Trajectories and the perception of classical motion in the free propagation of wave packets
The free propagation in time of a normalisable wave packet is the oldest problem of continuum quantum mechanics. Its motion from microscopic to macroscopic distance is the way in which most quantum systems are detected experimentally. Although much studied and analysed since 1927 and presented in ma...
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Veröffentlicht in: | Natural Sciences 2022-04, Vol.2 (2), p.n/a |
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Format: | Artikel |
Sprache: | eng |
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Zusammenfassung: | The free propagation in time of a normalisable wave packet is the oldest problem of continuum quantum mechanics. Its motion from microscopic to macroscopic distance is the way in which most quantum systems are detected experimentally. Although much studied and analysed since 1927 and presented in many textbooks, here the problem is re‐appraised from the standpoint of semi‐classical mechanics. Particular aspects are the emergence of deterministic trajectories of particles emanating from a region of atomic dimension and the interpretation of the wave function as describing a single particle or an ensemble of identical particles. Of possible wave packets, that of Gaussian form is most studied due to the simple exact form of the time‐dependent solution in real and in momentum space. Furthermore, this form is important in laser optics. Here the equivalence of the time‐dependent Schrödinger equation to the paraxial equation for the propagation of light is demonstrated explicitly. This parallel helps to understand the relevance of trajectory concepts and the conditions necessary for the perception of quantum motion as classical.
Key Points
1.The paper addresses a problem of fundamental quantum mechanics, important in both physics and chemistry.
2.Within physics, the subject is relevant to the disciplines of both quantum mechanics and classical optics.
3.The matter presented is topical also for researchers in the history and philosophy of physics.
The propagation of a Gaussian wave packet is the oldest problem of continuum quantum mechanics. Here this problem is reviewed from the standpoint of semi‐classical mechanics to throw new light on quantum propagation. In particular, the emergence of classical trajectories, the interpretation of Bohmian trajectories, the meaning of the Gouy phase and the role played by imaginary timescaling is described. The complete equivalence between the paraxial equation of classical optics and the time‐dependent Schroedinger equation is exhibited. |
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ISSN: | 2698-6248 2698-6248 |
DOI: | 10.1002/ntls.20210089 |