We contruct and study a continuous family of representations of the N-dimensional isotropic harmonic oscillator (N≥2) which are not unitarily equivalent to the standard one. We explain why such representations exist and we investigate their simpler properties: the spectrum of the Hamiltonian (which contains nonstandard values), the form of the energy eigenfunctions, and their behavior under the ladder operators. Various symmetry and dynamical groups (e.g. the rotation group) which are valid on the standard representation are not implemented on the new ones. We comment very briefly on the prospects of observing these representations experimentally.
We contruct and study a continuous family of representations of the N-dimensional isotropic harmonic oscillator (N≥2) which are not unitarily equivalent to the standard one. We explain why such representations exist and we investigate their simpler properties: the spectrum of the Hamiltonian (which contains nonstandard values), the form of the energy eigenfunctions, and their behavior under the ladder operators. Various symmetry and dynamical groups (e.g. the rotation group) which are valid on the standard representation are not implemented on the new ones. We comment very briefly on the prospects of observing these representations experimentally.
We study the quantum mechanical harmonic oscillator in two and three dimensions, with particular attention to the solutions as represents of their respective symmetry groups: O(2), O(3), and O(2,1). Solving the Schrodinger equation by separating variables in polar coordinates, we obtain wavefunctions characterized by a principal quantum number, the group Casimir eigenvalue, and one observable component of orbital angular momentum, with eigenvalue m+s, for integer m and real constant parameter s. In each symmetry group, s splits the solutions into two inequivalent representations, one associated with s=0, which recovers the familiar description of the oscillator as a product of one-dimensional solutions, and the other with s>0 (in three dimensions, s=0,1/2) whose solutions are non-separable in Cartesian coordinates, and are hence overlooked by the standard Fock space approach. In two dimensions, a single set of creation and annihilation operators forms a ladder representation for the allowed oscillator states for any s, and the degeneracy of energy states is always finite. However, in three dimensions, the integer and half-integer eigenstates are qualitatively different: the former can be expressed as finite dimensional irreducible tensors under O(3) or O(2,1), and a ladder representation can be constructed via irreducible tensor products of the vector creation operator multiplet, while the latter exhibit infinite degeneracy and the finite-dimensional ladder representation fails for these states. These results are closely connected to the breaking of a unitary symmetry of the harmonic oscillator Hamiltonian recently discussed by Bars.
Apart from the total energy, the two-dimensional isotropic harmonic oscillator possesses three independent constants of motion which, with the standard symplectic structure, generates a dynamical symmetry group isomorphic to SU(2). We show that, by suitably redefining the symplectic structure, any of these three constants of motion can be used as a Hamiltonian, and that the remaining two, together with the total energy, generate a dynamical symmetry group isomorphic to SU(1,1). We also show that the standard energy levels of the quantum two-dimensional isotropic harmonic oscillator and their degeneracies are obtained making use of the appropriate representations of SU(1,1), provided that the canonical commutation relations are modified according to the new symplectic structure. Whereas in classical mechanics the different symplectic structures lead to equivalent formulations of the equations of motion, in quantum mechanics the modifications of the commutation relations should be accompanied by modifications in the interpretation of the formalism in order to obtain results equivalent to those found with the common relations.
The factorization of four vector operators, D±(ω) and D±(−ω), which occur in a representation-independent, spectrum-generating algebra for the three-dimensional, isotropic harmonic oscillator in an angular momentum basis, is considered (ω is the angular frequency of the oscillator). The D±(ω) are quantum-mechanical analogs of the classical vectors (1∓iL̂×)Fc (ω), where Fc(ω)=−Mωr×L+pL is constant in a frame rotating with angular velocity ωL̂. It is shown that these four vector operators can be factorized in two different ways to yield operators that, apart from their dependence on a constant of the motion (L2), are linear in either p or r. In this way 20 abstract operators are obtained. The properties of these operators are discussed: (i) Twelve are ladder operators for the quantum numbers l, and l and m, in the eigenkets ‖lm〉 of L2 and Lz. In linearized, differential form six of these operators are ladder operators for the spherical harmonics in the coordinate representation, while the other six are the corresponding operators in the momentum representation. (ii) The remaining eight operators factorize linear combinations of the Hamiltonian and the dimension operator. In linearized, differential form four of these operators are ladder operators for energy and angular momentum in the radial part of the coordinate-space wave functions, while the other four are the corresponding operators in the momentum representation.
We study the quantum mechanical harmonic oscillator in two and three dimensions, with particular attention to the solutions as basis states for representing their respective symmetry groups — O(2), O(1,1), O(3), and O(2,1). The goal of this study is to establish a correspondence between Hilbert space descriptions found by solving the Schrodinger equation in polar coordinates, and Fock space descriptions constructed by expressing the symmetry operators in terms of creation/annihilation operators. We obtain wavefunctions characterized by a principal quantum number, the group Casimir eigenvalue, and one group generator whose eigenvalue is m + s , for integer m and real constant parameter s . For the three groups that contain O(2), the solutions split into two inequivalent representations, one associated with s = 0, from which we recover the familiar description of the oscillator as a product of one-dimensional solutions, and the other with s > 0 (in three dimensions, solutions are found for s = 0 and s = 1/2) whose solutions are non-separable in Cartesian coordinates, and are hence overlooked by the standard Fock space approach. The O(1,1) solutions are singlet states, restricted to zero eigenvalue of the symmetry operator, which represents the boost, not angular momentum. For O(2), a single set of creation and annihilation operators forms a ladder representation for the allowed oscillator states for any s, and the degeneracy of energy states is always finite. However, in three dimensions, the integer and half-integer eigenstates are qualitatively different: the former can be expressed as finite dimensional irreducible tensors under O(3) or O(2,1) while the latter exhibit infinite degeneracy. Creation operators that produce the allowed integer states by acting on the non-degenerate ground state are constructed as irreducible tensor products of the fundamental vector representation. However, the half-integer eigenstates are infinite-dimensional, as expected for the non-compact O(2,1), and no Fock space description is found for this case. For all s ≠ 0 solutions, the SU(N) symmetry of the harmonic oscillator Hamiltonian recently discovered by Bars is spontaneously broken by the ground state. The connection of this symmetry breaking to the non-separability into one-dimensional Cartesian solutions is demonstrated. We conclude with a discussion of the O(2,1) solutions, and the problem of timelike ghost excitations.
The isotropic harmonic oscillator in N dimensions is shown to have an underlying symmetry group O(2,1)×O(N ) which implies a unique result for the energy spectrum of the system.Raising and lowering operators analogous to those of the one-dimensional oscillator are given for each value of the angular momentum parameter.This allows the construction of an infinite number of coherent states to be carried out.In the N = 1 case there is a twofold family of coherent states, a particular linear combination of which coincides with the single set already well known for that case.Wave functions are readily derived which require only the solution of a first order differential equation, an attribute generally characteristic of group theoretical approaches.
The isotropic harmonic oscillator in N dimensions is shown to have an underlying symmetry group O(2,1)X O(N)which implies a unique result for the energy spectrum of the system. Raising and lowering operators analogous to those of the one-dimensional oscillator are given for each value of the angular momentum parameter. This allows the construction of an infinite number of coherent states to be carried out. In the N=1 case there is a twofold family of coherent states, a particular linear combination of which coincides with the single set already well known for that case. Wave functions are readily derived which require only the solution of a first order differential equation, an attribute generally characteristic of group theoretical approaches.