The Journal of Chemical Physics
Hydrodynamic equations for mixed quantum states. I. General formulation
Irène Burghardt, L. S. Cederbaum
Abstract
Quantum-mechanical hydrodynamic equations are considered for mixed quantum states, and the corresponding equations for pure quantum states are derived as a particular case. A generalization of the “quantum potential” of Bohmian mechanics is formulated. In the mixed-state case, an infinite hierarchy of kinetic equations arises that may be truncated by introducing suitable approximations. The influence of dissipation on the kinetic equations is discussed.