Skip to main content
Became Hot Network Question
edited body; edited title
Source Link

Spectrum of operator involving latterladder operators

The latterladder operator in quantum mechanics are the operators

$$a^\dagger \ = \ \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}} \left(-\frac{d}{dq} + q\right)$$ and $$a \ \ = \ \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}} \left(\ \ \ \!\frac{d}{dq} + q\right).$$

They are differential operators on $\mathbb R.$ If one writes them in the Hermite basis, then

$$a^\dagger = \begin{pmatrix} 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ \sqrt{1} & 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & \sqrt{2} & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & \sqrt{3} & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \ddots & \dots & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & \sqrt{n} & 0 & \dots & \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \ddots \end{pmatrix}$$ and

$$a =\begin{pmatrix} 0 & \sqrt{1} & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & \sqrt{2} & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & \sqrt{3} & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \ddots & \vdots & \dots \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \sqrt{n} & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \ddots \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots \end{pmatrix}.$$

Now assume I was interested in numerically computing the spectrum of

$$H = \begin{pmatrix} 0& a\\a^* & 0\end{pmatrix}.$$

I absolutely know that this can be computed by hand, but I wonder about how to do this numerically.

A naive idea would be to truncate the above matrices at a large size $N$, but this leads to the wrong spectrum as both matrices then have a non-zero nullspace once they are truncated (it is clear since 0 is then an eigenvalue of geometric multiplicity $1$ for both matrices). Hence, the truncated numerics would predict that the Hamiltonian $H$ has an eigenvalue $0$ of multiplicity 2 rather than 1, which is correct.

Does anybody know how to numerically overcome this pseudospectral effect?

Spectrum of operator involving latter operators

The latter operator in quantum mechanics are the operators

$$a^\dagger \ = \ \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}} \left(-\frac{d}{dq} + q\right)$$ and $$a \ \ = \ \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}} \left(\ \ \ \!\frac{d}{dq} + q\right).$$

They are differential operators on $\mathbb R.$ If one writes them in the Hermite basis, then

$$a^\dagger = \begin{pmatrix} 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ \sqrt{1} & 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & \sqrt{2} & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & \sqrt{3} & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \ddots & \dots & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & \sqrt{n} & 0 & \dots & \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \ddots \end{pmatrix}$$ and

$$a =\begin{pmatrix} 0 & \sqrt{1} & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & \sqrt{2} & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & \sqrt{3} & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \ddots & \vdots & \dots \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \sqrt{n} & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \ddots \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots \end{pmatrix}.$$

Now assume I was interested in numerically computing the spectrum of

$$H = \begin{pmatrix} 0& a\\a^* & 0\end{pmatrix}.$$

I absolutely know that this can be computed by hand, but I wonder about how to do this numerically.

A naive idea would be to truncate the above matrices at a large size $N$, but this leads to the wrong spectrum as both matrices then have a non-zero nullspace once they are truncated (it is clear since 0 is then an eigenvalue of geometric multiplicity $1$ for both matrices). Hence, the truncated numerics would predict that the Hamiltonian $H$ has an eigenvalue $0$ of multiplicity 2 rather than 1, which is correct.

Does anybody know how to numerically overcome this pseudospectral effect?

Spectrum of operator involving ladder operators

The ladder operator in quantum mechanics are the operators

$$a^\dagger \ = \ \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}} \left(-\frac{d}{dq} + q\right)$$ and $$a \ \ = \ \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}} \left(\ \ \ \!\frac{d}{dq} + q\right).$$

They are differential operators on $\mathbb R.$ If one writes them in the Hermite basis, then

$$a^\dagger = \begin{pmatrix} 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ \sqrt{1} & 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & \sqrt{2} & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & \sqrt{3} & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \ddots & \dots & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & \sqrt{n} & 0 & \dots & \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \ddots \end{pmatrix}$$ and

$$a =\begin{pmatrix} 0 & \sqrt{1} & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & \sqrt{2} & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & \sqrt{3} & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \ddots & \vdots & \dots \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \sqrt{n} & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \ddots \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots \end{pmatrix}.$$

Now assume I was interested in numerically computing the spectrum of

$$H = \begin{pmatrix} 0& a\\a^* & 0\end{pmatrix}.$$

I absolutely know that this can be computed by hand, but I wonder about how to do this numerically.

A naive idea would be to truncate the above matrices at a large size $N$, but this leads to the wrong spectrum as both matrices then have a non-zero nullspace once they are truncated (it is clear since 0 is then an eigenvalue of geometric multiplicity $1$ for both matrices). Hence, the truncated numerics would predict that the Hamiltonian $H$ has an eigenvalue $0$ of multiplicity 2 rather than 1, which is correct.

Does anybody know how to numerically overcome this pseudospectral effect?

Source Link

Spectrum of operator involving latter operators

The latter operator in quantum mechanics are the operators

$$a^\dagger \ = \ \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}} \left(-\frac{d}{dq} + q\right)$$ and $$a \ \ = \ \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}} \left(\ \ \ \!\frac{d}{dq} + q\right).$$

They are differential operators on $\mathbb R.$ If one writes them in the Hermite basis, then

$$a^\dagger = \begin{pmatrix} 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ \sqrt{1} & 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & \sqrt{2} & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & \sqrt{3} & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \ddots & \dots & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & \sqrt{n} & 0 & \dots & \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \ddots \end{pmatrix}$$ and

$$a =\begin{pmatrix} 0 & \sqrt{1} & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & \sqrt{2} & 0 & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & \sqrt{3} & \dots & 0 & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \ddots & \vdots & \dots \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots & \sqrt{n} & \dots \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & \dots & 0 & \ddots \\ \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \vdots & \ddots \end{pmatrix}.$$

Now assume I was interested in numerically computing the spectrum of

$$H = \begin{pmatrix} 0& a\\a^* & 0\end{pmatrix}.$$

I absolutely know that this can be computed by hand, but I wonder about how to do this numerically.

A naive idea would be to truncate the above matrices at a large size $N$, but this leads to the wrong spectrum as both matrices then have a non-zero nullspace once they are truncated (it is clear since 0 is then an eigenvalue of geometric multiplicity $1$ for both matrices). Hence, the truncated numerics would predict that the Hamiltonian $H$ has an eigenvalue $0$ of multiplicity 2 rather than 1, which is correct.

Does anybody know how to numerically overcome this pseudospectral effect?