Complex energies and beginnings of time suggest a theory of scattering and decay

Many useful concepts for a quantum theory of scattering and decay (like Lippmann-Schwinger kets, purely outgoing boundary conditions, exponentially decaying Gamow vectors, causality) are not well defined in the mathematical frame set by the conventional (Hilbert space) axioms of quantum mechanics. Using the Lippmann-Schwinger equations as the takeoff point and aiming for a theory that unites resonances and decay, we conjecture a new axiom for quantum mechanics that distinguishes mathematically between prepared states and detected observables. Suggested by the two signs ±i? of the Lippmann-Schwinger equations, this axiom replaces the one Hilbert space of conventional quantum mechanics by two Hardy spaces. The new Hardy space theory automatically provides Gamow kets with exponential time evolution derived from the complex poles of the S-matrix. It solves the causality problem since it results in a semigroup evolution. But this semigroup brings into quantum physics a new concept of the semigroup time t = 0, a beginning of time. Its interpretation and observations are discussed in the last section.     

Mathematical Models for Unstable Quantum Systems and Gamow States

We review some results in the theory of non-relativistic quantum unstable systems. We account for the most important definitions of quantum resonances that we identify with unstable quantum systems. Then, we recall the properties and construction of Gamow states as vectors in some extensions of Hilbert spaces, called Rigged Hilbert Spaces. Gamow states account for the purely exponential decaying part of a resonance; the experimental exponential decay for long periods of time physically characterizes a resonance. We briefly discuss one of the most usual models for resonances: the Friedrichs model. Using an algebraic formalism for states and observables, we show that Gamow states cannot be pure states or mixtures from a standard view point. We discuss some additional properties of Gamow states, such as the possibility of obtaining mean values of certain observables on Gamow states. A modification of the time evolution law for the linear space spanned by Gamow shows that some non-commuting observables on this space become commuting for large values of time. We apply Gamow states for a possible explanation of the Loschmidt echo.     

Resonances in the Rigged Hilbert Space and Lax-Phillips Scattering Theory

The rigged Hilbert space formalism of quantum mechanics provides a framework in which one can identify resonance states and obtain the typical exponential decay law. However, there remain questions of the interpretation and extraction of physical information through the calculation of expectation values of observables. The Lax-Phillips scattering theory provides a mathematical construction in which resonances are assigned with states in a Hilbert space, thus no such difficulties arise. The original Lax-Phillips structure is inapplicable within standard nonrelativistic quantum theory. Through the powerful theory of H ^p spaces certain relations between the two theories are uncovered, which suggest that a search for a unifying framework might prove useful.     

Time Asymmetry and Quantum Theory of Resonances and Decay

These notes review a consistent and exact theory of quantum resonances and decay. Such a theory does not exist in the framework of traditional quantum mechanics and Dirac's formulation. But most of its ingredients have been familiar entities, like the Gamow vectors, the Lippmann-Schwinger (in- and out-plane wave) kets, the Breit-Wigner (Lorentzian) resonance amplitude, the analytically continued S-matrix, and its resonance poles. However, there are inconsistencies and problems with these ingredients: exponential catastrophe, deviations from the exponential law, causality, and recently the ambiguity of the mass and width definition for relativistic resonances. To overcome these problems the above entities will be appropriately defined (as mathematical idealizations). For this purpose we change just one axiom (Hilbert space and/or asymptotic completeness) to a new axiom which distinguishes between (in-)states and (out)observables using Hardy spaces. Then we obtain a consistent quantum theory of scattering and decay which has the Weisskopf-Wigner methods of standard textbooks as an approximation. But it also leads to time-asymmetric semigroup evolution in place of the usual, reversible, unitary group evolution. This, however, can be interpreted as causality for the Born probabilities. Thus we obtain a theoretical framework for the resonance and decay phenomena which is a natural extension of traditional quantum mechanics and possesses the same arrow-of-time as classical electrodynamics. When extended to the relativistic domain, it provides an unambiguous definition for the mass and width of the Z-boson and other relativistic resonances.     

Causal Symmetry Transformations and their Representations by Semigroups

If one distinguishes between states and observables in quantum theory one obtains from causality arguments that the quantum theoretical symmetry transformations of non relativistic and relativistic space time do not form a group but a semigroup into the forward light cone. These semigroup representations describe resonances and decaying states.     

Difficulty with a kinematic concept of unstable particles: the SZ.-Nagy extension and the Matthews-Salam-Zwanziger representation

We discuss the possibility of describing unstable systems, or dissipative systems in general, by vectors in a Hilbert space, evolving in time according to some non-unitary group or semigroup of translations. If the states of the unstable or dissipative system are embedded in a larger Hilbert space containing decay products as well, so that the time evolution of the system as a whole becomes unitary, we show that the infinitesimal generator necessarily has all energies from minus to plus infinity in its spectrum. This result supplements and extends the well-known fact that a positive energy spectrum is incompatible with a decay law bounded by a decreasing exponential. As an example of both facts, we discuss Zwanziger's irreducible, nonunitary representation of the Poincaré group; and we find its minimal, unitary extension (the Sz.-Nagy construction). The answer provides a mathematically canonical approach to the Matthews-Salam theory of wave functions for unstable, elementary particles, where the spectrum difficulty was already recognized. We speculate on the possibility that the Matthews-Salam-Zwanziger representation might be a strong coupling approximation in the relativistic version of the Wigner-Weisskopf theory, but we have not shown the existence of a physically acceptable model where that is so.     

Relativistic Gamow Vectors

Whereas in Dirac quantum mechanics and relativistic quantum field theory one uses Schwartz space distributions, the extensions of the Hilbert space that we propose uses Hardy spaces. The in- and out-Lippmann-Schwinger kets of scattering theory are functionals in two rigged Hilbert space extensions of the same Hilbert space. This hypothesis also allows to introduce generalized vectors corresponding to unstable states, the Gamow kets. Here the relativistic formulation of the theory of unstable states is presented. It is shown that the relativistic Gamow vectors of the unstable states, defined by a resonance pole of the S-matrix, are classified according to the irreducible representations of the semigroup of the Poincaré transformations (into the forward light cone). As an application the problem of the mass definition of the intermediate vector boson Z is discussed and it is argued that only one mass definition leads to the exponential decay law, and that is not the standard definition of the on-the-mass-shell renormalization scheme.     

Resonances in a Chaotic Attractor Crisis of the Lorenz Flow

Local bifurcations of stationary points and limit cycles have successfully been characterized in terms of the critical exponents of these solutions. Lyapunov exponents and their associated covariant Lyapunov vectors have been proposed as tools for supporting the understanding of critical transitions in chaotic dynamical systems. However, it is in general not clear how the statistical properties of dynamical systems change across a boundary crisis during which a chaotic attractor collides with a saddle. This behavior is investigated here for a boundary crisis in the Lorenz flow, for which neither the Lyapunov exponents nor the covariant Lyapunov vectors provide a criterion for the crisis. Instead, the convergence of the time evolution of probability densities to the invariant measure, governed by the semigroup of transfer operators, is expected to slow down at the approach of the crisis. Such convergence is described by the eigenvalues of the generator of this semigroup, which can be divided into two families, referred to as the stable and unstable Ruelle–Pollicott resonances, respectively. The former describes the convergence of densities to the attractor (or escape from a repeller) and is estimated from many short time series sampling the state space. The latter is responsible for the decay of correlations, or mixing, and can be estimated from a long times series, invoking ergodicity. It is found numerically for the Lorenz flow that the stable resonances do approach the imaginary axis during the crisis, as is indicative of the loss of global stability of the attractor. On the other hand, the unstable resonances, and a fortiori the decay of correlations, do not flag the proximity of the crisis, thus questioning the usual design of early warning indicators of boundary crises of chaotic attractors and the applicability of response theory close to such crises.     

Unstable states produced in multiparticle reactions

Normalized wavefunctions for unstable-particle states are constructed to meet the following physically plausible specifications. The wavefunctions of such states should enter into the theoretical production cross section in the same manner as the boundstate wavefunctions of stable particles. The cross section for the production of an unstable particle should be equal to the breakup cross section integrated over the resonance minus the background. For this purpose the multiparticle reaction cross section is brought into a form such that final-state resonances and interference corrections can be exhibited explicitly. The present theory is limited to unstable particles that decay into one or several two-body channels. For heuristic purposes, rearrangement and breakup scattering for three simple particles is treated numerically. For two particles interacting via a local potential, the wavefunction of the unstable state and the scattering phase shifts are computed with a simple algebraic technique. In order to treat complex multiparticle systems, we extend the resonance theory of simple two-particle systems to resonances in multiparticle two-body channels.     

Field Theory Describing Arbitrary Two-Body Scattering Amplitude as a Born Term

We propose in this paper the local relativistic quantum field-theoretic formulation of the most general isobar model, with unstable two-particle isobars having arbitrary mass and spin spectrum. Such infinite family of isobars is described by infinite-component field operator with its components given by symmetric, traceless and divergenceless field operators ϕu₁…uI (x;s), where I describes spin (I = 0, 1, 2…) and the continuous parameter S the spectrum of asymptotic masses. The asymptotic free states defined by generalized LSZ limits of ϕu₁…uI (x;s), can be described by means of stable multiparticle states. In such a field theory one can choose the parameters in such a way that already a Born term describes an arbitrarily chosen two-body scattering amplitude. As an example we present the generalization of Van Hove model of Reggeons to the case of complex Regge trajectory, describing Regge family of resonances on the second sheet. Finally the correspondence with conventional theory is discussed. It is shown that the Feynman diagrams in local field-theoretic isobar model can be interpreted in the framework of non local theory describing in some approximation an equivalent interaction between stable decay products.     

Zur Begründung eines Variationsprinzipes für zerfallende Systeme

Taking into account the circumstance that the decay of an unstable microscopic system into two fragments is established by the counting of one of the decay products in a detector, the observed exponential decay law then asserts only knowledge of the spatiotemporal behaviour of the probability density (and therewith knowledge of the decaying state) at a large finite distance from the site of decay. We therefore formulate a variational principle, of which stationary functions show this decay behaviour. In addition to the resonant wave functions there are also solutions of the variational principle, which decrease exponentially with increasing distance, i.e., functions which could be used to describe the bound states. As the time-dependent treatment shows, the decaying states cannot occur in isolation in a scattering process. The mathematical characterisation of the decaying states via a variational principle is incorporated in a theory of open physical systems. In contradiction to the variational principle of Schrödinger our principle does not provide complete knowledge of the quantum states, but this is not needed in order to describe the decay.     

New mechanism for non-trivial intra-molecular vibrational dynamics

We investigate the time evolution process of one selected (initially prepared by optical pumping) vibrational molecular state S, coupled to all other intra-molecular vibrational states R of the same molecule, and also to its environment Q. Molecular states forming the first reservoir R are characterized by a discrete dense spectrum, whereas the environment reservoir Q states form a continuous spectrum. Assuming the equidistant reservoir R states we find the exact analytical solution of the quantum dynamic equations. S-Q and R-Q couplings yield to spontaneous decay of the S and R states, whereas S-R exchange leads to recurrence cycles and Loschmidt echo at frequencies of S-R transitions and double resonances at the interlevel reservoir R transitions. Due to these couplings the system S time evolution is not reduced to a simple exponential relaxation. We predict various regimes of the system S dynamics, ranging from exponential decay to irregular damped oscillations. Namely, we show that there are possible four dynamic regimes of the evolution: (i) independent of the environment Q exponential decay suppressing backward R - S transitions, (ii) Loschmidt echo regime, (iii) incoherent dynamics with multicomponent Loschmidt echo, when the system state is exchanged its energy with many states of the reservoir, (iv) cycle mixing regime, when long time system dynamics looks as a random-like. We suggest applications of our results for interpretation of femtosecond vibration spectra of large molecules and nano-systems.     

Effect of heteroboundary spreading on the properties of exciton states in Zn(Cd)Se/ZnMgSSe quantum wells

Exciton states in Zn(Cd)Se/ZnMgSSe quantum wells with different diffusion spreading of interfaces are studied by optical spectroscopy methods. It is shown that the emission spectrum of quantum wells at low temperatures is determined by free excitons and bound excitons on neutral donors. The nonlinear dependence of the stationary photoluminescence intensity on the excitation power density and the biexponential luminescence decay are explained by the neutralization of charged defects upon photoexcitation of heterostructures. With the stationary illumination on, durable (about 40 min) reversible changes in the reflection coefficient near the exciton resonances of quantum wells are observed. It is shown that, along with the shift of exciton levels, the spreading of heteroboundaries leads to three effects: an increase in the excitonphonon interaction, an increase in the energy shift between the emission lines of free and bound excitons, and a decrease in the decay time of exciton luminescence in a broad temperature range. The main reasons for these effects are discussed.     

A Characteristic Decay Semigroup for the Resonances of Trace Class Perturbations with Analyticity Conditions of Semibounded Hamiltonians

To asymptotic complete scattering systems {M ₊+V,M ₊} on H₊:=L²(R₊,K{\mathcal{H}}_{+}:=L^{2}(\mathbf{R}_{+},{\mathcal{K}}, d λ), where M ₊ is the multiplication operator on H₊{\mathcal{H}}_{+} and V is a trace class operator with analyticity conditions, a decay semigroup is associated such that the spectrum of the generator of this semigroup coincides with the set of all resonances (poles of the analytic continuation of the scattering matrix into the lower half plane across the positive half line), i.e. the decay semigroup yields a “time-dependent” characterization of the resonances. As a counterpart a “spectral characterization” is mentioned which is due to the “eigenvalue-like” properties of resonances.     

Quantum trajectory studies of many-atom and finite transit-time effects in a cavity QED microlaser or micromaser

Studies of microlasers and micromasers generally assume that at most one atom is present in the resonator and transit times are much shorter than cavity lifetimes. We use quantum trajectory simulations to investigate the behavior of a microlaser/micromaser in which multiple atoms may be present and atom transit times can be comparable to the cavity decay time. Many-atom events are shown to destroy trap state resonances even for a mean intracavity atom number as small as 0.1. Away from trap states, results for mean photon number agree with a single-atom, weak-decay theory. However the variance of the photon number distribution increases relative to micromaser theory by an amount proportional to the product of the interaction time and cavity decay rate. This excess variance is interpreted as resulting from cavity decay during the atomic transit time.     

Gamow Vectors for Resonances: A Lax-Phillips Point of View

Results from the Lax-Phillips Scattering Theory are used to analyze quantum mechanical scattering systems, in particular to obtain spectral properties of their resonances which are defined to be the poles of the scattering matrix. For this approach the interplay between the positive energy projection and the Hardy-space projections is decisive. Among other things it turns out that the spectral properties of these poles can be described by the (discrete) eigenvalue spectrum of a so-called truncated evolution, whose eigenvectors can be considered as the Gamow vectors corresponding to these poles. Further an expansion theorem of the positive Hardy-space part of vectors Sg (S scattering operator) into a series of Gamow vectors is presented.     

Poincaré Semigroup Symmetry as an Emergent Property of Unstable Systems

The notion that elementary systems correspond to irreducible representations of the Poincaré group is the starting point for this paper, which then goes on to discuss how a semigroup for the time evolution of unstable states and resonances could emerge from the underlying Poincaré symmetry. Important tools in this analysis are the Clebsch-Gordan coefficients for the Poincaré group.     

Quantum Gibbs Samplers: The Commuting Case

We analyze the problem of preparing quantum Gibbs states of lattice spin Hamiltonians with local and commuting terms on a quantum computer and in nature. Our central result is an equivalence between the behavior of correlations in the Gibbs state and the mixing time of the semigroup which drives the system to thermal equilibrium (the Gibbs sampler). We introduce a framework for analyzing the correlation and mixing properties of quantum Gibbs states and quantum Gibbs samplers, which is rooted in the theory of non-commutative \({\mathbb{L}_p}\) spaces. We consider two distinct classes of Gibbs samplers, one of them being the well-studied Davies generator modelling the dynamics of a system due to weak-coupling with a large Markovian environment. We show that their spectral gap is independent of system size if, and only if, a certain strong form of clustering of correlations holds in the Gibbs state. Therefore every Gibbs state of a commuting Hamiltonian that satisfies clustering of correlations in this strong sense can be prepared efficiently on a quantum computer. As concrete applications of our formalism, we show that for every one-dimensional lattice system, or for systems in lattices of any dimension at temperatures above a certain threshold, the Gibbs samplers of commuting Hamiltonians are always gapped, giving an efficient way of preparing the associated Gibbs states on a quantum computer.     

The formation of heavy-fermion states in non-Fermi-liquid impurity systems

A mechanism for the occurrence of heavy-fermion states in non-Fermi-liquid (NFL) metals with f-shell impurities is proposed. The impurity with an unstable valence is suggested to have an energy spectrum consisting of a deep f-level and quasicontinuum states (narrow band) in resonance with the Fermi energy. Depending on the impurity concentration, the single-site NFL states are generated by the two-channel Kondo scattering for the low concentration (the Kondo regime) or by the screening interaction for a relatively high concentration (the X-ray-edge regime). It is shown that the NFL states are unstable against the scattering of the NFL excitations by electron states of the narrow band. This scattering generates additional narrow Fermi-liquid (FL) resonances at/near the Fermi level in the Kondo regime and in the X-ray-edge regime. The mixed-valence states are shown to be induced by new FL resonances. The mixed valence mechanism is local and is related to the instability of single-site NFL states. The FL resonances lead to the existence of additional energy scales and of pseudogaps near the Fermi level in the mixed-valence states. They also considerably narrow the region with a nearly integer valence.