In the last two decades extraordinary progress in the experimental handling ofsingle quantum objects has spurred theoretical research into investigating thecoup... » 

In the last two decades extraordinary progress in the experimental handling ofsingle quantum objects has spurred theoretical research into investigating thecoupling between quantum systems and their environment. Decoherence thegradual deterioration of entanglement due to dissipation and noise fed to thesystem by the environment has emerged as a central concept. The present set oflectures is intended as a highlevel but selfcontained introduction into thefields of quantum noise and dissipation.In particular their influence ondecoherence and applications pertaining to quantum information and quantumcommunication are studied leading the nonspecialist researchers and theadvanced students gradually to the forefront of research. «