English

Quantum and semi-classical aspects of confined systems with variable mass

Quantum Physics 2020-12-30 v1 Mathematical Physics math.MP

Abstract

We explore the quantization of classical models with position-dependent mass (PDM) terms constrained to a bounded interval in the canonical position. This is achieved through the Weyl-Heisenberg covariant integral quantization by properly choosing a regularizing function Π(q,p)\Pi(q,p) on the phase space that smooths the discontinuities present in the classical model. We thus obtain well-defined operators without requiring the construction of self-adjoint extensions. Simultaneously, the quantization mechanism leads naturally to a semi-classical system, that is, a classical-like model with a well-defined Hamiltonian structure in which the effects of the Planck's constant are not negligible. Interestingly, for a non-separable function Π(q,p)\Pi(q,p), a purely quantum minimal-coupling term arises in the form of a vector potential for both the quantum and semi-classical models.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2005.14231,
  title  = {Quantum and semi-classical aspects of confined systems with variable mass},
  author = {Jean-Pierre Gazeau and Véronique Hussin and James Moran and Kevin Zelaya},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2005.14231},
  year   = {2020}
}
R2 v1 2026-06-23T15:53:41.152Z