Providing a pedagogical introduction to the essential principles of path integrals and Hamiltonians, this book describes cutting-edge quantum mathematical techniques applicable to a vast range of fields, from quantum mechanics, solid state physics, statistical mechanics, quantum field theory, and superstring theory to financial modeling, polymers, biology, chemistry, and quantum finance. Eschewing use of the Schrödinger equation, the powerful and flexible combination of Hamiltonian operators and path integrals is used to study a range of different quantum and classical random systems, succinctly demonstrating the interplay between a system's path integral, state space, and Hamiltonian. With a practical emphasis on the methodological and mathematical aspects of each derivation, this is a perfect introduction to these versatile mathematical methods, suitable for researchers and graduate students in physics and engineering.
All the chapters of the book have examined and studied various aspects of path integrals and Hamiltonians, which in turn exemplified different aspects of quantum mathematics. The principles of quantum mathematics, stated in Chapter 2, can be summarized as follows: • The fundamental degrees of freedom F form the bedrock of the quantum system. • A linear vector state space V based on the degrees of freedom F provides an exhaustive description of the quantum system. • Operators O, which includes the Hamiltonian H , represent the physical properties of the degree of freedom and act on the state space V . Observable quantities are the matrix elements of the physical operators. • A spacetime description of quantum indeterminacy is encoded in the Lagrangian L and the Dirac–Feynman formula relates it to the Hamiltonian. • The path integral provides a representation of all the physical properties of a quantum system. In particular, the path integral yields the correlation functions of the degrees of freedom as well as the probability amplitudes for quantum transitions. • The interconnection of the path integral with the underlying Hamiltonian and state space is a specific feature of quantum mathematics that distinguishes path integration from functional integration in general.
This book studies the mathematical aspect of path integrals and Hamiltonians – which emerge from the formulation of quantum mechanics. The theoretical framework of quantum mechanics provides the mathematical tools for studying both quantum indeterminacy and classical randomness . Many problems arising in quantum mechanics as well as in vastly different fields such as finance and economics can be addressed by the mathematics of quantum mechanics, or quantum mathematics in short. All the topics and subjects in the various chapters have been specifically chosen to illustrate the structure of quantum mathematics, and are not tied to any specific discipline, be it quantum mechanics or stochastic systems. The book is divided into the following six parts, in accordance with the Chapter dependency flowchart given below. Part one addresses the Fundamental principles of path integrals and (Hamiltonian) operators and consists of five chapters. Chapter 2 is on the Mathematical structure of quantum mechanics and introduces the mathematical framework that emerges from the quantum principle. Chapters 3 to 6 discuss the mathematical pillars of quantum mathematics, starting from the Feynman path integral, summarizing Hamiltonian mechanics and introducing path integral quantization. Part two is on Stochastic processes . Stochastic systems are dissipative and are shown to be effectively modeled by the path integral. Chapter 7 is focused on the application of quantum mathematics to classical random systems and to stochastic processes.