Ionization of Rydberg atoms by the kicks of half-cycle pulses

We present a quantum mechanical model to study the ionization of quasione-dimensional Rydberg atoms interacting with half-cycle pulses (HCPs) and use it to demonstrate the inadequacy of semiclassical approaches to calculate ionization probabilities of such atoms subject to the impact of more than one HCP. For a single-kicked atom both models correctly reproduce the experimentally observed ‘s-curve’ as can be seen by plotting the ionization probability P as a function of momentum transfer q₁. We demonstrate that for a twice-kicked atom, the semiclassical model yields numbers for P which are not physically realizable. For fixed values of momentum transfers q₁ and q₂, in a twice-kicked atom, the ionization probability as a function of time delay between the kicks exhibits periodic decay and revival. The results of the semiclassical approach appear to agree with the quantum mechanical values at the times of revival of P, else these show considerable deviation. We attempt to provide a physical explanation for the limitation of the semiclassical approach.     

Quantized string models

We discuss and compare the Lorentz covariant path integral quantization of the three bose string models, namely, the Nambu, Eguchi and Brink-Di Vecchia-Howe-Polyakov (BDHP) ones. Along with a critical review of the subject with some uncertainties and ambiguities clearly stated, various new results are presented. We work out the form of the BDHP string ansatz for the Wilson average and prove a formal inequivalence of the exact Nambu and BDHP models for any space-time dimension d. The above three models, known to be equivalent on the classical level, are shown to be equivalent in a semiclassical approximation near a minimal surface and also in the leading $\text{1}\text{d}\text{-}\text{approximation}$ for the static $\text{q}$q-potential. We analyse scattering amplitudes predicted by the BDHP string and find that when exactly calculated for d < 26 they are different from the old dual ones, and possess a non-linear spectrum which may be considered as free from tachyons in the ground state.     

Leptonic decays of baryons

Formulae are obtained for the differential decay rate, lepton spectrum, and partial lifetime for the leptonic decays of baryons, which cover effects down to the order of one percent. A weak, linearq ²-dependence of the form factors is included, which should be a sufficiently good approximation in the physicalq ²-range allowed in the decays. The one percent discrepancy arises as a consequence of the above-mentioned approximation to the form factors, whose value and slope atq ²=0 are left open in the formulae;SU(3) symmetry, CVC, and PCAC yield an estimate for these parameters.     

Gluon transport equations,plasma oscillations,and screening

The gluon transport equations (Phys. Lett. 177B (1986) 402) are reconsidered to derive a consistent semiclassical limit. Introducing the color current of gluon fluctuations around a classical mean field, we calculate the color permeability function of a collisionless gluon plasma in linear response approximation. The dispersion relations and electric screening length agree with one-loop high temperature QCD results. We find no magnetic screening atO(g ²) and predict transverse magnetic plasma oscillations similar to electric ones. The extension to include particle production by a mean color field is shortly described.     

Calculated ionization cross sections for proton-fullerene ion collisions

A simple jellium model is constructed in order to obtain one-electron wave functions for the valence electrons of the fullerene. With this jellium wave function we have calculated ionization cross sections for proton-C₆₀ ⁺ collisions in the semiclassical approximation. For higher projectile velocities, for which the semiclassical approximation is valid also for electron impact, theoretical cross sections fit satisfactorily the experimental data of Völpel et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 71 (1993) 3439].     

The generator-coordinate-method with conjugate parameters and the unification of microscopic theories for large amplitude collective motion

A dynamic theory of large amplitude collective motion of many particle systems is presented which is relevant, for example, to nuclear fission. The theory is microscopic and makes use of a collective path, i.e. a suitably constructed set of distorted nonequilibrium Slater determinants. The approach is a generalization of the generator coordinate method (GCM) and improves its dynamic aspects by extending it to a pair of conjugate generator parameters q and p (DGCM). The problems connected with redundancy and superfluous degrees of freedom are solved by prediagonalizing the local oscillations about each point of the dynamic collective basis | q, p ～. For adiabatic large amplitude collective motion a Schrödinger equation is derived which appears to be nearly identical to the one obtained by a consistent quantization of semiclassical approaches as e.g. the adiabatic time dependent Hartree-Fock theory (ATDHF). In turn a collective path constructed by ATDHF proves to be particularly suited for being used in the present DGCM formalism. Altogether the formalism unifies two classes of microscopic approaches to collective motion, viz. the quantum mechanical GCM and the classical theories like cranking and ATDHF.     

On the longitudinal charge response in the quasielastic peak region

The nuclear charge response in the quasielastic peak region is calculated in a semiclassical approach for moderate momentum transfers (q ≅ 1.5 fm⁻¹). Using the Gogny force and taking full account of the antisymmetrisation, reasonable agreement is found with (e, e′) experimental data in the case of ¹²C. This situation is, however, degrading as one goes to heavier nuclei. Arguments that this is due to the increasing influence of 2p-2h states are given.     

Canonical transformations to action and angle variables and their representation in quantum mechanics IV. Periodic potentials

In the previous papers of this series we discussed the representation in quantum mechanics of canonical transformations leading to action and angle variables, for Hamiltonians with bounded or unbounded orbits, i.e., whose spectra is either discrete, continuous, or mixed. In the present paper the results are extended to Hamiltonians with periodic potentials which have a band spectra. Again the canonical transformations are non-linear and non-bijective and the classical analysis shows that the angle variable φ (always in the interval 0≤φ≤2π) and action J can be defined for energies both below and above the maximum height of the potential. In all of the original phase space the variables (q, p) are then periodic functions of φ. Inversely, because of the invariance of the Hamiltonian under translations q → q + a, the (φ, J) are also periodic functions of q. thus to recover bijectiveness we require an infinite sheet structure in both the (q, p) and (φ, J) phase spaces. In turn the sheet structure can be replaced by appropriate ambiguity groups and spins, with the help of which we propose an explicit expression for the representation in quantum mechanics of the canonical transformation, and recover the latter when we pass to the classical limit with the help of the WKB approximation. The present analysis corroborates the previous surmise that the nature of the spectra of a quantum mechanical Hamiltonian, i.e., continuous, discrete, mixed, or of bands, is related to the ambiguity group and spin of the problem. As the latter originates in classical mechanics when we discuss the canonical transformations from (q, p) to (φ, J), we conclude that some quantum features, such as the nature of spectra of operators, are already implicit in the classical picture.     

Quantum maps

We quantize area-preserving maps M of the phase plane q, p by devising a unitary operator $\text{U}$ transforming states | φ_n〉 into | φ_n+1〉. The result is a system with one degree of freedom q on which to study the quantum implications of generic classical motion, including stochasticity. We derive exact expressions for the equation iterating wavefunctions ψ_n(q), the propagator for Wigner functions W_n(q,p), the eigenstates of the discrete analog of the quantum harmonic oscillator, and general complex Gaussian wave packets iterated by a $\text{U}$ derived from a linear M. For | ψ_n〉 associated with curves $\text{L}$_n in q, p, we derive a semiclassical theory for evolving states and stationary states, analogous to the familiar WKB method. This theory breaks down when $\text{L}$_n gets so complicated as to develop convolutions of area ? or smaller. Such complication is generic; its principal morphotologies are“whorls” and “tendrils,” associated respectively with elliptic and hyperbolic fixed points of M. Under $\text{U}$, ψ_n(q) eventually transforms into a new sort of wave that no longer perceives the details of $\text{L}$_n. For all regimes, however, the smoothed | ψ_n(q)|² appears semiclassically appears to be given accurately by the smoothed projection of $\text{L}$_n onto the q axis, both smoothings being over a de Broglie wavelength. The classical, quantum, and semiclassical theory is illustrated by computations on the discrete quartic oscillator map. We display for the first time stochastic wavefunctions, dominated by dense clusters of caustics and characterized by multiple scales of oscillation.     

Numerische Berechnungen zum Resonanzverhalten der Streuquerschnitte bei atomaren Stößen. II

The undulatory behavior in the velocity dependence of the total elastic cross-sectionQ(v) for atom-atom-scattering can be calculated by the semiclassical approximation. In a previous paper J numerical values of the classical deflection function, which are necessary to evaluate the amplitude of the extrema inQ(v), were reported for a Kihara-potential as a function of the reduced energyK and the potential parameter α. The present paper gives the correspondent reduced maximum phase shiftsη ₀ ^* (K,α), which determine the location of the extrema. The results for the Kihara-potential are compared with similar calculations for a Lennard-Jones-(n, 6)-potential.     

Proton yields from quasielastic pion scattering on 27Al and 208Pb

A singles measurement of the quasielastic scattering of 255 MeV pions by ²⁷Al and ²⁰⁸Pb has been made. The measured values for the ratio R of π⁺ and π^? induced cross section, averaged over all measured angles of 2.2 ± 0.2 and 1.5 ± 0.1 for ²⁷Al and ²⁰⁸Pb respectively are substantially below the classical impulse approximation value of 11. A semiclassical nucleon charge exchange model is described for singles and coincidence measurements and is compared with the measured proton spectra. The comparison indicates that the singles proton spectra are dominated by events other than the quasielastic process whereas the coincidence data reported earlier and compared with the present calculations support the quasielastic interpretation. A strongly decreasing dependence of R on A for coincidence measurements may be interpreted as supporting the view that recoil nucleon charge exchange plays an important role in the quasielastic knockout process.     

Weyl's association,Wigner's function and affine geometry

According to Weyl one may associate a function with a dynamical operator; these functions depend on the parameters p and q and can be displayed in a p, q manifold, the W space. In the classical limit the W space becomes the phase space parametrised by the canonical variables. The function associated in this manner with the density operator is Wigner's function. It turns out that if Wigner's function is a delta function it cannot represent the density operator of a physically realisable state unless the argument of the delta-function is linear in the parameters a and q. In all other cases Wigner's function associated with a physically realisable state has a finite width, proportional to $\text{h}{}^{\mathrm{<mtext>2</mtext><mtext>3</mtext>}}$. Consequently straightness (linear combination of p and q) has a fundamental significance in the W space. Since this property is preserved under linear inhomogeneous transformations the W space will have a geometry generated by these transformations, the affine geometry of Euler, Moebius and Blaschke. In the present note we show how this comes about, how it simplifies the semiclassical approximations of Wigner's function, and makes one understand how in the classical limit this geometry is lost, allowing to be replaced by the geometry of canonical transformations.     

Bag confinement chiral breaking effect on a goldstone pion

We present a model in which the pion is a bound-state Goldstone boson in QCD and then the quarks are confined by a MIT bag-like boundary condition. We depart from the MIT cavity approximation in that we dynamically break chiral symmetry prior to confinement and we confine only in the $\text{q}\text{q}$ relative coordinate, leaving translation invariance in the total coordinate. We find M_π= 120 MeV, and a bag diameter R_π=7 GeV^?1.     

Distortion of the Poisson Bracket by the Noncommutative Planck Constants

In this paper we introduce a kind of “noncommutative neighbourhood” of a semiclassical parameter corresponding to the Planck constant. This construction is defined as a certain filtered and graded algebra with an infinite number of generators indexed by planar binary leaf-labelled trees. The associated graded algebra (the classical shadow) is interpreted as a “distortion” of the algebra of classical observables of a physical system. It is proven that there exists a q-analogue of the Weyl quantization, where q is a matrix of formal variables, which induces a nontrivial noncommutative analogue of a Poisson bracket on the classical shadow.     

Ground-state entropy of the q-state Potts antiferromagnet in a magnetic field

We present a simple method to obtain reliable ground-state entropies of the q-state Potts antiferromagnet in an external magnetic field. As an example, the ground-state entropy for the triangular lattice is established for all q. In the particular case q = 2, our method gives results which coincide with the first-order approximation obtained by the corner transfer matrix method.     

The correlation function of the Ising model in the MFA and their sum rule

It is shown that in the correctly performed molecular field approximation the correlation function 〈S(q) S(-q)〉 fulfills the sum rule N^-1Σ_q〈S(q) S(-q)〉 = 1. This can be proved for ferro- and antiferromagnets and the disordered phases of o-hydrogen.     

Semiclassical scattering theory with complex trajectories. I. Elastic waves

The WKB approximation to the one-particle Schrödinger equation is used to obtain the wave function at a given point as a sum of semiclassical terms, each of them corresponding to a different classical trajectory ending up at the same point. Besides the usual, real trajectories, also possible complex solutions of the classical equations of motion are considered. The simplicity of the method makes its use easy in practical cases and allows realistic calculations. The general solution of the one-dimensional WKB equations for an arbitrary number of complex turning points is given, and the solution is applied to calculate the position of the Regge poles of the scattering amplitude. The solution of the WKB equations in three dimensions for a central analytical potential is also obtained in a way that can be easily generalized to N-dimensions, provided the problem is separable. A multiple reflection series is derived, leading to a separation of the scattering amplitude into a smooth “background” term (single reflection approximation) that can be treated using classical but complex trajectories and a second resonating term that can be treated using the Sommerfeld-Watson transformation. The physical interpretation of the complex solutions of the classical equations of motion is given: they describe diffractive effects such as Fresnel, Fraunhofer diffraction, or the penetration of the quantal wave into shadow regions of caustics. They arise also in the scattering by a complex potential in an absorptive medium. The comparison with exact quantal calculations shows an astonishingly good agreement, and establishes the complex semiclassical approximation as a quantitative tool even in cases where the potential varies rapidly within a fraction of a wavelength. An approximate property of classical paths is discussed. The general pattern of the trajectories depends only on the product ? = EΘ, and not on energy and angle separately. This property is confirmed by experiments and besides the signature it gives for the semiclassical behavior, it simplifies considerably the search for all trajectories scattering through the same angle. Finally, a general classification of the different types of elastic heavy ion cross sections is given.     

Relationship between σxx and σyx - integral quantum hall effect

The possibility of a Kramers-Kronig relation between the longitudinal and transverse conductivities of a 2-D electron gas in the presence of a magnetic field is investigated. The longitudinal (σ_xx) and the transverse (σ_yx) conductivities are expressed as the real and imaginary part of a complex conductivity (σ). A formal expression is derived for σ within the independent particle approximation. In the classical limit, σ is analytic in the upper complex ω_c plane, where ω_c is the cyclotron frequency. Hence the usual Kramers-Kronig relation holds for σ^c. We modeled a quantum correction (σ^q) to σ and found that σ^q is non-analytic in the upper half plane, hence the total σ does not satisfy a Kramers-Kronig relation.