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American Journal of Physics

Visualizing classical periodic orbits from the quantum energy spectrum via the Fourier transform: Simple infinite well examples

Richard W. Robinett

Published Dec 1, 1997• 35 citations
Publisher

Abstract

The Fourier transform of the density of quantized energy levels for a quantum mechanical particle in a two-dimensional (2-D) infinite well (or billiard geometry) is known to exhibit δ-function-like spikes at distance values (L) corresponding to the lengths of periodic orbits or closed trajectories. We show how these Fourier transforms can be rather easily calculated numerically for simple infinite well geometries including the square and rectangular well in 2 D, the cubical well in three dimensions, as well as the circular infinite well (and variations) in two dimensions. Such calculations provide a novel, well-motivated, and relatively straightforward example of numerical Fourier transform techniques and make interesting connections between quantum energy levels and classical trajectories in a way which is seldom stressed in the undergraduate curriculum.

DOI
10.1119/1.18750

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The Fourier transform of the density of quantized energy levels for a quantum mechanical particle in a two-dimensional (2-D) infinite well (or billiard geometry) is known to exhibit δ-function-like spikes at distance values (L) corresponding to the lengths of periodic orbits or closed trajectories. We show how these Fourier transforms can be rather easily calculated numerically for simple infinite well geometries including the square and rectangular well in 2 D, the cubical well in three dimensions, as well as the circular infinite well (and variations) in two dimensions. Such calculations provide a novel, well-motivated, and relatively straightforward example of numerical Fourier transform techniques and make interesting connections between quantum energy levels and classical trajectories in a way which is seldom stressed in the undergraduate curriculum.
The semi-classical method has become a necessary instrument to study the classical movement of the particle.Periodic orbit theory is rapidly becoming one of most useful semi-classical tools which can be used to make direct connections between the quantized energy eigenvalues of a bound state and the classical motions for the corresponding point particle.We use a quantum spectral function which contain rich information of classical orbits in well.We study the correspondence between quantum spectra and classical orbits in the circular.Two-dimensional billiard systems have provided easily visualization examples relevant for both types of analyses.As a simple example of the application to a billiard or infinite well system of Periodic orbit theory,we compute the Fourier transform(ρL) of the quantum mechanical energy level density of two-dimensional circular billiard systems.The resulting peaks in plots of ρL2 versus L are compared to the lengths of the classical trajectories in these geometries.The locations of peaks in ρL agree with the lengths of classical orbits perfectly,which testifies the correspondence of quantum mechanics and classical mechanics.This examples show evidently that semi-classical methods provides a bridge between quantum and classical mechanics.
We compute the Fourier transform (ρ(L)) of the quantum mechanical energy level density for the problem of a particle in a two-dimensional circular infinite well (or circular billiard) as well as for several special generalizations of that geometry, namely the half-well, quarter-well, and the circular well with a thin, infinite wall along the positive x-axis (hereafter called a circular well plus baffle). The resulting peaks in plots of |ρ(L)|2 versus L are compared to the lengths of the classical closed trajectories in these geometries as a simple example of the application of periodic orbit (PO) theory to a billiard or infinite well system. We then solve the Schrödinger equation for the general case of a circular well with infinite walls both along the positive x-axis and at an arbitrary angle Θ (a circular “slice”) for which the half-well (Θ=π), quarter-well (Θ=π/2), and circular well plus baffle (Θ=2π) are then all special cases. We perform a PO theory analysis of this general system and calculate |ρ(L)|2 for many intermediate values of Θ to examine how the peaks in ρ(L) attributed to periodic orbits change as the quasi-circular wells are continuously transformed into each other. We explicitly examine the transitions from the half-circular well to the circle plus baffle case (half-well to quarter-circle case) as Θ changes continuously from π to 2π (from π to π/2) in detail. We then discuss the general Θ→0 limit, paying special attention to the cases where Θ=π/2n, as well as deriving the formulae for the lengths of closed orbits for the general case. We find that such a periodic orbit theory analysis is of great benefit in understanding and visualizing the increasingly complex pattern of closed orbits as Θ→0.
By using the representation of SU(2) coherent states,we construct the wave functions related to the classical periodic orbits in the 2D rectangular billiard.The relation between the classical periodic orbits and the quantum wave functions provide a more physical description of a phenomenon than the true eigenstates in mesoscopic systems.Furthermore,by using the periodic orbit theory,we calculate the Fourier transform ρ(L) of the quantum spectra of the two-dimensional rectangular billiard system.The resulting of the peaks in plots of |ρN(L)|2 versus L are compared to the lengths of the classical periodic orbits of the particle moving in the 2D rectangular cavity.The agreement of the peaks between |ρN(L)|2 and the length of the classical periodic orbit suggests the correspondence of quantum mechanics and classical mechanics.
We compute the Fourier transform [ρ(L)] of the quantum-mechanical energy level density for the problem of a particle in an annular infinite well (or circular disk) of outer (inner) radius R max =RR min =fR. For various values of f=R min /R we then explicitly compare ρ(L) to the lengths of the classical periodic orbits. We also comment on the diffraction peak seen by Reimann et al. in this system, noting that at least one recurrence of that feature is present in the spectrum, and discussing the corresponding effective path lengths for these features.
We use a recently defined quantum spectral function and apply the method of closed-orbit theory to the 2D circular billiard system. The quantum spectra contain rich information of all classical orbits connecting two arbitrary points in the well. We study the correspondence between quantum spectra and classical orbits in the circular, 1/2 circular and 1/4 circular wells using the analytic and numerical methods. We find that the peak positions in the Fourier-transformed quantum spectra match accurately with the lengths of the classical orbits. These examples show evidently that semi-classical method provides a bridge between quantum and classical mechanics.