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Modern Physics Letters A

Energy Eigenvalues for a Class of One-Dimensional Potentials via Quantum Hamilton–Jacobi Formalism

R. S. Bhalla, Ashok Kumar Kapoor, Prasanta Kumar Panigrahi

Published Feb 20, 1997• 31 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Using quantum Hamilton–Jacobi formalism of Leacock and Padgett, we show how to obtain the known energy eigenvalues for a class of widely studied, solvable, one-dimensional potentials. An alternative method to the one given by us, is provided which unambiguously determines the quantum momentum function and hence the eigenvalues for these Hamiltonians.

DOI
10.1142/s0217732397000297

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Using quantum Hamilton–Jacobi formalism of Leacock and Padgett, we show how to obtain the known energy eigenvalues for a class of widely studied, solvable, one-dimensional potentials. An alternative method to the one given by us, is provided which unambiguously determines the quantum momentum function and hence the eigenvalues for these Hamiltonians.
It is well known in classical mechanics that the frequencies of a periodic system can be obtained rather easily through the action variable, without completely solving the equation of motion. Analogously, the equivalent quantum action variable appearing in the quantum Hamilton–Jacobi formalism can provide the energy eigenvalues of a bound state problem, without the necessity of solving the corresponding Schrödinger equation explicitly. This elegant and useful method is elucidated here in the context of some known and not so well-known solvable potentials. It is also shown how this method provides an understanding as to why approximate quantization schemes such as ordinary and supersymmetric WKB can give exact answers for certain potentials.
One-dimensional scattering problems are investigated in the framework of the quantum Hamilton-Jacobi formalism. First, the pole structure of the quantum momentum function for scattering wave functions is analyzed. The significant differences of the pole structure of this function between scattering wave functions and bound state wave functions are pointed out. An accurate computational method for the quantum Hamilton-Jacobi equation for general one-dimensional scattering problems is presented to obtain the scattering wave function and the reflection and transmission coefficients. The computational approach is demonstrated by analysis of scattering from a one-dimensional potential barrier. We not only present an alternative approach to the numerical solution of the wave function and the reflection and transmission coefficients but also provide a computational aspect within the quantum Hamilton-Jacobi formalism. The method proposed here should be useful for general one-dimensional scattering problems.
Some difficulties, both numerical and conceptual, of the method to compute one dimensional wave functions by numerically integrating the quantum Hamilton-Jacobi equation, presented in the paper mentioned in the title, are analyzed. The origin of these difficulties is discussed, and it is shown how they can be avoided by means of another approach, based on different solutions of the same equation. Results for the same potentials, obtained by this latter method are presented and a comparison is made.
General analytical solutions of the Quantum Hamilton Jacobi Equation for conservative one-dimensional or reducible motion are presented and discussed. The quantum Hamilton's characteristic function and its derivative, i.e. the quantum momentum function, are obtained in general, and it is shown that any one-dimensional wave function can be exactly represented in a WKB-like form. The formalism is applied to the harmonic oscillator and to the electron's motion in the hydrogen atom, and the above mentioned functions are computed and discussed for different quantum numbers. It is analyzed how the quantum quantities investigated tend to the corresponding classical ones, in the limit ℏ→0\hbar\to 0ℏ→0. These results demonstrate that the Quantum Hamilton Jacobi Equation is not only completely equivalent to the Schrödinger Equation, but allows also to fully investigate the transition from quantum to classical mechanics.
We propose a new way to perform path integrals in quantum mechanics by using a quantum version of Hamilton-Jacobi (HJ) theory. In classical mechanics, Hamilton-Jacobi theory is a powerful formalism, however, its utility is not explored in quantum theory beyond approximation schemes. The canonical transformation enables one to set the new Hamiltonian to constant or zero, but keeps the information about solution in Hamilton’s characteristic function. To benefit from this in quantum theory, one must work with a formulation in which classical Hamiltonian is used. This uniquely points to phase space path integral. However, the main variable in HJ formalism is energy, not time. Thus, we are led to consider the Fourier transform of the path integral, the spectral path integral Z ˜ ( E ) . The evaluation of path integrals reduces to determining the quantum Hamilton characteristic functions (which can be achieved via an asymptotic analysis) and a discrete sum over the quantum period lattice, generalizing Gutzwiller’s sum.
By means of numerical solutions of the quantum Hamilton Jacobi equation, a general WKB-like representation for one-dimensional wave functions is obtained. This representation is unique in the classically forbidden regions, while in the allowed one, each wave function corresponds to a one parameter family of solutions of the QHJE. The method has been applied to various systems, with different energies and initial conditions. In all investigated cases, the wave functions so obtained accurately reproduce the solutions of the Schrödinger equation, analytically or numerically computed by other ways. Some results for harmonic oscillator and radial Coulomb motion are presented.