This advanced undergraduate- and graduate-level text introduces the power of operator theory as a tool in the study of quantum mechanics, assuming only a working knowledge of advanced calculus and no background in physics. The author presents a few simple postulates describing quantum theory, gradually introducing the mathematical techniques that help answer questions important to the physical theory. The entire book is devoted to the study of a single particle moving along a straight line. By posing questions about the particle, the text gradually leads readers into the development of mathematical techniques that provide the answers. 1981 ed.