FREE PARTICLE AND WAVE PACKET

a. Question: Show that the stationary states of

free particle are sinusoidal harmonic waves.

b. Question: Then show that quantum mechanical

wave function travels at half the speed of the
particle it is supposed to represent.

c. Question: Then show that quantum mechanical

wave function travels at half the speed of the
particle it is supposed to represent.

d. Question: Then define a wave packet.

e. Question: Calculate the group velocity of a

wave packet with general form.

f. Question: Then confirm that it is the group

velocity of the wave packet, not the phase
velocity of the stationary states, that matches
the classical free particle velocity.
FREE PARTICLE AND WAVE PACKET
Question: Show that the stationary states of free particle are
sinusoidal harmonic waves.

Answer: the time independent Schrödinger equation for a free particle

(V(x) = 0 everywhere) reads,

−ℏ 𝑑 2 ψ
= 𝐸ψ(𝑥)
2𝑚 𝑑𝑥 2

𝑑2𝜓
Or, = −𝑘 2 ψ (1)
𝑑𝑥 2

Where,
√2𝑚𝐸
k≡ (2)
ℏ

The general solution of equation (1) is,

ψ(𝑥) = 𝐴𝑒 𝑖𝑘𝑥 + 𝐵𝑒 −𝑖𝑘𝑥 (3)

There are no boundary conditions to restrict the possible values of k and hence
E. Thus, the free particle can carry any (positive) energy. Tacking on the
𝑖𝐸𝑡
− ℏ
standard time dependence 𝑒 ,

ℏ𝑘 ℏ𝑘
𝑖𝑘(𝑥−2𝑚𝑡) −𝑖𝑘(𝑥+2𝑚𝑡)
Ψ(𝑥, 𝑡) = 𝐴𝑒 + 𝐵𝑒 (4)

Now, any function of x and t that depends on these variables in the special
combination (𝑥 ± 𝑣𝑡 ) (for some constant 𝑣) represents a wave of fixed
profile, traveling in the ∓𝒙 direction, at speed 𝑣. Thus the first term in
equation (4) represents a non-dispersive wave traveling to the right, and the
second represents a non-dispersive wave (of the same energy) going to the left.
By the way, since they only differ by the sign in front of k, we might as well
write,

ℏ𝑘2
𝑖(𝑘𝑥− 2𝑚 𝑡)
Ψ𝑘 (𝑥, 𝑡) = 𝐴𝑒 (5)
FREE PARTICLE AND WAVE PACKET

and let 𝑘 run negative to cover the case of waves traveling to the left:

√2𝑚𝐸
𝑘=± with, k > 0 travelling to the right
ℏ
k < 0 travelling to the left (6)

Evidently, the "stationary states" of the free particle are non- dispersive
propagating harmonic waves; their wavelength is,

λ = 2π|𝑘|

And according to de Broglie formula, they carry momentum,

𝑝 = ℏ𝑘 (7)

Question: Then show that quantum mechanical wave function travels

at half the speed of the particle it is supposed to represent.

Answer: the speed of these waves is (the coefficient of t over the coefficient of
x)
ℏ|𝑘| ℏ √2𝑚𝐸 2𝑚𝐸 𝐸
𝑣𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑢𝑚 = = 2𝑚 = √ 4𝑚2 = √2𝑚 (8)
2𝑚 ℏ
On the other hand, the classical speed of a free particle with energy E is given
by,
1
E = 2 mv 2 (pure kinetic, since V = 0) (9)
So,
2𝐸 4𝐸 𝐸
𝑣𝑐𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑐 = √ 𝑚 = √2𝑚 = 2√2𝑚 (10)
FREE PARTICLE AND WAVE PACKET
Question: Verify that these solutions are not normalizable.

Answer: The free particle wave functions are not normalizable, for
∞ ∞
∫ Ψ𝑘∗ Ψ𝑘 dx = |𝐴|2 ∫ 𝑑𝑥 = |𝐴|2 (∞)
−∞ −∞

A free particle thus cannot exist in a stationary state.

Question: Then define a wave packet.

Answer: The general solution to the time dependent Schrödinger equation is

still a linear combination of separable solutions:

ℏ𝑘2
1 ∞ 𝑖(𝑘𝑥− 2𝑚 𝑡)
Ψ(𝑥, 𝑡) = ∫ ϕ(𝑘 ) 𝑒 𝑑𝑘 (11)
√2π −∞

1
The quantity is factored out for convenience.
√2π
Now this wave function can be normalized for appropriate ϕ(𝑘). To determine
this 𝜙(𝑘) we match a given initial (normalized) wave function:

1 ∞
Ψ(𝑥, 0) = ∫−∞
ϕ (𝑘 )𝑒 𝑖𝑘𝑥 𝑑𝑘 (12)
√2π

And invoke the Plancherel theorem:

1 ∞
ϕ (𝑘 ) = ∫−∞
ψ (𝑥, 0)𝑒 −𝑖𝑘𝑥 𝑑𝑥 (13)
√2π

The wave function (equation_10) necessarily carries a range of k's, and hence a
range of energies and speeds. We call it a "wave packet"

A wave packet is,

1 ∞ 𝑖(𝑘𝑥−ω(𝑘)𝑡) 𝑑𝑘
Ψ(𝑥, 0) = ∫ ϕ ( 𝑘 ) 𝑒 (14)
2π −∞
√
FREE PARTICLE AND WAVE PACKET
thus, a superposition of sinusoidal (harmonic) wave functions whose amplitude
is modulated by the amplitude distribution function ϕ(𝑘) (Figure-1)

Envelope (Vgroup)

Ripple (Vphase)

Figure 1: A wave packet. The "envelope" travels at the group velocity; the ripples" travel at the phase velocity.

It consists of “ripples” contained within an “envelope”. What corresponds

to the particle velocity is not the speed of the individual ripples (the so-
called phase velocity) but rather the speed of the envelope (the group
velocity) – which, depending on the nature of the waves, can be greater
than, less than, or equal to, the velocity of the ripples that go to make it
up.

Question: Calculate the group velocity of a wave packet with general

form.

Answer: Let us assume that ϕ(𝑘) is narrowly peaked about some particular
value 𝑘0 (Figure_2). Since the integrand is negligible except in the vicinity of 𝑘0 ,
we may as well Taylor expand the function ω(𝑘) about that point, and keeping
only the leading terms,
ω(𝑘 ) ≈ ω0 + ω′0 (𝑘 − 𝑘0 )
Where,
ω0 ≡ ω(𝑘0 )
𝑑ω
and ω′0 ≡ |𝑘=𝑘0
𝑑𝑘
FREE PARTICLE AND WAVE PACKET
changing variables from 𝑘 to 𝑠 ≡ 𝑘 − 𝑘0 , we have,

1 ∞ ′
Ψ(𝑥, 𝑡) ≅ ∫−∞
ϕ (𝑘0 + 𝑠) 𝑒 𝑖[(𝑘0+𝑠)𝑥−(ω0+ω0𝑠)𝑡] ds
√ 2π

At 𝑡 = 0,

∞
1
Ψ(𝑥, 0) = ∫ ϕ(𝑘0 + 𝑠) 𝑒 𝑖(k0+s)𝑥 𝑑𝑠
√2π −∞

And at later times,

1 −𝑖𝜔 𝑡 ∞ ′ ′
Ψ(𝑥, 0) ≅ 𝑒 0 ∫ 𝜙(𝑘0 + 𝑠)𝑒 𝑖[(𝑘0 +𝑠)𝑥−(𝑘0 +𝑠)𝜔0 𝑡] × 𝑒 𝑖𝑘0 𝜔0 𝑡 𝑑𝑠
√2𝜋 −∞

1 ′
𝑖(−𝜔0 𝑡+𝑘0 𝜔0 𝑡) ∞ ′
𝑖 (𝑘0 +𝑠)(𝑥−ω0 𝑡) 𝑑𝑠
= 𝑒 ∫−∞
𝜙 ( 𝑘0 + 𝑠 ) 𝑒
√ 2𝜋

′
= 𝑒 𝑖(−𝜔0𝑡+𝑘0 𝜔0𝑡) Ψ(𝑥 − 𝜔0′ 𝑡, 0)

Apart from the phase factor in front the wave packet (which would not affect
|Ψ|2 in any event) evidently waves along at speed ω′0 :

𝑑ω
𝑣𝑔roup = 𝑑𝑘

(evaluated at 𝑘 = 𝑘0 ). This is to contrasted with the ordinary phase velocity,

ω
𝑣𝑝ℎ𝑎𝑠𝑒 = 𝑘
FREE PARTICLE AND WAVE PACKET
Question: Then confirm that it is the group velocity of the wave
packet, not the phase velocity of the stationary states, that matches
the classical free particle velocity.

Answer: In our free particle case,

ℏ𝑘 2
ω=
2𝑚

So,
ω ℏ𝑘
𝑣𝑝ℎ𝑎𝑠𝑒 = = 2𝑚
𝑘

Whereas,

𝑑𝜔 ℏ𝑘
𝑣𝑔𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑝 = =
𝑑𝑘 𝑚

which is twice as great. This confirms that, it is the group velocity of

the wave packet, not the phase velocity of the stationary states, that
matches the classical particle velocity:

𝑣𝑐𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 = 𝑣𝑔𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑝 = 2𝑣𝑝ℎ𝑎𝑠𝑒