TEORETISK FYSIK

KTH
TENTAMEN I KVANTMEKANIK
EXAMINATION IN QUANTUM MECHANICS
Kvantmekanik fordjupningskurs 5A1329 for F4
Friday June 2 2006, kl. 08.00-13.00
Write on each page: Name, study program and year, problem number
Motivate in detail! Insucient motivation leads reduction of points
Allowed material: Summary of lectures, BETA, pocket calculator
Grading system: Max 3 points per problem
Examiner: Mats Wallin tel 5537 8475
1. Particle in a square well
A particle of mass m is in the ground state of an innite square well of width a, given
by V (x) = 0 for 0 < x < a, and V = otherwise. Suddenly the right wall moves to a
point b > a.
(a) Determine the probability for the particle to be in the new ground state.
(b) What is the probability to be in the new ground state if the wall is instead moved
adiabatically (innitely slowly)?
2. Anharmonic oscillators
Calculate the shift in the ground state energy of a one dimensional harmonic oscillator
from the small perturbations
(a) H
1
= Ax
4
(b) H
1
= Bp
4
where A, B are constants.
3. Angular momentum expectation values
Let L be an angular momentum operator and let L
z
|m = m|m. Calculate the expec-
tation values:
(a) m|L
x
|m and m|L
y
|m
(b) m|L
2
x
L
2
y
|m
(c) m|L
x
L
y
+ L
y
L
x
|m
SEE NEXT PAGE!
1
4. Particle in a spherical delta function potential
Consider a particle of mass m in a three-dimensional potential V (r) = A(r a),
where A, a are positive constants. Find wave functions (you do not need to normalize)
and energies of bound states with zero angular momentum (s-states). How many s-states
are there?
5. Fermi golden rule
At time t = 0 a particle of mass m in one dimension is in the ground state of an attractive
-function potential V (x) = (x) where > 0 is a constant. For t > 0 the particle is
exposed to a periodic perturbation V (x, t) = xF
0
cos t. Use the Fermi golden rule to
calculate the rate of transitions out of the ground state. Assume that the nal states are
plane waves.
6. Spin Hamiltonian
Consider a spin Hamiltonian of the form H = AL S + BS
z
, where L is a spin-L and S
is a spin-1/2, and A, B are real constants. Determine the energy levels.
GOOD LUCK!
2
TEORETISK FYSIK
KTH
Examination in Quantum Mechanics 060602
Solutions
1. Particle in a square well
(a) Immediately after the sudden expansion the particle remains in the ground state
of the system before the expansion,
a
(x) =
_
2/a sin x/a, 0 x a and
a
(x) = 0
otherwise. The new ground state after the expansion is
b
(x) =
_
2/b sin x/b, 0 x b
and
b
(x) = 0 otherwise. The probability that the particle is in the new ground state is
P = |
a
|
b
|
2
=
4
ab
__
a
0
sin
x
a
sin
x
b
dx
_
2
=
=
1
ab
__
a
0
[cos(a
1
b
1
)x cos(a
1
+ b
1
)x]dx
_
2
=
=
1
ab
_
sin(a
1
b
1
)a
(a
1
b
1
)

sin(a
1
+ b
1
)a
(a
1
+ b
1
)
_
2
=
=
1
ab
2
_
ab
b a
+
ab
b + a
_
2
sin
2
a/b =
1
ab
2
_
2ab
2
b
2
a
2
_
2
sin
2
a/b
Answer:
P =
_
2

_
2
x
(1 x
2
)
2
sin
2
x, x = a/b
(Check: P 1 for x 1. OK!)
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1
x
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
P
(b) In an adiabatic expansion the particle follows the instant ground state throughout
the expansion, so the probability is P = 1.
3
2. Anharmonic oscillators
(a) Evaluate using raising and lowering operators:
E
1
= 0|H
1
|0 = A0|x
4
|0 = A(/2m)
2
0|(a

+ a)
4
|0 =
= A(/2m)
2
0|aaa

+aa

aa

|0 (the other terms give zero) = (2+1)A(/2m)

2
= 3A(/2m)
2
(b) Essentially the same calculation as in (a) gives:
E
1
= B0|p
4
|0 = B(m/2)
2
0|(a

a)
4
|0 = B(m/2)
2
0|aaa

+aa

aa

|0 = 3B(m/2)
2
This perturbation corresponds to a relativistic correction to the kinetic energy.
3. Angular momentum expectation values
The orthogonality of |m gives m|L

|m m|m1 = 0, m|L
2

|m m|m2 = 0.
This gives:
(a)
m|L
x
|m =
1
2
m|L
+
+ L

|m = 0
m|L
y
|m =
1
2i
m|L
+
L

|m = 0
(b)
m|L
2
x
L
2
y
|m =
1
4
m|(L
+
+ L

)
2
+ (L
+
L

)
2
|m =
1
2
m|L
2
+
L
2

|m = 0
(c)
m|L
x
L
y
+L
y
L
x
|m =
1
4i
m|(L
+
+L

)(L
+
L

) + (L
+
L

)(L
+
+ L

)|m =
=
1
2i
m|L
2
+
L
2

|m = 0
Alternatively, (b) and (c) follow directly from
0 = m|L
2

|m = m|L
2
x
L
2
y
|m im|L
x
L
y
+ L
y
L
x
|m
4. Particle in a spherical delta function potential
Substitution of
E
(r) =
u
nl
r
Y
lm
(, ) in the SE gives for l = 0 (s-states)
_

2
2m
d
2
dr
2
+ V (r)
_
u
n0
= Eu
n0
Bound states have E < 0. Boundary conditions are u
n0
(0) = u
n0
() = 0. The solution
with these boundary conditions is
u
n0
(r) =
_
Asinh r, r < a
Be
r
, r > a
4
where =
_
2m|E|/
2
. Study the eect of the delta function potential by integrating
the SE across r = a:

2
2m
_
a+0
a0
d
2
u
dr
2
u(a) = 0
du(a + 0)
dr

du(a 0)
dr
=
2m

2
u(a)
(here we use that u is continuous at r = a)

e
a
+ e
a
e
a
e
a
=
2m

2
Simplify:
1 e
2a
=

2

2m
= (2a), =

2
2ma
This equation has no solution for > 1, i.e. no s states. For < 1 there is a single s
state. Continuity at r = a requires
Asinh a = Be
a
B =
A
2
(e
2a
1)
The solution is (Y
00
(, ) = const)

E
(r) =
_
C
sinh r
r
, r < a
C(e
2a
1)
e
r
2r
, r > a
where C is a normalization constant.
5. Fermi golden rule
The rate of transitions is given by the Fermi golden rule in the form
w =
2

_
|V
k0
|
2
(E
k
E
0

0
)dk
where the contributions from transitions to all possible nal states k have to be integrated
over.
The initial bound state and energy are (Shankar Problem 5.2.3, P. 163):

k
(x) =

e
|x|
, = m/
2
, E
0
=
2

2
/2m
The nal states are plane waves:

k
(x) =
1

2
e
ikx
, E
k
=

2
k
2
2m
Calculate the matrix element:
V
k0
=
_

0
(x)

xF
0
2

k
(x)
_
=
F
0

2
_

xe
|x|ikx
dx = i

2k
3/2
F
0

(k
2
+
2
)
2
The transition rate becomes
w =
2F
2
0
|E
0
|
3/2
_

0
|E
0
|
m(
0
)
4
5
6. Spin Hamiltonian
Let us simplify notation by scaling out A: redene H as H/A and B as B/A. The solution
to the original problem is obtained by multiplying the solutions below by A. Diagonalize
H in the |m
l
, m
s
basis. Since [J
z
, H] = 0, matrix elements of H between states with
dierent m
j
= l 1/2, . . . , l + 1/2 are zero, and H is therefore block diagonal in this
basis. We must treat two cases separately:
(1) The size of blocks with m
j
= (l +1/2) is 2 2 because there are two states for each
m
j
. Write the Hamiltonian as
H = L
z
S
z
+
1
2
(L

S
+
+ L
+
S

) +BS
z
Using m
j
= m
l
+m
s
m
l
= m
j
m
s
, we nd
H|m
l
= m
j
+
1
2
,
1
2
= [m
l
+ B]

2
|m
j
+
1
2
,
1
2
+
+
1
2
_
l(l + 1) m
l
(m
l
1)

1
2
_
1
2
+ 1
_

1
2
_
1
2
+ 1
_
|m
j

1
2
,
1
2
=
=
__
m
j
+
1
2
_
+ B
_

2
|m
j
+
1
2
,
1
2
+
1
2
_
(l + 1/2)
2
m
2
j

2
|m
j

1
2
,
1
2

H|m
l
= m
j

1
2
, +
1
2
= [m
l
+ B]

2
|m
j

1
2
, +
1
2
+
+
1
2
_
l(l + 1) m
l
(m
l
+ 1)

1
2
_
1
2
+ 1
_

1
2
_
1
2
1
_
|m
j
+
1
2
,
1
2
=
=
__
m
j

1
2
_
+ B
_

2
|m
j

1
2
, +
1
2
+
1
2
_
(l + 1/2)
2
m
2
j

2
|m
j
+
1
2
,
1
2

Take inner products with states |m

l
= m
j
1/2, 1/2 to get the matrix elements of the
block Hamiltonian:
H
m
j
=

2
4
I +

2
2
_
_
m
j
B/
_
(l + 1/2)
2
m
2
j
_
(l + 1/2)
2
m
2
j
m
j
+ B/
_
_
where I is the 2 2 identity matrix. The energy eigenvalues are:
E(m
j
)
1,2
=

2
4


2
2

_
l +
1
2
_
2
+ 2m
j
B/ + (B/)
2
(2) If m
j
= (l + 1/2), then the states | l, 1/2 are eigenstates to H with
H| l, 1/2 = (l + B)

2
| l, 1/2
and the energy eigenvalues are
E(m
j
= (l + 1/2)) = (l B)

2
6