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Advanced Studies in Theoretical Physics

Quantum mechanics of rectilinear orbits of the Coulomb-Kepler problem

Alexander Rauh

Published Jan 1, 2017• 2 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Based on coherent states of the reversed harmonic oscillator, a wave function is proposed with the following three properties: (1) The mean values of position, r0, and velocity, v0, are parallel to the x axis; (2) The wave function is extended by a curve parameter w ≥ 0 such that, as a function of w, the mean values rw and vw describe a rectilinear orbit along the x axis with the mean initial values r0 and v0; (3) The mean energy is constant with respect to w by the leading order of the perturbation parameter ∈. For comparison, the classical one-dimensional equation of motion is integrated. Exact analytical equivalence between classical and the ∈ = 0 quantum limit is found, both for positive and negative mean energy. The curve parameter w is in 1-1 correspondence with time t ≥ 0.

DOI
10.12988/astp.2017.7520

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•Jan 1, 2014•1 citation
Based on coherent states of the reversed harmonic oscillator, a wave function is proposed with the following three properties: (1) The mean values of position, r0, and velocity, v0, are parallel to the x axis; (2) The wave function is extended by a curve parameter w ≥ 0 such that, as a function of w, the mean values rw and vw describe a rectilinear orbit along the x axis with the mean initial values r0 and v0; (3) The mean energy is constant with respect to w by the leading order of the perturbation parameter ∈. For comparison, the classical one-dimensional equation of motion is integrated. Exact analytical equivalence between classical and the ∈ = 0 quantum limit is found, both for positive and negative mean energy. The curve parameter w is in 1-1 correspondence with time t ≥ 0.
As compared to the wave function adopted previously (Adv. Stud. \nin Theor. Phys. Vol.11, 2017, p.365), the new ansatz for fulills now \nenergy conservation rigorously with respect to a curve parameter w greater/equal 0. \nThe symmetry of implies that the mean position and mean velocity \nare parallel or anti-parallel, always. The model describes the scattering \nof a wave packet by the Coulomb potential over a finite time range, \nwhere in the mean only forward and back scattering is possible. The \ndecisive point is to elaborate the definition interval of w as a time equivalent \ncurve parameter. The mean initial position and velocity are built \ninto and form a two-dimensional parameter space P. As it turns out, \nwithin a subspace A _ P, curve parameter w and time t are in 1-1 correspondence \nfor all t greater/equal 0; moreover, one observes mean forward scattering \nwhen the mean initial velocity is directed towards the force center: the \nmean trajectory "tunnels" through the Coulomb singularity. On the \nother hand, in the parameter space complementary to A, the definition \ndomain of the curve parameter is limited and ends before the singularity \nis reached, which means that forward or backscattering cannot \nbe predicted by the given model where the time dependent Schrödinger \nequation is not generally solved.
A one-dimensional wave function is assumed whose logarithm is a quadratic form in the configuration variable with time-dependent coefficients. This trial function allows for general time-dependent solutions both of the harmonic oscillator (HO) and the reversed harmonic oscillator (RO). For the HO, apart from the standard coherent states, a further class of solutions is derived with a time-dependent width parameter. The width of the corresponding probability density fluctuates, or "breathes" periodically with the oscillator frequency. In the case of the RO, one also obtains normalized wave packets which, however, show diffusion through exponential broadening with time. At the initial time, the integration constants give rise to complete sets of coherent states in the three cases considered. The results are applicable to the quantum mechanics of the Kepler-Coulomb problem when transformed to the model of a four-dimensional harmonic oscillator with a constraint. In the classical limit, as was shown recently, the wave packets of the RO basis generate the hyperbolic Kepler orbits, and, by means of analytic continuation, the elliptic orbits are also obtained quantum mechanically.
The problem of deriving macroscopic properties from the Hamiltonian of the hydrogen atom is resumed by extending previous results in the literature, which predicted elliptic orbits, into the region of hyperbolic orbits. As a main tool, coherent states of the harmonic oscillator are used which are continued to imaginary frequencies. The Kustaanheimo-Stiefel (KS) map is applied to transform the original configuration space into the product space of four harmonic oscillators with a constraint. The relation derived between real time and oscillator (pseudo) time includes quantum corrections. In the limit $\ensuremath{\hbar}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}0$, the time-dependent mean values of position and velocity describe the classical motion on a hyperbola and a circular hodograph, respectively. Moreover, the connection between pseudotime and real time comes out in analogy to Kepler's equation for elliptic orbits. The mean-square-root deviations of position and velocity components behave similarly in time to the corresponding ones of a spreading Gaussian wave packet in free space. To check the approximate treatment of the constraint, its contribution to the mean energy is determined with the result that it is negligible except for energy values close to the parabolic orbit with eccentricity equal to 1. It is inevitable to introduce a suitable scalar product in R4{\mathbb{R}}^{4}R4 which makes both the transformed Hamiltonian and the velocity operators Hermitian. An elementary necessary criterion is given for the energy interval where the constraint can be approximated by averaging.
We investigate the semiclassical Kepler/Coulomb problem using the classical constants of the motion in the framework of Nelson's stochastic mechanics. This is done by considering the eigenvalue relations for a family of coherent states (known as the atomic elliptic states) whose wave functions are concentrated on the elliptical orbit corresponding to the associated classical problem. We show that these eigenvalue relations lead to identities for the semiclassical energy, angular momentum and Hamilton–Lenz–Runge vectors in the elliptical case. These identities are then extended to include the cases of circular, parabolic and hyperbolic motions. We show that in all cases the semiclassical wave function is determined by our identities and so our identities can be seen as defining a semiclassical Kepler/Coulomb problem. The results are interpreted in terms of two dynamical systems: one a complex valued solution to the classical mechanics for a Coulomb potential and the other the drift field for a semiclassical Nelson diffusion.
The Kustaanheino-Stiefel transformation is used to transform the Coulomb problem to a four-dimensional isotropic harmonic oscillator with a constraint. Ordinary coherent states are introduced over this oscillator and are shown to evolve in a fictitious time. When projected back into the physical space, the states follow the classical Kepler orbits in physical time. The resulting quasiclassical picture is obtained without the Bohr correspondence principle of taking only contributions from high principal quantum numbers.
According to the correspondence principle, as formulated by Bohr, both in the old and the modern quantum theory, the classical limit should be recovered for large values of the quantum numbers in any quantum system. However, this classical limit of quantum theory is not so straightforward as in the interface of other generalizations of classical mechanics and other domains. In particular, relativistic kinematics and mechanics reduce to Newtonian equations by simple algebra in the case of bodies moving with small velocities compared to the speed of light in vacuum. In this paper we consider the correspondence limit to the two-body problem in gravitational physics, the limit in which both the principal and the angular quantum numbers, N, L are very large. In this limit, we compare with the classical elliptical orbits and we find that the macroscopic coherent quantum states correspond to the statistical average of every classical state compatible with conservation laws for the total energy and angular momentum. We also consider the perturbed Kepler problem with a central perturbation force proportional to the inverse of the cube of the distance to the central body. The exact solution for the quantum eigenstates shows that the first order perturbation to the energy eigenvalues are obtained classically as the temporal orbital average of the perturbation potential.