13,757 research outputs found
Model of supersymmetric quantum field theory with broken parity symmetry
Recently, it was observed that self-interacting scalar quantum field theories
having a non-Hermitian interaction term of the form ,
where is a real positive parameter, are physically acceptable in the
sense that the energy spectrum is real and bounded below. Such theories possess
PT invariance, but they are not symmetric under parity reflection or time
reversal separately. This broken parity symmetry is manifested in a nonzero
value for , even if is an even integer. This paper extends
this idea to a two-dimensional supersymmetric quantum field theory whose
superpotential is . The resulting quantum
field theory exhibits a broken parity symmetry for all . However,
supersymmetry remains unbroken, which is verified by showing that the
ground-state energy density vanishes and that the fermion-boson mass ratio is
unity.Comment: 20 pages, REVTeX, 11 postscript figure
WKB Analysis of PT-Symmetric Sturm-Liouville problems
Most studies of PT-symmetric quantum-mechanical Hamiltonians have considered
the Schroedinger eigenvalue problem on an infinite domain. This paper examines
the consequences of imposing the boundary conditions on a finite domain. As is
the case with regular Hermitian Sturm-Liouville problems, the eigenvalues of
the PT-symmetric Sturm-Liouville problem grow like for large .
However, the novelty is that a PT eigenvalue problem on a finite domain
typically exhibits a sequence of critical points at which pairs of eigenvalues
cease to be real and become complex conjugates of one another. For the
potentials considered here this sequence of critical points is associated with
a turning point on the imaginary axis in the complex plane. WKB analysis is
used to calculate the asymptotic behaviors of the real eigenvalues and the
locations of the critical points. The method turns out to be surprisingly
accurate even at low energies.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figure
Quantum tunneling as a classical anomaly
Classical mechanics is a singular theory in that real-energy classical
particles can never enter classically forbidden regions. However, if one
regulates classical mechanics by allowing the energy E of a particle to be
complex, the particle exhibits quantum-like behavior: Complex-energy classical
particles can travel between classically allowed regions separated by potential
barriers. When Im(E) -> 0, the classical tunneling probabilities persist.
Hence, one can interpret quantum tunneling as an anomaly. A numerical
comparison of complex classical tunneling probabilities with quantum tunneling
probabilities leads to the conjecture that as ReE increases, complex classical
tunneling probabilities approach the corresponding quantum probabilities. Thus,
this work attempts to generalize the Bohr correspondence principle from
classically allowed to classically forbidden regions.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figure
Multiple-Scale Analysis of the Quantum Anharmonic Oscillator
Conventional weak-coupling perturbation theory suffers from problems that
arise from resonant coupling of successive orders in the perturbation series.
Multiple-scale perturbation theory avoids such problems by implicitly
performing an infinite reordering and resummation of the conventional
perturbation series. Multiple-scale analysis provides a good description of the
classical anharmonic oscillator. Here, it is extended to study the Heisenberg
operator equations of motion for the quantum anharmonic oscillator. The
analysis yields a system of nonlinear operator differential equations, which is
solved exactly. The solution provides an operator mass renormalization of the
theory.Comment: 12 pages, Revtex, no figures, available through anonymous ftp from
ftp://euclid.tp.ph.ic.ac.uk/papers/ or on WWW at
http://euclid.tp.ph.ic.ac.uk/Papers/papers_95-6_.htm
Vector Casimir effect for a D-dimensional sphere
The Casimir energy or stress due to modes in a D-dimensional volume subject
to TM (mixed) boundary conditions on a bounding spherical surface is
calculated. Both interior and exterior modes are included. Together with
earlier results found for scalar modes (TE modes), this gives the Casimir
effect for fluctuating ``electromagnetic'' (vector) fields inside and outside a
spherical shell. Known results for three dimensions, first found by Boyer, are
reproduced. Qualitatively, the results for TM modes are similar to those for
scalar modes: Poles occur in the stress at positive even dimensions, and cusps
(logarithmic singularities) occur for integer dimensions . Particular
attention is given the interesting case of D=2.Comment: 20 pages, 1 figure, REVTe
Level Crossings in Complex Two-Dimensional Potentials
Two-dimensional PT-symmetric quantum-mechanical systems with the complex
cubic potential V_{12}=x^2+y^2+igxy^2 and the complex Henon-Heiles potential
V_{HH}=x^2+y^2+ig(xy^2-x^3/3) are investigated. Using numerical and
perturbative methods, energy spectra are obtained to high levels. Although both
potentials respect the PT symmetry, the complex energy eigenvalues appear when
level crossing happens between same parity eigenstates.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures. Submitted as a conference proceeding of PHHQP
Exact PT-Symmetry Is Equivalent to Hermiticity
We show that a quantum system possessing an exact antilinear symmetry, in
particular PT-symmetry, is equivalent to a quantum system having a Hermitian
Hamiltonian. We construct the unitary operator relating an arbitrary
non-Hermitian Hamiltonian with exact PT-symmetry to a Hermitian Hamiltonian. We
apply our general results to PT-symmetry in finite-dimensions and give the
explicit form of the above-mentioned unitary operator and Hermitian Hamiltonian
in two dimensions. Our findings lead to the conjecture that non-Hermitian
CPT-symmetric field theories are equivalent to certain nonlocal Hermitian field
theories.Comment: Few typos have been corrected and a reference update
Eigenvalue Integro-Differential Equations for Orthogonal Polynomials on the Real Line
The one-dimensional harmonic oscillator wave functions are solutions to a
Sturm-Liouville problem posed on the whole real line. This problem generates
the Hermite polynomials. However, no other set of orthogonal polynomials can be
obtained from a Sturm-Liouville problem on the whole real line. In this paper
we show how to characterize an arbitrary set of polynomials orthogonal on
in terms of a system of integro-differential equations of
Hartree-Fock type. This system replaces and generalizes the linear differential
equation associated with a Sturm-Liouville problem. We demonstrate our results
for the special case of Hahn-Meixner polynomials.Comment: 28 pages, Latex, U. Texas at Austin/ Washington University preprin
On the eigenproblems of PT-symmetric oscillators
We consider the non-Hermitian Hamiltonian H=
-\frac{d^2}{dx^2}+P(x^2)-(ix)^{2n+1} on the real line, where P(x) is a
polynomial of degree at most n \geq 1 with all nonnegative real coefficients
(possibly P\equiv 0). It is proved that the eigenvalues \lambda must be in the
sector | arg \lambda | \leq \frac{\pi}{2n+3}. Also for the case
H=-\frac{d^2}{dx^2}-(ix)^3, we establish a zero-free region of the
eigenfunction u and its derivative u^\prime and we find some other interesting
properties of eigenfunctions.Comment: 21pages, 9 figure
Calculation of the Hidden Symmetry Operator for a \cP\cT-Symmetric Square Well
It has been shown that a Hamiltonian with an unbroken \cP\cT symmetry also
possesses a hidden symmetry that is represented by the linear operator \cC.
This symmetry operator \cC guarantees that the Hamiltonian acts on a Hilbert
space with an inner product that is both positive definite and conserved in
time, thereby ensuring that the Hamiltonian can be used to define a unitary
theory of quantum mechanics. In this paper it is shown how to construct the
operator \cC for the \cP\cT-symmetric square well using perturbative
techniques.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figure
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