AIP conference proceedings
Quantum Mechanical Operators in Multiresolution Hilbert Spaces
Jānos Pipek, Theodore E. Simos, George Maroulis
Abstract
Wavelet analysis, which is a shorthand notation for the concept of multiresolution analysis (MRA), becomes increasingly popular in high efficiency storage algorithms of complex spatial distributions. This approach is applied for describing wave functions of quantum systems. At any resolution level of MRA expansions a physical observable is represented by an infinite matrix which is “canonically” chosen as the projection of its operator in the Schrödinger picture onto the subspace of the given resolution. It is shown that this canonical choice is only a particular member of possible operator representations. Among these, there exits an optimal choice, usually different from the canonical one, which gives the best numerical values in eigenvalue problems. This construction works even in those cases, where the canonical definition is unusable. The commutation relation of physical operators is also studied in MRA subspaces. It is shown that the required commutation rules are satisfied in the fine resolution limit, whereas in coarse grained spaces a correction appears depending only on the representation of the momentum operator.