diff --git a/src/differential_equations_2.md b/src/differential_equations_2.md index 19d76fede9d84f913b784a4267f0a417023df0e4..a3d67521eb1f13846a3022ba4d57d9287c74e4ff 100644 --- a/src/differential_equations_2.md +++ b/src/differential_equations_2.md @@ -399,13 +399,98 @@ PDE was supplied with an initial condition. Putting the solutions to the two ODEs together and redefining $\Tilde{A}=A \cdot c_1$, we arrive at the solutions for theb PDE, -$\psi_n(x,t) = \Tilde{A} e^{-i \frac{\lambda_n t}{\hbar}} sin(\frac{n \pi x}{L}).$ +$\psi_n(x,t) = \Tilde{A}_n e^{-i \frac{\lambda_n t}{\hbar}} sin(\frac{n \pi x}{L}).$ Notice that there is one solution $\psi_{n}(x,t)$ for each natural number $n$. These are still very special solutions. We will begin discussing next how to obtain the general solution in our example. +## Self-adjoint differential equations: Connection to Hilbert spaces! ## +As we hinted was possible earlier, let us re-write the previous equation by +defining a linear operator, $L$, acting on the space of functions which satisfy +$\phi(0)=\phi(L)=0$: + +$$L[\cdot]:= \frac{- \hbar^2}{2m} \frac{d^2}{dx^2}[\cdot]. $$ + +Then, the ODE can be writted as + +$$L[\phi]=\lambda \phi.$$ + +This equation looks exactly like, and turns out to be, an eigenvalue equation! + +!!! info "Connecting function spaces to Hilbert spaces" + + Recall that a space of functions can be transformed into a Hilbert space by + equipping it with a inner product, + + $$\langle f, g \rangle = \int^{L}_{0} dx f*(x) g(x) $$ + + Use of this inner product also has utility in demonstrating that particular + operators are *Hermitian*. The term hermitian is precisely defined below. + Of considerable interest is that hermition operators have a set of nice + properties including all real eigenvalues and orthonormal eigenfunctions. + +The nicest type of operators for many practical purposes are hermitian +operators. In quantum physics for example, any physical operator must be +hermitian. Denote a hilbert space $\mathcal{H}$. An opertor +$H: \mathcal{H} \mapsto \mathcal{H}$ is said to be hermitian if it satisfies + +$$\langle f, H g \rangle = \langle H f, g \rangle \ \forall \ f, \ g \ \epsilon \ \mathcal{H}.$$ + +Now, we would like to investigate whether the operator we have been working with, +$L$ satisfies the criterion of being hermitian over the function space +$\phi(0)=\phi(L)=0$ equipped with the above defined inner product (i.e. it is a +Hilbert space). Denote this Hilbert space $\mathcal{H}_{0}$ and consider let +$f, \ g \ \epsilon \ \mathcal{H}_0$ denote two functions from the Hilbert space. +Then, we can investigate + +$$\langle f, L g \rangle = \frac{- \hbar^2}{2m} \int^{L}_{0} dx f*(x) \frac{d^2}{dx^2}g(x).$$ + +As a first step, it is possible to do integration by parts in the integral, + +$$\langle f, L g \rangle = \frac{+ \hbar^2}{2m} ( \int^{L}_{0} dx \frac{d f*}{dx} \frac{d g}{dx} - [f*(x)\frac{d g}{dx}] \big{|}^{L}_{0} )$$ + +The boundary term vansishes, due to the boundary conditions $f(0)=f(L)=0$, +which directly imply $f*(0)=f*(L)=0$. Now, intergrate by parts a second time + +$$\langle f, L g \rangle = \frac{- \hbar^2}{2m} (\int^{L}_{0} dx \frac{d^2 f*}{dx^2} g(x) - [\frac{d f*}{dx} g(x)] \big{|}^{L}_{0} ).$$ + +As before, the boundary term vanishes, due to the boundary conditions +$g(0)=g(L)=0$. Upon cancelling the boundary term however, the expression on +the right hand side, contained in the integral is simply +$\langle L f, g \rangle$. Therefore, + +$$\langle f, L g \rangle=\langle L f, g \rangle. $$ + +We have demonstrated that $L$ is a hermitian operator on the space +$\mathcal{H}_0$. As a hermitian operator, $L$ has the property that it's +eigenfunctions form an orthonormal basis for the space $\mathcal{H}_0$. Hence it +is possible to expand any function $f \ \epsilon \ \mathcal{H}_0$ in terms of +the eigenfunctions of $L$. + +!!! info "Connection to quantum states" + + Recall that q quantum state $\ket{\phi}$ can be written in an orthonormal + basis $\{ \ket{u_n} \}$ as + $$\ket{\phi} = \underset{n}{\Sigma} \bra{u_n} \ket{\phi} \ket{u_n}.$$ + + In terms of hermitian operators and their eigenfunctions, the eigenfunctions + play the role of the orthonormal basis. In reference to our running example, + the 1D Schr\"{o}dinger equation of a free particle, the eigenfunctions + $sin(\frac{n \pi x}{L})$ play the role of the basis functions $\ket{u_n}$. + +To close our running example, consider the initial condition +$\psi(x,o) = \psi_{0}(x)$. Since the eigenfunctions $sin(\frac{n \pi x}{L})$ +form a basis, we can now write the general solution to the problem as + +$$\psi(x,t) = \overset{\infinity}{\underset{n}{\Sigma}} c_n e^{-i \frac{\lambda_n t}{\hbar}} sin(\frac{n \pi x}{L}),$$ + +where in the above we have defined the coefficients using the Fourier +coefficient, + +$$c_n:= \int^{L}_{0} dx sin(\frac{n \pi x}{L}) \psi_{0}(x). $$ + \ No newline at end of file