Some model Hamiltonians are proposed for quantum-mechanical many-body systems with pair forces. In the case of an infinite system in thermal equilibrium, they lead to temperature-domain propagator expansions which are expressible by closed, formally exact equations. The expansions are identical with infinite subclasses of terms from the propagator expansion for the true many-body problem. The two principal models introduced correspond, respectively, to ring and ladder summations from the true propagator expansion, but augmented by infinite classes of self-energy corrections. The latter are expected to yield damping of single-particle excitations. The eigenvalues of the ring and ladder model Hamiltonians are real, and they are bounded from below if the pair potential obeys certain conditions. The models are formulated for fermions, bosons, and distinguishable particles. In addition to the ring and ladder models, two simpler types are discussed, one of which yields the Hartree-Fock approximation to the true problem. A novel feature of all the model Hamiltonians (except the Hartree-Fock) is that they contain an infinite number of parameters whose phases are fixed by random choices. Explicit closed expressions are obtained for the Helmholtz free energy of all the models in the classical limit.
A method for treating nonlinear stochastic systems is described which it is hoped will be useful in both the quantum-mechanical many-body problem and the theory of turbulence. In this method the true problem is replaced by models that lead to closed equations for correlation functions and averaged Green's functions. The model solutions are exact descriptions of possible dynamical systems, and, as a result, they display certain consistency properties. For example, spectral components of Green's functions which must be positive-definite in the true problem automatically are so for the models. The models involve a new stochastic element: Random couplings are introduced among an infinite collection of similar systems, the true problem corresponding to the limit where these couplings vanish. The method is first applied to a linear oscillator with random frequency parameter. The mean impulse-response function of the oscillator is obtained explicitly for two successive models. The results suggest the existence of a sequence of model solutions which converges rapidly to the exact solution of the true problem. Applications then are made to the Schrödinger equation of a particle in a random potential and to Burgers' analog for turbulence dynamics. For both problems, closed model equations are obtained which determine the average Green's function, the amplitude of the mean field, and the covariance of the fluctuating field. The model solutions can be expressed as sums of infinite classes of terms from the formal perturbation expansions of the solutions to the true problems. It is suggested that correspondence to stochastic models may be a useful criterion to help judge the validity of partial summations of perturbation series.
Identical Particles Second Quantization Independent-Particle Model for Fermions in Finite Systems Two-Particle States and Interactions Noninteracting Bosons and Fermions Propagators in One-Particle Quantum Mechanics Single-Particle Propagator in Many-Particle Systems Perturbation Expansion of the Single-Particle Propagator Dyson Equation and Self-consistent Green's Functions Mean-Field or Hartree-Fock Approximation Beyond the Mean-Field Approximation Interacting Boson Systems Excited States in Finite Systems Excited States in Infinite Systems Excited States in N 2 Systems and In-Medium Scattering Dynamical Treatment of the Self-energy in Infinite Systems Dynamical Treatment of the Self-energy in Finite Systems Bogoliubov Perturbation Expansion for the Bose Gas Boson Perturbation Theory Applied to Physical Systems In-Medium Interaction and Scattering of Dressed Particles Conserving Approximations and Excited States Pairing Phenomena Propagator Framework for Phenomenological Description of Many-Body Systems Finite Temperature Formalism and Applications.
In this article, we present a concise and self-contained introduction to nonequilibrium statistical mechanics with quantum field theory by considering an ensemble of interacting identical bosons or fermions as an example. Readers are assumed to be familiar with the Matsubara formalism of equilibrium statistical mechanics such as Feynman diagrams, the proper self-energy, and Dyson's equation. The aims are threefold: (i) to explain the fundamentals of nonequilibrium quantum field theory as simple as possible on the basis of the knowledge of the equilibrium counterpart; (ii) to elucidate the hierarchy in describing nonequilibrium systems from Dyson's equation on the Keldysh contour to the Navier-Stokes equation in fluid mechanics via quantum transport equations and the Boltzmann equation; (iii) to derive an expression of nonequilibrium entropy that evolves with time. In stage (i), we introduce nonequilibrium Green's function and the self-energy uniquely on the round-trip Keldysh contour, thereby avoiding possible confusions that may arise from defining multiple Green's functions at the very beginning. We try to present the Feynman rules for the perturbation expansion as simple as possible. In particular, we focus on the self-consistent perturbation expansion with the Luttinger-Ward thermodynamic functional, i.e., Baym's Phi-derivable approximation, which has a crucial property for nonequilibrium systems of obeying various conservation laws automatically. We also show how the two-particle correlations can be calculated within the Phi-derivable approximation, i.e., an issue of how to handle the "Bogoliubov-Born-Green-Kirkwood-Yvons (BBGKY) hierarchy".
Entropy in nonequilibrium statistical mechanics is investigated theoretically so as to extend the well-established equilibrium framework to open nonequilibrium systems. We first derive a microscopic expression of nonequilibrium entropy for an assembly of identical bosons/fermions interacting via a two-body potential. This is performed by starting from the Dyson equation on the Keldysh contour and following closely the procedure of Ivanov, Knoll and Voskresensky [Nucl. Phys. A {\bf 672} (2000) 313]. The obtained expression is identical in form with an exact expression of equilibrium entropy and obeys an equation of motion which satisfies the
H-theorem in a limiting case. Thus, entropy can be defined unambiguously in nonequilibrium systems so as to embrace equilibrium statistical mechanics. This expression, however, differs from the one obtained by Ivanov {\em et al}., and we show explicitly that their ``memory corrections'' are not necessary. Based on our expression of nonequilibrium entropy, we then propose the following principle of maximum entropy for nonequilibrium steady states: ``The state which is realized most probably among possible steady states without time evolution is the one that makes entropy maximum as a function of mechanical variables, such as the total particle number, energy, momentum, energy flux, etc.'' During the course of the study, we also develop a compact real-time perturbation expansion in terms of the matrix Keldysh Green's function.
On the basis of an exact perturbational expression for the interacting one-particle Green function
G corresponding to bosons / fermions in terms of the bare interaction potential
v and permanents / determinants of the non-interacting one-particle Green function
G0, we deduce four recursive perturbation expansions for the self-energy
Σ. With
W denoting the dynamic screened interaction potential, these perturbation expansions are identical to those of
Σ in terms of (i) self-energy diagrams and
(v,G0), (ii)
G-skeleton self-energy diagrams and
(v,G), (iii)
W-skeleton self-energy diagrams and
(W,G0), and (iv)
G- and
W-skeleton self-energy diagrams and
(W,G). For the calculation of
W, we rely on a similar exact perturbational expression for the interacting two-particle Green function
G2 as for
G. From this expression, we deduce four recursive perturbation expansions for the polarization function
P, necessary for the calculation of
W, that are similar to those for
Σ specified above. The correlation functions considered in this paper may be corresponding to ground states, and thermal ensemble of states. For thermal ensemble of states, we consider both the imaginary-time formalism of Matsubara, and the real-time formalism of thermo-field dynamics (TFD). The latter is advantageous for the direct calculation of dynamic correlation functions. In an appendix, we apply the formalisms presented in this paper to the Hubbard Hamiltonian for spin-
21 fermions on a lattice in arbitrary
d spatial dimensions. In two further appendices, we present methods and short programs for determining the
νth-order diagrams corresponding to the perturbation expansions of
G in terms of
(v,G0), and
Σ in terms of
(v,G0) and
(v,G) on the basis of the cycle decompositions of the elements of the symmetric group
S2ν.