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arXiv:1904.06597

Effective Quantum Mechanics of a falling particle

Guillermo Chacón‐Acosta, Héctor H. Hernández, Mercedes Velázquez

Published Apr 13, 2019• 0 citations
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Abstract

We analyze the problem of one dimensional quantum particle falling in a constant gravitational field, also known as the {\it bouncing ball}, employing a semiclassical approach known as momentous effective quantum mechanics. In this formalism the quantum evolution is described through a dynamical system of infinite dimension for the position, the momentum and all dispersions. Usually the system is truncated to have a finite dimensional one, however, in this case equations of motion decouple and the system can be solved. For a specific set of initial conditions we find that the time dependent dispersion in position is always around the classical trajectory.

DOI
10.48550/arxiv.1904.06597

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We analyze the problem of one dimensional quantum particle falling in a constant gravitational field, also known as the {\it bouncing ball}, employing a semiclassical approach known as momentous effective quantum mechanics. In this formalism the quantum evolution is described through a dynamical system of infinite dimension for the position, the momentum and all dispersions. Usually the system is truncated to have a finite dimensional one, however, in this case equations of motion decouple and the system can be solved. For a specific set of initial conditions we find that the time dependent dispersion in position is always around the classical trajectory.
Abstract We analyze the problem of a quantum particle falling under the influence of a one-dimensional constant gravitational field, also known as the bouncing ball , employing a semiclassical approach for the effective equations of motion for the quantum system. In this formalism, the quantum evolution is described through a dynamical system of infinite dimensions for the position, the momentum, and all dispersions. Usually, the system is truncated to reduce it to a finite-dimensional one; however, in this case, equations of motion decouple and the system can be solved exactly. For a specific set of initial conditions, we find that the time-dependent dispersion in position follows the classical trajectory; however, for large times, it grows enough to allow a non-classical behavior for the rebounds. We also propose the study of an effective potential in terms of a pair of canonical variables for dispersions.
In this work we analyze the effective evolution of a one dimensional Bose-Einstein Condensate (BEC) within a semiclassical description of quantum systems based on expectation values of quantum dispersions and physical observables, known as momentous quantum mechanics. We show that the most prominent features and physical parameters of the system can be determined from the dynamics of the corresponding semiclassical system, consisting of an extended phase space including original classical observables and quantum dispersions, and we also show that particle trajectories for expectation values of observables are a particular characteristic in this framework. We also demonstrate that interactions with several potentials can be implemented in an intuitive way.
Abstract We review the dynamics of a bouncing ball, both from the classical and the quantum points of view, studying the role of its inertial and gravitational masses. We analyze the behavior of quantum particles of different masses, embedded in a uniform gravitational field. We show that the bouncing ball is a useful didactic example to show that the coupling between rest mass and gravity cannot be avoided at the quantum level and that the equivalence principle must be reformulated in quantum mechanics. Galileo’s experiment of falling bodies can be still satisfied if one considers only the average quantum values of observables.
The path integral formulation of quantum mechanics in the semiclassical or WKB approximation provides a physically intuitive way of relating a classical system to its quantum analog. A fruitful way of studying quantum chaos is based upon applying the Gutzwiller periodic orbit sum rule, a result derived by the path integral method in the WKB approximation. This provides some motivation for learning about path integral techniques. In this paper a pedagogical example of the path integral formalism is presented in the hope of conveying the basic physical and mathematical concepts. The ‘‘quantum bouncer’’ is studied—the quantum version of a particle moving in one dimension above a perfectly reflecting surface while subject to a constant force directed toward the surface. The classical counterpart of this system is a ball bouncing on a floor in a constant gravitational field, collisions with the floor being assumed to be elastic. Path integration is used to derive the energy eigenvalues and eigenfunctions of the quantum bouncer in the WKB or semiclassical approximation. The results are shown to be the same as those obtained by solving the Schrödinger equation in the same approximation.
In this work, we study the quantum tunnel effect through a potential barrier within a semiclassical formulation of quantum mechanics based on expectation values of configuration variables and quantum dispersions as dynamical variables. The evolution of the system is given in terms of a dynamical system for which we are able to determine numerical effective trajectories for individual particles, similar to the Bohmian description of quantum mechanics. We obtain a complete description of the possible trajectories of the system, finding semiclassical reflected, tunneled and confined paths due to the appearance of an effective time-dependent potential.
We present a formalism for semiclassical time evolution in quantum mechanics, building on a century of work. We identify complex saddle points in real time, real saddle points in complex time, and complex saddle points in complex time that reproduce the known answers in classic problems. For the decay of a metastable state, we find finite time and finite energy analogs of the "bounce" which do not have strict zero or negative modes. The one-loop phase of the wave function and the multiplicity of bounce solutions at late times are discussed. The motivation of this work is to learn how to compute decay rates in quantum field theory in situations with non-trivial time dependence, by first taking a humble step backwards to the fascinating world of quantum mechanics.