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Journal of Mathematical Physics

Wigner–Weyl correspondence and semiclassical quantization in spherical coordinates

Bill Poirier

Published Dec 1, 1999• 6 citations
Publisher

Abstract

The Wigner–Weyl quantum-to-classical correspondence rule is nonunique with respect to coordinate choice. This ambiguity can be exploited to improve the accuracy of semiclassical approximations. For instance, the well-known Langer modification was recently derived by applying a coordinate transformation to the radial Schrödinger equation prior to using the Wigner–Weyl rule—albeit only by presuming exact quantum solutions for all nonradial degrees of freedom [J. J. Morehead, J. Math. Phys. 36, 5431 (1995)]. In this paper, the full classical Hamiltonian is derived in all degrees of freedom, using a (hyper)spherical coordinate Wigner–Weyl correspondence with a Langer-like modification of polar angles. For central force Hamiltonians, the new result is radially equivalent to that of Langer, and to the standard Cartesian form. The new correspondence is superior with respect to all angular momentum operators however, in that the resultant semiclassical eigenvalues are exact—a desirable goal, evidently achieved here for the first time.

DOI
10.1063/1.533094

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The Wigner–Weyl quantum-to-classical correspondence rule is nonunique with respect to coordinate choice. This ambiguity can be exploited to improve the accuracy of semiclassical approximations. For instance, the well-known Langer modification was recently derived by applying a coordinate transformation to the radial Schrödinger equation prior to using the Wigner–Weyl rule—albeit only by presuming exact quantum solutions for all nonradial degrees of freedom [J. J. Morehead, J. Math. Phys. 36, 5431 (1995)]. In this paper, the full classical Hamiltonian is derived in all degrees of freedom, using a (hyper)spherical coordinate Wigner–Weyl correspondence with a Langer-like modification of polar angles. For central force Hamiltonians, the new result is radially equivalent to that of Langer, and to the standard Cartesian form. The new correspondence is superior with respect to all angular momentum operators however, in that the resultant semiclassical eigenvalues are exact—a desirable goal, evidently achieved here for the first time.
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.
We consider Wigner functions in two space dimensions. In particular, we focus on Wigner functions corresponding to energy eigenstates of a non-relativistic particle moving in two dimensions in the absence of a potential. With the help of the Weyl–Wigner correspondence we first transform the eigenvalue equations for energy and angular momentum into phase space. As a result we arrive at partial differential equations in phase space which determine the corresponding Wigner function. We then solve the resulting equations using appropriate coordinates.
A comprehensive study is presented on the Weyl-Wigner formalism for rotation-angle and angular-momentum variables: the elements of kinematics are extended, the elements of dynamics are established, and the implications of rotational perodicity and angular-momentum quantization are investigated. Particular attention is paid to discreteness, and two of its consequences are emphasized: the importance of evenness and oddness, and the need to use two difference operators in a discrete domain, whereas one differential operator suffices in a continuous domain. These consequences are shown to strongly distinguish the Weyl-Wigner formalism for rotation-angle and angular-momentum variables from the well-known Weyl-Wigner formalism for Cartesian-position and linear-momentum variables. The point is made clear that the first of these formalisms cannot be regarded as a trivial and straightforward extension of the second. The rotational Wigner function is derived as the only bilinear form of the state vector that is real, has the natural invariances for rotational motion, and yields the correct distributions for the rotation-angle and angular-momentum variables as well as the appropriate expression for the transition probability between states. The conditions for its uniqueness are thus established. Its properties are described in detail and, in particular, its uniform boundedness is demonstrated. The rotational Wigner function and the associated correspondence between quantum operators and classical-like functions, as well as the relations they obey, are explored and are written so as to clearly exhibit the distinct contributions of evenness and oddness in the discrete domain of the angular-momentum eigenvalues, thus providing a most natural way to account for periodicity.Using the derivative, which acts on the continuous rotation-angle variable, and the forward and backward differences, which act on the discrete angular-momentum variable, the equation of motion for the rotational Wigner function is established. This equation is detailed for the following Hamiltonian forms: those that depend only on the angular-momentum variable, including, in particular, the free rotator, and those that are in the cosine of the rotation-angle variable. It is verified that the Weyl-Wigner formalism for rotation-angle and angular-momentum variables has the correct nonperiodic limit and that it properly reduces to the Weyl-Wigner formalism for Cartesian-position and linear-momentum variables. In order to illustrate the formalism, a careful analysis is carried out for the rotational Wigner function representing the energy eigenstates of a hindered rotator whose Hamiltonian is the sum of a term in the absolute value of the angular-momentum variable with a term in the cosine of the rotation-angle variable. For this hindered rotator, and within the approximation of a large absolute value of the angular-momentum variable, the equation of motion for the rotational Wigner function is solved for its stationary solutions, and the time-independent Schr\"odinger equation is also solved.
The Weyl transform is applied in quantum dynamics to derive and extend Moyal's statistical theory of phase-space distributions for noncommuting coordinate and momentum operators. The distinction is made between Weyl transforms in Schrödinger and Heisenberg pictures; the general case of time-dependent Hamiltonians is considered. The Wigner function for the probability distribution in a phase space of Cartesian coordinates Q and momenta K propagates according to a conditional probability P(t, Q, K | t0, Q0, K0), which is exhibited as a Feynman path integral in phase space. Properties of P(t, Q, K | t0, Q0, K0) are developed; it is expressed in terms of the quantum generalization of the classical Liouville operator. The Weyl transform of a Heisenberg operator propagates according to P(t, Q0, K0 | t0, Q, K) which is also given as a Feynman path integral. An equation for the time evolution of Weyl transforms of Heisenberg operators is obtained, according to which the transform of Heisenberg coordinate and momentum operators obey a quantum form of Hamilton's equations of motion. If the initial density operator of the system commutes with the coordinate operator, then the state of the system is a mixture of pure coordinate states; the spectrum of the density operator in this case is continuous. For a Heisenberg operator AH(t) with Weyl transform AH(t, Q, K), the function A(t,Q)=∫dKAH(t,Q,K) is the expectation at time t of the dynamical property for a quantum system initially in a pure state of coordinate Q; it is the quantum-mechanical generalization of the dynamical property of the system along the classical trajectory in configuration space at time t. The probability amplitude for the time dependence of A(t,Q) can be expressed as a Feynman path integral with a Heisenberg Lagrangian. The amplitude of the conditional probability P(t, Q | t0, Q0) considered by Feynman is expressed as a path integral with a Schrödinger Lagrangian. The velocity in the Heisenberg Lagrangian is the negative of that in the Schrödinger Lagrangian of Feynman, but it agrees with the velocity appearing in the Hamiltonian equations. It is the Heisenberg Lagrangian that is the Lagrangian of classical dynamics. For a particle whose potential energy is a function of position, a quantum form of Newton's second law is obtained. An extension of the formalism to non-Cartesian coordinate systems is given.