Integrability and chaos in quantum systems (as viewed from geometry and dynamical symmetry)

Abstract

It is known that the development and deep understanding of modern interaction theory and classical mechanics are made through geometry and symmetry. Yet, quantum mechanics which was regarded to be the microscopic theory of classical mechanics and achieved the crowning success in interpreting the entire microscopic world was developed purely from algebraic methods. In this thesis, we will study the geometry and dynamical symmetry in quantum systems, from which the question of integrability and chaos are explicitly addressed. First of all, the quantum dynamical degrees of freedom and quantum integrability are precisely defined and the inherent geometrical structure of quantum systems is explored from the fundamental structure of quantum theory. Such a geometrical structure can provide a framework to simultaneously build quantum and classical mechanics. The quantum-classical correspondence is then explicitly deduced. The dynamics of quantum system before it reaches the classical limit is formulated. Thus, the classical chaos is proven to be a special limiting phenomena of quantum systems and the dynamics before the system reaches its classical chaos is explored. The latter is the first step to seek the quantum manifestation of chaos. The relationship between integrability and dynamical symmetry are studied and some universal properties are discovered: a dynamical system (both quantum and classical) is integrable if it possesses a dynamical symmetry. Chaos will occur if the system undergoes a dynamical symmetry breaking and is accompanied by a structural phase transition. Thus, the concept of dynamical symmetry can be used to predict the general behaviors of a system. The theoretical underpinnings developed in this thesis are verified by many basic quantum mechanical examples. In the second part, we have applied the theory to construct the geometrical description for fermionic systems and then use this general formulation to study the geometrical properties, integrability and chaos in nuclear collective motions. The study of geometry for the fermion systems clearly show how the pure quantum properties (e.g. Pauli principle) are exhibited in geometry and how these geometrical manifestations can interpret experimental facts in nuclear collective motion (e.g. the satiation of nuclear deformation and narrow oblate window). The dynamical symmetry and dynamical symmetry breaking in nuclear collective motion are extensively studied.