The Quantum Theory of Magnetism

This advanced level textbook is devoted to the description of systems which show ordered magnetic phases. A wide selection of topics is covered, including a detailed treatment of the mean-field approximation as the main paradigm for the phenomenological description of phase transitions. The book discusses the properties of low-dimensional systems and uses Green's functions extensively after a useful mathematical introduction. A thorough presentation of the RKKY and related models of indirect exchange is also featured, and a chapter on surface magnetism, rarely found in other textbooks, adds to the uniqueness of this book. For the second edition, three new chapters have been added, namely on magnetic anisotropy, on coherent magnon states and on local moments. Additionally, the chapter on itinerant magnetism has been enlarged by including a section on paramagnons.