Using semiclassical approximations and graph-theoretical concepts, a path representation of the energy-dependent Green function in a one-dimensional multiple-well potential is derived. Applying uniform semiclassical methods, this representation is valid for energies close to the barrier maxima, where tunnelling and above-barrier reflection are of importance. Semiclassical quantization is discussed and a closed path representation of the density of states is derived. Applications to wavepacket dynamics and to the quantization of disordered systems are presented.
We study the dynamics of multidimensional quantum tunneling by introducing a complex absorbing potential into a two-dimensional model for spontaneous fission. We first diagonalize the Hamiltonian with the complex potential to determine a resonance state as well as its lifetime. We then solve the time-dependent Schr\"odinger equation with such basis in order to investigate the tunneling path. We compare this method with the semiclassical method for multidimensional tunneling with imaginary time. A good agreement is found both for the lifetime and for the tunneling path.
There has been a surprising degree of uncertainty about how, or even whether, the standard semiclassical theory of Van Vleck and Gutzwiller (VVG) can be used to treat the time-dependent dynamics of tunneling through barriers. At issue is how semiclassical theory describes the time evolution of tunneling. This uncertainty has hindered development of practical techniques for semiclassical calculations of multidimensional systems. It is shown here that the VVG theory can indeed be applied to barrier tunneling, but generally requires consideration of classical trajectories with both complex initial conditions and complex time paths, even for systems with one degree of freedom. The present approach is verified by applying it to the classically forbidden propagation of a wave packet through a one-dimensional barrier---a very basic problem that cannot be treated by the VVG theory without the modifications described here.