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Journal of Physics B Atomic Molecular and Optical Physics

Quantization rules for bound states in quantum wells

M. A. F. Gomes, Sadhan K. Adhikari

Published Dec 28, 1997• 8 citations

Abstract

An algebraic reformulation of the Bohr - Sommerfeld (BS) quantization rule is suggested and applied to the study of bound states in one-dimensional quantum wells. The energies obtained with the present quantization rule are compared to those obtained with the usual BS and WKB quantization rules and with the exact solution of the Schrödinger equation. We find that, in diverse cases of physical interest in molecular physics, the present quantization rule not only yields a good approximation to the exact solution of the Schrödinger equation, but yields more precise energies than those obtained with the usual BS and/or WKB quantization rules. Among the examples considered numerically are the Poeschl - Teller potential and several anharmonic oscillator potentials, which simulate molecular vibrational spectra and the problem of an isolated quantum well structure subject to an external electric field.

DOI: 10.1088/0953-4075/30/24/029

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An algebraic reformulation of the Bohr - Sommerfeld (BS) quantization rule is suggested and applied to the study of bound states in one-dimensional quantum wells. The energies obtained with the present quantization rule are compared to those obtained with the usual BS and WKB quantization rules and with the exact solution of the Schrödinger equation. We find that, in diverse cases of physical interest in molecular physics, the present quantization rule not only yields a good approximation to the exact solution of the Schrödinger equation, but yields more precise energies than those obtained with the usual BS and/or WKB quantization rules. Among the examples considered numerically are the Poeschl - Teller potential and several anharmonic oscillator potentials, which simulate molecular vibrational spectra and the problem of an isolated quantum well structure subject to an external electric field.

Abstract. – An exact quantization rule for the Schrödinger equation is presented. In the exact quantization rule, in addition to Nπ, there is an integral term, called the quantum correction. For the exactly solvable systems we find that the quantum correction is an invariant, independent of the number of nodes in the wave function. In those systems, the energy levels of all the bound states can be easily calculated from the exact quantization rule and the solution for the ground state, which can be obtained by solving the Riccati equation. With this new method, we re-calculate the energy levels for the one-dimensional systems with a finite square well, with the Morse potential, with the symmetric and asymmetric Rosen-Morse potentials, and with the first and the second Pöschl-Teller potentials, for the harmonic oscillators both in one dimension and in three dimensions, and for the hydrogen atom. In the development of quantum mechanics, the Bohr-Sommerfeld quantization rules of the old quantum theory [1] occupy a position intermediate between classical and quantum mechanics. The WKB approximation [2–4] is a method for the approximate treatment of the Schrödinger wave function with another quantization rule [1]. Both quantization rules are approximate. We are going to derive an exact quantization rule for the one-dimensional Schrödinger equation: d2 ψ(x) = −2M dx2 2 [E − V (x)] ψ(x), (1) ¯h where M is the mass of the particle, and the potential V (x) is a piecewise continuous real function of x satisfying for definiteness V (x)> E, − ∞ < x < xA or xB < x < ∞, V (x) = E, x = xA or x = xB, V (x) < E, xA < x < xB, (2) where xA and xB are two turning points. Between two turning points, the momentum is k(x) = √ 2M [E − V (x)]/¯h.

The method of Froman and Froman for proving exact quantization conditions is reviewed. This formalism, unlike the usual WKB approximation to which it bears a close resemblance, requires consideration of the behavior of the potential everywhere it is defined. This approach leads to proofs that certain quantization conditions are exact without having to compare the results to solutions of the Schrödinger equation obtained by other means. Using the formalism, we prove the correctness of all previously known exact quantization rules for the one-dimensional and radial cases. Furthermore, it is shown that exact quantization rules can be proved for two other potentials. For one of these, no analytic solutions to the Schrödinger equation are known. For the latter case, the proof is checked by numerical integration of the Schrödinger equation for a special case.

With the use of the Weyl correspondence between quantum mechanical operators and classical dynamical functions, an exact quantization rule is derived for a system with one degree of freedom and arbitrary Hamiltonian. In the semiclassical limit of small Planck's constant, this reduces to the Bohr-Sommerfeld quantization rule as derived by the WKB approximation. Higher order terms are also derived. It is further proven that for a simple harmonic oscillator the Bohr-Sommerfeld rule must give the exact energy eigenvalues for all states.