This book is an introduction to the two closely related subjects of
quantum optics and quantum information. The book gives a simple,
self-contained introduction to both subjects, while illustrating the
physical principles of quantum information processing using quantum
optical systems. To make the book accessible to those with backgrounds
other than physics, the authors also include a brief review of quantum
mechanics. Furthermore, some aspects of quantum information, for example
those pertaining to recent experiments on cavity QED and quantum dots,
are described here for the first time in book form.