The Schrödinger equation, Klein‐Gordon equation (KGE), and Dirac equation are believed to be the fundamental equations of quantum mechanics. Schrödinger’s equation has a defect in that there are no negative kinetic energy (NKE) solutions. Dirac’s equation has positive kinetic energy (PKE) and NKE branches. Both branches should have low-momentum, or nonrelativistic, approximations: One is the Schrödinger equation, and the other is the NKE Schrödinger equation. The KGE has two problems: It is an equation of the second time derivative so that the calculated density is not definitely positive, and it is not a Hamiltonian form. To overcome these problems, the equation should be revised as PKE- and NKE-decoupled KGEs. The fundamental equations of quantum mechanics after the modification have at least two merits. They are unitary in that all contain the first time derivative and are symmetric with respect to PKE and NKE. This reflects the symmetry of the PKE and NKE matters, as well as, in the author’s opinion, the matter and dark matter of our universe. The problems of one-dimensional step potentials are resolved by utilizing the modified fundamental equations for a nonrelativistic particle.
The Schrödinger equation, Klein‐Gordon equation (KGE), and Dirac equation are believed to be the fundamental equations of quantum mechanics. Schrödinger’s equation has a defect in that there are no negative kinetic energy (NKE) solutions. Dirac’s equation has positive kinetic energy (PKE) and NKE branches. Both branches should have low-momentum, or nonrelativistic, approximations: One is the Schrödinger equation, and the other is the NKE Schrödinger equation. The KGE has two problems: It is an equation of the second time derivative so that the calculated density is not definitely positive, and it is not a Hamiltonian form. To overcome these problems, the equation should be revised as PKE- and NKE-decoupled KGEs. The fundamental equations of quantum mechanics after the modification have at least two merits. They are unitary in that all contain the first time derivative and are symmetric with respect to PKE and NKE. This reflects the symmetry of the PKE and NKE matters, as well as, in the author’s opinion, the matter and dark matter of our universe. The problems of one-dimensional step potentials are resolved by utilizing the modified fundamental equations for a nonrelativistic particle.
Abstract A fundamental belief is that the formulism of relativistic quantum mechanics equations (RQMEs) should remain in low momentum motion. However, it is found that some formulas from RQMEs were lost in Schrödinger equation. For example, a free relativistic particle has positive and negative energy branches. The former includes positive kinetic energy (PKE) and the latter negative kinetic energy (NKE). The latter should be treated on an equal footing as the former. Nevertheless, from Schrödinger equation, a free particle can have only PKE. Starting from RQMEs and taking low momentum approximation, we derive NKE Schrödinger equation which is for the cases that free particles have NKE. Thus negative energy branch of RQMEs can be retained in low momentum motion. We point out a fact that whether Schrödinger equation is applicable in a region where a particle’s energy E is less than potential V , E < V , has never been quantitatively verified. In such a region NKE Schrödinger equation should be employed. With the help of NKE Schrödinger equation, the lost formulas are recovered. The so-called difficulty of negative probability of Klein–Gordon equation for free particles is solved. A PKE (NKE) particle can have stationary motion only when it is subject to an attractive (repulsive) potential, which is determined by Virial theorem. Two NKE electrons in a potential can constitute a stable system, a new kind of possible mechanism for electron paring. The whole discussion stems from RQMEs with no any new postulation. Experiments are suggested, which may confirm that there are indeed NKE electrons.
A new relativistic quantum wave equation has been derived by applying the quantum prescription to the momentum and the kinetic energy rather than to the momentum and the total energy, since after all it is the kinetic energy that generates the momentum. The resulting equation reduces to the Schrodinger equation in the nonrelativistic limit and to the Klein-Gordon equation for “massless particles” in the relativistic limit, i.e., if the velocity of the particle approaches that of light, c. For massive particles in general, the new equation deviates from the Klein-Gordon equation. The same equation is shown to decouple according to the Dirac formalism, yielding a modified form of Dirac equation. When applied to a rest particle, the modified Dirac equation is shown to avoid a negative energy solution and instead include a constant solution. The other, the time-dependent particle solution of the modified Dirac equation, has the characteristic frequency Mc2/(ћ/2) , i.e., twice those of the Dirac solutions, Mc2/ћ.
Abstract The Klein–Gordon and the Dirac equations are studied as candidates for a relativistic generalisation of the Schrödinger equation. We show that the first is unacceptable because it admits solutions with arbitrarily large negative energy and has no conserved current with positive definite probability density. The Dirac equation on the other hand does have a physically acceptable conserved current, but it too suffers from the presence of negative energy solutions. We show that the latter can be interpreted as describing anti-particles. In either case there is no fully consistent interpretation as a single-particle wave equation and we are led to a formalism admitting an infinite number of degrees of freedom, that is a quantum field theory. We can still use the Dirac equation at low energies when the effects of anti-particles are negligible and we study applications in atomic physics.
The chapter covers some of the essential aspects of relativistic quantum mechanics. The Klein-Gordon equation and its solution in coulombic fields, how to interpret probability density and probability current derived from the Klein-Gordon equation, derivation of the Dirac equation and its covariant form, probability density and probability current for Dirac equation, positive and negative energy eigenvalues in the case of a free particle, constants of motion for relativistic treatment, presence of spin magnetic moment and spin-orbit interaction energy in the Dirac equation, and the solution of the Dirac equation for central potentials and for the hydrogen atom are presented with elegant mathematical treatment and physical interpretations. A modern and reader friendly approach is adopted for derivation of the Dirac equation, constants of motion, and for the solution of the Dirac equation for central potentials. Solved examples and unsolved exercises relating to fundamental concepts of relativistic quantum mechanics are added towards the end of chapter.
The Klein–Gordon equation, written down in 1926 by Oskar Klein and Walter Gordon (and earlier in unpublished form by Schrödinger himself), is the natural relativistic extension of quantum mechanics for spin‑zero particles: (□ + m²c²/ℏ²) Ψ = 0 where □ = (1/c²) ∂ₜ² − ∇². The equation is second‑order in both time and space, treats them symmetrically, and reduces to the free‑particle Schrödinger equation in the non‑relativistic limit. Its plane‑wave solutions satisfy the relativistic mass‑shell condition E² = p²c² + m²c⁴. Why is a relativistic version needed at all? The Schrödinger equation describes how quantum systems evolve when they’re moving slowly compared to the speed of light — fine for atoms, molecules, and everyday chemistry, where electrons move at less than 1% of c. But the Schrödinger equation is first‑order in time and second‑order in space, treating the two on different footings. Special relativity says space and time are unified into a single four‑dimensional structure where Lorentz transformations mix them, and any equation that privileges time over space breaks Lorentz invariance. A truly fundamental quantum equation must respect this symmetry. Klein–Gordon is the minimal scalar‑field equation that does. The standard derivation runs by analogy: start with the relativistic energy–momentum relation E² = p²c² + m²c⁴, replace E by iℏ∂ₜ and p by −iℏ∇, apply both sides to a wavefunction. This produces the right equation but it’s not really a derivation — it’s a guess motivated by the Schrödinger operator‑substitution procedure. This walkthrough shows how the Event Density framework derives the Klein–Gordon equation from substrate primitives — the same primitives that gave the Born rule, the Schrödinger equation, and the Bell–Tsirelson bound — plus the commitment to Lorentz covariance. The participation measure becomes Lorentz‑covariant. The unique second‑order Lorentz‑scalar differential operator on a scalar field is the d’Alembertian; the minimum‑order Lorentz‑scalar linear equation is therefore (□ + M²) Ψ = 0. Dimensional analysis fixes M² = m²c²/ℏ². Local U(1) gauge invariance forces the covariant derivative and the conserved four‑current. The non‑relativistic limit, via rest‑energy factorization, recovers the free‑particle Schrödinger equation exactly. The structural payoff: the Klein–Gordon equation is what you get when the substrate ontology is pushed through a Lorentz‑covariant reformulation. No new primitives are required. Relativistic and non‑relativistic quantum mechanics are not two theories glued together by analogy; they are the same substrate ontology applied at different velocity regimes. The walkthrough is honest about the known caveats — negative‑energy solutions and the non‑positive‑definite j₀ current — both of which resolve at the Dirac level and at QFT.
This chapter introduces the concepts of the relativistic theory to basic problems of quantum physics, in particular, the extension of the Schrodinger equation to a relativistic form. Starting from the fundamental laws of relativity, the chapter evaluates the Klein–Gordon equation and investigates if the equation can be considered a generalization of the non-relativistic Schrodinger equation to the case of the relativistic energy. The chapter shows that the wave function, which is a solution to the Klein–Gordon equation, cannot be connected with the probability wave function. For this reason, the Dirac equation is used to solve the problems faced by the Klein–Gordon equation. The Dirac equation also includes the spin. The advantage of the Dirac equation over the Schrodinger and Klein–Gordon equations is that it naturally includes the spin. In the Schrodinger and Klein–Gordon equations, the spin is not present and has to be added to the wave function manually whenever the wave function determines a system with the spin.