material for the student to appreciate the very different natures of stochastic and sure processes and to solve simple but important problems involving noise. Any physicist wondering what noise is about would be well advised to pack Lemons' books for their next train journey. -- Professor S.M. Barnett, Contemporary Physics

Students will love this book. It tells them without fuss how to do simple and useful numerical calculations, with just enough background to understand what they are doing... a refreshingly brief and unconvoluted work. -- Vinay Ambegaokar American Journal of Physics The book is very clearly set out and very easy to read. Undergraduate students and those wishing to learn about stochastic processes for the first time would enjoy the clear pedagogic presentation. -- B.I. Henry The Physicist [ An Introduction to Stochastic Processes in Physics] presents fundamental ideas with admirable clarity and concision. The author presents in about 100 pages enough material for the student to appreciate the very different natures of stochastic and sure processes and to solve simple but important problems involving noise. Any physicist wondering what noise is about would be well advised to pack Lemons' books for their next train journey. -- S.M. Barnett Contemporary Physics Self-contained and provides adequate insight into stochastic processes in physics. It is quite readable and will be useful to students interested in learning about stochastic processes and their relevance in understanding the physical phenomena. It also provides teachers a good approach to communicate the essence of the subject to students. -- Suresh V. Lawande Mathematical Reviews

<p>Self-contained and provides adequate insight into stochastic processes in physics. It is quite readable and will be useful to students interested in learning about stochastic processes and their relevance in understanding the physical phenomena. It also provides teachers a good approach to communicate the essence of the subject to students.--Suresh V. Lawande Mathematical Reviews

Author Information

Don S. Lemons is a professor of physics at Bethel College in Kansas and consults at Los Alamos National Laboratory.

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