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Lec 33 PDF

1. The document discusses the basic postulates of quantum mechanics. It explains that in quantum mechanics, a wavefunction describes the state of a particle and can be in a superposition of multiple states. 2. When a measurement is made, the wavefunction collapses and the particle is found to have a definite property corresponding to one of the possible states. For example, when measuring position the particle is found at a single position, and when measuring momentum the particle is found to have a single, definite momentum value. 3. The time-evolution of the wavefunction is governed by Schrodinger's equation. For a free particle, the wavefunction takes the form of a plane wave.

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51 views3 pages

Lec 33 PDF

1. The document discusses the basic postulates of quantum mechanics. It explains that in quantum mechanics, a wavefunction describes the state of a particle and can be in a superposition of multiple states. 2. When a measurement is made, the wavefunction collapses and the particle is found to have a definite property corresponding to one of the possible states. For example, when measuring position the particle is found at a single position, and when measuring momentum the particle is found to have a single, definite momentum value. 3. The time-evolution of the wavefunction is governed by Schrodinger's equation. For a free particle, the wavefunction takes the form of a plane wave.

Uploaded by

Shubham Kumar
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Module 33: Basic Postulates

Lecture 33: Basic Postulates

We have learnt that there is a wave associated with every particle. This is not
evident for macroscopic particles like a bullet or an elephant because the wave-
length λ = h/p is extremely small. The wave nature becomes important when
dealing with microscopic particles like an electron for which the wavelength
can be of the order of 1 Å . We have also learnt that this wave ψ(x, t) may be
interpreted as the probability amplitude and this wave is often referred to as
the wavefunction. The laws governing the evolution of the wavefunction and
it interpretation are referred to as Quantum Mechanics.

33.1 The Laws of Quantum Mechanics


1. In Newtonian Mechanics the motion of a particle under the influence of
a potential V (~r, t) is described by the particle’s trajectory ~r(t). There
are different trajectories corresponding to different possible states of the
particle.
In Quantum Mechanics there is a different wavefunction for every
state of a particle. For example consider three different states of a parti-
cle referred to as states 1, 2 and 3 with wave functions ψ1 (x, t), ψ2 (x, t)
and ψ3 (x, t) respectively.

2. In Newtonian Mechanics the trajectory is determined by solving New-


ton’s equation of motion

d2~r ~ (~r, t)
m = −∇V (33.1)
dt2

In Quantum Mechanics the wavefunction is governed by Schrodinger’s


equation
∂ −h̄2 2
ih̄ ψ(~r, t) = ∇ ψ + V (~r, t)ψ (33.2)
∂t 2m

193
194 CHAPTER 33. BASIC POSTULATES

For a particle free to move only in one dimension along the x axis we
have
∂ −h̄2 ∂ 2
ih̄ ψ(x, t) = ψ(x, t) + V (x, t)ψ . (33.3)
∂t 2m ∂x2
Here we shall only consider time independent potentials V (x). Applying
the method of separation of variables we take a trial solution

ψ(x, t) = X(x)T (t) (33.4)

whereby the Schrodinger’s equation is


dT −h̄2 d2 X
Xih̄ = T + V (x)XT (33.5)
dt 2m dx2
which on dividing by XT gives
1 dT −h̄2 1 d2 X
ih̄ = + V (x) = E (33.6)
T dt 2m X dx2
The first term is a function of t alone whereas the second term is a
function of x alone. It is clear that both terms must have a constant
value if they are to be equal for all values of x and t. Denoting this
constant as E we can write the solution for the time dependent part as

T (t) = Ae−iEt/h̄ . (33.7)

The x dependence has to be determined by solving


h̄2 d2 X
= −[E − V (x)]X . (33.8)
2m dx2
The general solution can be written as

ψ(x, t) = Ae−iEt/h̄ X(x) (33.9)

where the t dependence is known and X(x) has to be determined from


equation (33.8).
Free particle The potential V (x) = 0 for a free √ particle. It is straight-
ipx/h̄
forward to verify that X(x) = e with p = ± 2mE satisfies equation
(33.8). This gives the solution

ψ(x, t) = Ae−i(Et−px)/h̄ . (33.10)

The is a plane wave with angular frequency ω = E/h̄ and wave number
k = p/h̄ where E and p are as yet arbitrary constant related as E =
p2 /2m. This gives the wave’s dispersion relation ω = h̄k 2 /2m.
Here different value of E will give different wavefunctions. For eample p1
and p2 are different constants with E1 = p21 /2m and E2 = p22 /2m, then

ψ1 (x, t) = A1 e−i(E1 t−p1 x)/h̄ (33.11)


33.1. THE LAWS OF QUANTUM MECHANICS 195

and
ψ2 (x, t) = A2 e−i(E2 t−p2 x)/h̄ (33.12)
are two different wavefunctions corresponding to two different states of
the particle.

3. In Quantum Mechanics the superposition of two different solutionsψ1 (x, t)


and ψ2 (x, t) corresponding to two different states of the particle is also
a solution of the Schordinger’s equation, an example being

ψ(x, t) = A1 e−i(E1 t−p1 x)/h̄ + A2 e−i(E2 t−p2 x)/h̄ . (33.13)

This can be generalized to a superposition of three, four and more states.


In the continuum we have
Z∞
ψ(x, t) = A(p)e−i(E(p)t−px) dp (33.14)
−∞

4. What happens when we make a measurement? We have already dis-


cussed what happens when we measure a particle’s position. In Quan-
tum Mechanics it is not possible to predict the particle’s position. We
can only predict probabilities for finding the particle at different posi-
tions. The probability density ρ(x, t) = ψ(x, t)ψ ∗ (x, t) gives the proba-
bility dP (x, t) of finding the particle in the interval dx around the point
x to be dP (x, t) = ρ(x, t) dx. But there are other quantities like momen-
tum which we could also measure. What happens when we measure the
momentum?

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