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American Journal of Physics

Shortest derivation of time-independent perturbation theory

Boris Blankleider, Alexander N. Kvinikhidze

Published Jul 23, 2025• 2 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We present a new derivation of Time-Independent Perturbation Theory (PT) that is shorter and more general than the usual ones presented in Quantum Mechanics (QM) texts. Expressing the task of PT in terms of Green's functions, the key to our approach is to write the bound-state equation for the perturbed wave function directly in terms of the unperturbed Green's function. Not only does this greatly simplify the derivation of PT expressions for energies and wave functions, but it does so without using the orthogonality or completeness properties of unperturbed Hamiltonian eigenstates, which form the basis of standard derivations of PT. As a result, our approach does not require the potentials to be energy independent as is required in standard derivations, nor does it require the inverse free Green's operator G0−1(E) to be a linear function of energy, as is the case in QM. Consequently, our approach is applicable not only to QM but also to various extensions of QM, including Quantum Field Theory. For students, our approach provides an easy-to-understand introduction to the use of Green's functions in QM while at the same time presenting a description of PT that is shorter and more fundamental than the standard ones currently advocated.

DOI
10.1119/5.0152132

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We present a new derivation of Time-Independent Perturbation Theory (PT) that is shorter and more general than the usual ones presented in Quantum Mechanics (QM) texts. Expressing the task of PT in terms of Green's functions, the key to our approach is to write the bound-state equation for the perturbed wave function directly in terms of the unperturbed Green's function. Not only does this greatly simplify the derivation of PT expressions for energies and wave functions, but it does so without using the orthogonality or completeness properties of unperturbed Hamiltonian eigenstates, which form the basis of standard derivations of PT. As a result, our approach does not require the potentials to be energy independent as is required in standard derivations, nor does it require the inverse free Green's operator G0−1(E) to be a linear function of energy, as is the case in QM. Consequently, our approach is applicable not only to QM but also to various extensions of QM, including Quantum Field Theory. For students, our approach provides an easy-to-understand introduction to the use of Green's functions in QM while at the same time presenting a description of PT that is shorter and more fundamental than the standard ones currently advocated.
We propose a new derivation of Time-Independent Perturbation Theory (PT) that has a fundamental advantage over the usual derivations presented in textbooks on Quantum Mechanics (QM): it is simpler and much shorter. As such, it can provide an easier and quicker way for students to learn PT, than afforded by current methods. In spite of that, our approach does not require the potentials to be energy independent or the inverse free Green function G0−1(E)G_0^{-1}(E)G0−1​(E) to be a linear function of energy EEE, as is the case in QM, and can be applied directly to various extensions of QM including Relativistic QM, the Bethe-Salpeter equation, and all kinds of quasipotential approaches in Quantum Field Theory.
We now consider systems for which the Hamiltonian contains time-dependent interaction terms. In such cases we cannot reduce the time-dependent Schro¨dinger equation to an eigenvalue equation. However, if the time-dependent terms can be regarded as small perturbations, we can develop a form of perturbation theory that can be used to calculate the effects of time-dependent terms. Consider a system for which the Hamiltonian may be written as the sum of a dominant unperturbed part Hˆ0 and a small perturbation Hˆ ′ as Hˆ = Hˆ0 + λHˆ ′(t) , (10.1.1) where the unperturbed Hamiltonian Hˆ0 is independent of time, whereas the perturbation Hˆ ′ may depend on time. The parameter 0 < λ < 1 has been introduced to keep track of various orders of approximations as in the case of time-independent perturbation theory discussed in Chapter 8. The basic idea is that a small perturbation to the Hamiltonian will produce a small change in the wave function. For a time-dependent perturbation, this change means that a system, initially in a particular eigenstate of Hˆ0, will find itself in a time-dependent admixture of the eigenstates. Thus the time-dependent perturbation causes the system to undergo transition to different eigenstates of Hˆ0. So for time-dependent perturbations our interest lies in calculating the probabilities for transition to different states.
This report discusses two new ideas for using perturbation methods to solve the time-independent Schrödinger equation. The first concept begins with rewriting the perturbation equations in a form that is closely related to matrix diagonalization methods. That allows a simple, compact derivation of the standard (Rayleigh-Schrödinger) equations. But it also leads to a new iterative solution method that is not based on the usual power series expansion. The iterative method can also be used when the unperturbed system is two-fold degenerate. The second concept is quite different from the first but compatible with it. It is based on the fact that one can replace the true Hamiltonian with a synthetic Hamiltonian having the same eigenvalues. This approach allows one to cancel part of the perturbation and to reduce the size of the off-diagonal matrix elements, giving better convergence of the series. These methods are illustrated by application to three perturbed harmonic oscillator problems--a 1-D oscillator with a linear perturbation, a 1-D oscillator with a quartic perturbation, and a perturbed 2-D oscillator, which involves degenerate states. The iterative method and the synthetic Hamiltonian method are shown to give significantly better results than the standard method.
Rayleigh-Schrödinger time-independent perturbation theory is a key method in quantum mechanics for solving problems where the Hamiltonian of a quantum system cannot be exactly solved. By expanding the solutions in series, this method allows one to obtain approximations for quantum states and eigen-energies, especially for systems where the interactions or perturbing forces are small compared to the principal part of the Hamiltonian. This is crucial for understanding complex phenomena, predicting the behaviours of atomic and molecular systems, and calculating corrections to basic theoretical models, thereby improving the accuracy of quantum predictions. In this work, we will show that using the unitary operators, we arrive at the equations giving the different order of corrections of both energy as well as wave functions of the time-independent perturbation theory. Our approach closely mirrors the famous formalism of Rayleigh-Schrodinger perturbation theory (RSPT). The use of unitary operators simplifies the derivation of higher-order corrections, making the process more accurate and accessible to researchers. This technique harnesses the potential of unitary operators within a perturbation series framework. By combining these two powerful techniques, we offer a comprehensive framework for addressing normalization challenges in quantum mechanical calculations. This methodology not only facilitates a deeper understanding of perturbation theory but also serves as a pedagogical stepping stone, encouraging postgraduate researchers to apply their foundational knowledge and acquired skills in practical problem-solving situations with confidence. This is therefore a second proof or a new method to derive the fundamental equations of Rayleigh Schrodinger perturbation Theory RSPT using the unitary transformations.
Exactly solvable models in quantum mechanics are very rare.However, perturbation theory is a powerful tool to research the complex quantum systems and is widely used in theoretical physics and chemistry.For the particle weakly perturbed by the surrounding environment, its energy eigenstate and eigenvalue are separately calculated up to the first-order and second-order perturbation approximations in the undergraduate textbook of quantum mechanics.Whereas in reality, we have to calculate the high-order perturbation correction terms occasionally.Along the same lines of the low-order perturbation correction terms of energy eigenvalues and eigenstate for stationary state perturbation theory in the non-degenerate case, the third-order and fourth-order perturbation correction terms are strictly attained in this paper.Moreover, it points out the essence of perturbation theory and provides its derivation ideas.Students are no longer afraid of tedious derivation and can derive any-order perturbation correction.These results can serve as an extension and supplement for the quantum mechanics textbooks.Furthermore, it is very helpful for students to deeply understand quantum perturbation theory.
By splitting a Hamiltonian into two parts, using the solvability of eigenvalue problem of one part of the Hamiltonian, proving a useful identity and deducing an expansion formula of power of operator binomials, we obtain an explicit and general form of time evolution operator in the representation of solvable part of the Hamiltonian. Further we find out an exact solution of Schrödinger equation in a general time-independent quantum system, and write down its concrete form when the solvable part of this Hamiltonian is taken as the kinetic energy term. Comparing our exact solution with the usual perturbation theory makes some features and significance of our solution clear. Moreover, through deriving out the improved forms of the zeroth, first, second and third order perturbed solutions including the partial contributions from the higher order even all order approximations, we obtain the improved transition probability. In special, we propose the revised Fermi's golden rule. Then we apply our scheme to obtain the improved forms of perturbed energy and perturbed state. In addition, we study an easy understanding example to illustrate our scheme and show its advantage. All of this implies the physical reasons and evidences why our exact solution and perturbative scheme are formally explicit, actually calculable, operationally efficient, conclusively more accurate. Therefore our exact solution and perturbative scheme can be thought of theoretical developments of quantum dynamics. Further applications of our results in quantum theory can be expected.