Crystals, Chaos and the
Wizardry of Physics
This is a book about Wizardry. It will reveal the secrets of the wizard's art and how you too can learn to follow them.
Felix Flicker brilliantly reveals the secrets behind the modern-day magic we call physics
Marcus du Sautoy
The Magick of Matter is a fascinating, enlightening and altogether delightful book. Once you fall under its spell, you will find it hard to put it down
Fritjof Capra,
author of
The Tao of Physics
A must read for anyone wanting to understand how the spells of physics have transformed our world
Femi Fadugba,
author of
The Upper World
Playful, profound and penetrating: an exhilarating gallop through the mystical world of matter
Charles Foster,
author of
Being a Beast
Imagine you had a crystal which lit upon your command: magic must be at work, and you must surely be a wizard. Yet these days such an action is mundane: LEDs are crystals, and their practical technology lights our streets and our homes.
The modern name for wizardry is condensed matter physics. It is the study of the world around us - the states of matter, and how they emerge from the quantum realm. It is one of science's best-kept secrets: a third of all physicists work on it, yet its story has rarely been told.
Discover the magic of condensed matter physics, from the subtle spells that conjure crystals from chaos, to creating new particles which have never before been seen.
Photograph by John Cairns
About the author
Felix Flicker is a theoretical physicist working on the quantum underpinnings of matter.
He is a Senior Lecturer in Physics at Bristol University.