The analytic properties of the Jost functions are fundamental in quantum scattering theory and in the analytic continuation of the scattering matrix into the complex energy plane. In this work, the analyticity of the Jost functions is investigated from the perspective of parameter-dependent ordinary differential equations. Starting from the radial Schrödinger equation for a short-range central potential, a first-order differential system is derived for the coefficient functions associated with the Ricatti--Bessel and Ricatti--Neumann solutions. The multivalued dependence on the energy variable is shown to originate from the square-root relation between energy and momentum. By explicitly factorizing the momentum-dependent branching terms, the scattering problem is transformed into a differential system whose coefficients are single-valued analytic functions of the complex energy. Using the classical theory of analytic dependence of solutions of ordinary differential equations on parameters, it is shown that the transformed Jost functions are single-valued analytic functions of the energy variable for finite radial distance. The geometric interpretation of the factorization procedure is also discussed in terms of the topology of the associated Riemann surface.
The analytic properties of the Jost functions are fundamental in quantum scattering theory and in the analytic continuation of the scattering matrix into the complex energy plane. In this work, the analyticity of the Jost functions is investigated from the perspective of parameter-dependent ordinary differential equations. Starting from the radial Schrödinger equation for a short-range central potential, a first-order differential system is derived for the coefficient functions associated with the Ricatti--Bessel and Ricatti--Neumann solutions. The multivalued dependence on the energy variable is shown to originate from the square-root relation between energy and momentum. By explicitly factorizing the momentum-dependent branching terms, the scattering problem is transformed into a differential system whose coefficients are single-valued analytic functions of the complex energy. Using the classical theory of analytic dependence of solutions of ordinary differential equations on parameters, it is shown that the transformed Jost functions are single-valued analytic functions of the energy variable for finite radial distance. The geometric interpretation of the factorization procedure is also discussed in terms of the topology of the associated Riemann surface.
This chapter discusses the technical details of the Jost solutions of the Schrödinger equation. The nonrelativistic quantum mechanical two-body problem can be described in terms of the Jost functions and Jost solutions of the Schrödinger equation. When defined for all complex values of the momentum, the Jost functions contain complete information about the underlying physical system. Compared to the S-function which may have redundant poles, the Jost function is a more fundamental quantity because it does not suffer from ambiguities caused by redundant zeros. The chapter first considers the time-independent radial Schrödinger equation before analyzing the regular solution for the Jost function, the poles of the S-matrix, and the wavepacket approach.
One-dimensional quantum scattering from a local potential barrier is considered. Analytical properties of the scattering amplitudes have been investigated by means of the integral equations equivalent to the Schrodinger equations. The transition and reflection amplitudes are expressed in terms of two complex functions of the incident energy, which are similar to the Jost function in the partial-wave scattering. These functions are entire for finite-range potentials and meromorphic for exponentially decreasing potentials. The analytical properties result from locality of the potential in the wave equation and represent the effect of causality in time dependence of the scattering process.
One-dimensional quantum scattering from a local potential barrier is considered. Analytical properties of the scattering amplitudes have been investigated by means of the integral equations equivalent to the Schrödinger equations. The transition and reflection amplitudes are expressed in terms of two complex functions of the incident energy, which are similar to the Jost function in partial-wave scattering. These functions are entire for finite-range potentials and meromorphic for exponentially decreasing potentials. The analytical properties result from the locality of the potential in the wave equation and represent the effect of causality in the time dependence of the scattering process.
We give a pedagogical introduction to time-independent scattering theory in one dimension focusing on the basic properties and recent applications of transfer matrices. In particular, we begin surveying some basic notions of potential scattering such as transfer matrix and its analyticity, multidelta-function and locally periodic potentials, Jost solutions, spectral singularities and their time-reversal, and unidirectional reflectionlessness and invisibility. We then offer a simple derivation of the Lippmann-Schwinger equation and the Born series, and discuss the Born approximation. Next, we outline a recently developed dynamical formulation of time-independent scattering theory in one dimension. This formulation relates the transfer matrix and therefore the solution of the scattering problem for a given potential to the solution of the time-dependent Schrodinger equation for an effective nonunitary two-level quantum system. We provide a self-contained treatment of this formulation and some of its most important applications. Specifically, we use it to devise a powerful alternative to the Born series and Born approximation, derive dynamical equations for the reflection and transmission amplitudes, discuss their application in constructing exact tunable unidirectionally invisible potentials, and use them to provide an exact solution for single-mode inverse scattering problems. The latter, which has important applications in designing optical devices with a variety of functionalities, amounts to providing an explicit construction for a finite-range complex potential whose reflection and transmission amplitudes take arbitrary prescribed values at any given wavenumber.
We give a pedagogical introduction to time-independent scattering theory in one dimension focusing on the basic properties and recent applications of transfer matrices. In particular, we begin surveying some basic notions of potential scattering such as transfer matrix and its analyticity, multi-delta-function and locally periodic potentials, Jost solutions, spectral singularities and their time-reversal, and unidirectional reflectionlessness and invisibility. We then offer a simple derivation of the Lippmann-Schwinger equation and Born series, and discuss the Born approximation. Next, we outline a recently developed dynamical formulation of time-independent scattering theory in one dimension. This formulation relates the transfer matrix and therefore the solution of the scattering problem for a given potential to the solution of the time-dependent Schr\"odinger equation for an effective non-unitary two-level quantum system. We provide a self-contained treatment of this formulation and some of its most important applications. Specifically, we use it to devise a powerful alternative to the Born series and Born approximation, derive dynamical equations for the reflection and transmission amplitudes, discuss their application in constructing exact tunable unidirectionally invisible potentials, and use them to provide an exact solution for single-mode inverse scattering problems. The latter, which has important applications in designing optical devices with a variety of functionalities, amounts to providing an explicit construction for a finite-range complex potential whose reflection and transmission amplitudes take arbitrary prescribed values at any given wavenumber.
The Schrodinger equation for stationary states in a central potential is studied in an arbitrary number of spatial dimensions, say q. After transformation into an equivalent equation, where the coefficient of the first derivative vanishes, it is shown that in such equation the coefficient of the second inverse power of r is an even function of a parameter, say lambda, depending on a linear combination of q and of the angular momentum quantum number, say l. Thus, the case of complex values of lambda, which is useful in scattering theory, involves, in general, both a complex value of the parameter originally viewed as the spatial dimension and complex values of the angular momentum quantum number. The paper ends with a proof of the Levinson theorem in an arbitrary number of spatial dimensions, when the potential includes a non-local term which might be useful to understand the interaction between two nucleons.