A simple heuristic method of constructing tensor operator bases for spins larger than 1/2 is presented which yields the same matrix representations as reported in the literature. By using the basis sets, we discuss the evolution of density matrices which can be put in Sylvester's form for an exponential operator. Use of quaternions is discussed for constructing tensor operator bases for half integer spins.
A simple heuristic method of constructing tensor operator bases for spins larger than 1/2 is presented which yields the same matrix representations as reported in the literature. By using the basis sets, we discuss the evolution of density matrices which can be put in Sylvester's form for an exponential operator. Use of quaternions is discussed for constructing tensor operator bases for half integer spins.
Basis states and operators composed of n, in general, different nuclear spins of integer or half-integer values are explicitly constructed. Various coupling schemes are discussed, and transformations between them derived. Following this, a complete set of irreducible tensor operators T(k){V} is constructed which can be used as a basis for expanding operators which depend on n nuclear spins. It is further shown that decomposition of the tensor’s components T(k)q{V} into a sum of products of two irreducible tensor components involves transformation matrices between different coupling schemes. Various properties and commutation relations of the T(k)q{V}’s are given along with a discussion of their reduced matrix elements.
A formalism is presented that describes the time behavior of the spin density matrix of a nuclear spin system with arbitrary spin in terms of fictitious spin −(1/2) operators. This formalism is an extension of that used earlier for nuclei with spin I=1. For a spin system with n eigenstates we define for every pair of eigenstates ‖i〉 and ‖j〉 three operators Ii−jp, with p=x, y, and z, according to the three 2×2 Pauli matrices σx, σy, and σz. These operators together constitute a complete set of n2−1 independent Hermitian operators, and we can write the n×n density matrix and the spin Hamiltonian of the system in terms of the Ii−jp operators. The commutation relations among the operators make it possible in many cases to solve the equation of motion of the density matrix analytically. Three examples of the use of the Ii−jp operators are presented. Firstly a system of noninteracting spins with I=1 is considered. The Ii−jp operators for this case are compared with the Iq,k operator defined earlier. The cw signal intensities of the single and double quantum transitions for the I=1 spin system are derived. Secondly a spin system with I=3/2 is described as a simple extension of the use of the Ii−jp operators. The excitation and the detection of the triple quantum coherence are discussed for noninteracting nuclei in solids. Finally the double quantum effects in a system of two interacting spins with I=1/2 are discussed.
This chapter outlines the quantum ideas that underpin magnetic resonance and explains their link to classical physics. It discusses some of the essential concepts governing the quantum behaviour of ensembles of nuclear spins, including the nature of quantum states, the eigenvalue equation and observables, the measurement process, dynamics, and the Schroedinger equation. A detailed description of angular momentum is given along with discussion of the role of symmetry, rotation operators, and both product and total angular momentum representations. Statistical ensembles of spins are introduced and the density matrix and Liouville formalism outlined, along with the various tensor bases for the description of spin systems, both independent and coupled. The spin Hamiltonian is described in detail and the evolution of spin systems under various Hamiltonian terms is discussed using the density matrix description, along with suitable recession diagrams.
This thesis is concerned with the design of numerical methods for quantum simulation and the development of improved models for quantum relaxation. Analysis is presented for the treatment of quantum systems using the density matrix formalism. This approach has been developed from the early days of quantum mechanics as a tool to describe from a statistical point of view a large number of identical quantum ensembles. Traditional methods are well established and reliable, but they perform poorly for practical simulation as the system size is scaled up. Ad hoc schemes for nuclear spin dynamics appearing in the literature can be shown to fail in certain situations. The challenge is therefore to identify efficient reduction methods for the quantum system which are also based on a rigorous foundation. The method presented in the thesis, for the time–independent Hamiltonian case, combines a quantum density matrix formalism with a procedure based on Chebyshev polynomials; application of the method to Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is considered, and it is shown that the new technique outperforms existing alternatives in term of computational costs. The case of a time–dependent Hamiltonian in NMR simulation is studied as well and some splitting methods are presented. To the author’s knowledge this is the first time such methods have been applied within the NMR framework, and the numerical results show a better error–to–cost rate than traditional methods. In a separate strand of research, formulations for open quantum systems are studied and new dynamical systems approaches are considered for this problem. Motivations This thesis work is mainly focused on nuclear spin dynamics. Nuclear spin dynamics constitutes the basis for NMR, which is a very powerful spectroscopy technique that exploits the interaction between nuclear spins and magnetic fields. The same technique is used to reveal the presence of hydrogen atoms in the blood for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). Within this framework the role of simulations is extremely important, as it provides a benchmark for studies of new materials, and the development of new magnetic fields. The main computational issue is that with current software for NMR simulation it is extremely expensive to deal with systems made of more than few (7–10) spins. There is therefore a strong need to develop new algorithms capable of simulating larger systems. In recent years NMR simulations have been found to be one of the most favorable candidates for quantum computing. There are two reasons for this: nuclear quantum states maintain extremely long coherences, and it is possible to attain a very strong control on the quantum state via the application of sequences of pulses. In order to develop a proper quantum computer it is fundamental to understand how the entangled states lose coherence and relax back to equilibrium by means of external interactions. This process is described as relaxation in an open quantum system. The theory for such systems has been available for 50 years but there are still substantial limitations in the two main approaches. There are also relatively few numerical approaches for the simulation of such systems, for this reason it is important to develop numerical alternatives for the description of open quantum systems. Thesis Outline The thesis is organized as follow: the first two chapters provide background material to familiarize the reader with fundamental concepts of both quantum mechanics and nuclear spin dynamics; in this part of the thesis no new results are presented. The first chapter introduces the concept of quantum systems and the mathematical environment with which we describe those systems. We also present the main equations we need to solve to determine the dynamics of a quantum system in a statistical framework. In the second chapter we introduce the nuclear spin system, that is the physical system that has been the main reference frame in this work, for both tests and practical applications of the new algorithms. We describe how nuclear spin systems are at the basis of very important applications like NMR spectroscopy and MRI. We present in some detail the physical features of the NMR technique and the equations we need to solve to describe the dynamics of a spin system; we also focus on the relevance of numerical simulations for these systems, and consequently which must be the interest in developing new algorithms, and the major obstacles which must be overcome. In the third chapter we investigate the numerical challenges that arise in simulation of quantum systems, we describe some of the methods that have been developed in the literature, focusing on the performances and the computational costs of them, setting the new developments of this thesis in the proper research frame. We discuss one of the major issues: the evaluation of the matrix exponential. We also present the analysis we have done of a recent method called Zero Track Elimination (ZTE) that has been developed specifically for NMR simulations. This analysis shows the limitations of this method but also gives a mathematical explanation of why–and in which cases–it works. In the fourth chapter we present the main result of the thesis, the development of a new method that directly evaluates the expectation values for a quantum simulation via a different application of the well known Chebyshev expansion. We have proved that this new method can provide an excellent boost in terms of performance, with computational costs that can be reduced by a factor ten in common cases. (The results of this chapter and the new method have been presented in international conferences and recently they have been submitted for publication). We also present some attempts we have made in the application of splitting methods for the evolution of the system in a time dependent environment. To our knowledge this is the first time splitting methods have been used for NMR simulations. The results of this approach are as follows: for a particular splitting technique combined with a Lanczos iteration method it is possible to speed up the calculation by a third if compared with a Lanczos type method whilst keeping the error below a critical threshold. This last approach is still a work in progress especially in terms of developing clever ways to split the Hamiltonian. The last chapter of this thesis deals with simulation of quantum systems interacting with an external environment. After presenting the main theoretical approaches for the description of such systems we then survey several the techniques that are currently used for the numerical implementation of such theories. As a work in progress we present a considerably different new approach we have been developing aiming to overcome some of the issues that arise when treating this kind of system within usual frameworks. This is somewhat speculative work that gives rise to some new directions in the development of a numerical description for open quantum systems. We also present some numerical results. (The main core of this chapter has been presented in international conferences).
Spin dynamics in pulsed Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy are studied theoretically using spin density operator formulation. The theory exploits the use of irreducible spherical tensor (multipole) operators of spin angular momentum in developing alternative treatments to spin dynamical problems. Applications in spin decoupling and soft pulse dynamics are considered, giving new analytical solutions for the complete density matrix. The focus of the thesis, however, is on the development of two distinctly new methods of solution to the quantum Liouville equation for NMR field modulation. The first method derives a linear integral equation for the magnetization and provides a rapidly converging integral series solution which is useful in explaining many pulse shapes. The second method uses the Wei-Norman Lie algebra approach$ sp{ rm 96}$ which reduces the complete arbitrary spin I problem to a Riccati equation. Novel exact analytical solutions for a class of temporal field modulations are obtained. In contrast to all other existing formulations, the theory provides the first known examples of exactly soluble nonrectangular pulse shapes for all resonance off-set, all field amplitudes, all time and valid for all spin I $ geq$ 1/2. In addition, a new series expansion for the complete spin density matrix is obtained. The theory is applied to producing spin inversion profiles which show applicability to selective excitation.
The rotation operator approach proposed previously is applied to spin dynamics in a time-varying magnetic field. The evolution of the wave function is described, and that of the density operator is also treated in terms of a spherical tensor operator base. It is shown that this formulation provides a straightforward calculation of accumulated phases and probabilities of spin transitions and coherence evolutions. The technique focuses, not on the rotation matrix, but on the three Euler angles and its characteristic equations are equivalent to the Euler geometric equations long known to describe the motion of a rigid body. The method usually depends on numerical calculations, but analytical solutions exist in some situations. In this paper, as examples, a hyperbolic secant pulse is solved analytically, and a Gaussian-shaped pulse is calculated numerically.