Related papers: Is space-time symmetry a suitable generalization o…
Recently, much research has been carried out on Hamiltonians that are not Hermitian but are symmetric under space-time reflection, that is, Hamiltonians that exhibit PT symmetry. Investigations of the Sturm-Liouville eigenvalue problem…
It is shown that if a Hamiltonian $H$ is Hermitian, then there always exists an operator P having the following properties: (i) P is linear and Hermitian; (ii) P commutes with H; (iii) P^2=1; (iv) the nth eigenstate of H is also an…
We discuss Hamiltonian symmetries and invariants for quantum systems driven by non-Hermitian Hamiltonians. For time-independent Hermitian Hamiltonians, a unitary or antiunitary transformation $AHA^\dagger$ that leaves the Hamiltonian $H$…
While a Hamiltonian can be both Hermitian and $PT$ symmetric, it is $PT$ symmetry that is the more general, as it can lead to real energy eigenvalues even if the Hamiltonian is not Hermitian. We discuss some specific ways in which $PT$…
The Hamiltonian H specifies the energy levels and the time evolution of a quantum theory. It is an axiom of quantum mechanics that H be Hermitian because Hermiticity guarantees that the energy spectrum is real and that the time evolution is…
We analyze several non-Hermitian Hamiltonians with antiunitary symmetry from the point of view of their point-group symmetry. It enables us to predict the degeneracy of the energy levels and to reduce the dimension of the matrices necessary…
We analyse some PT-symmetric oscillators with $T_{d}$ symmetry that depend on a potential parameter $g$. We calculate the eigenvalues and eigenfunctions for each irreducible representation and for a range of values of $g$. Pairs of…
For an invertible (bounded) linear operator Q acting in a Hilbert space ${\cal H}$, we consider the consequences of the QT-symmetry of a non-Hermitian Hamiltonian $H:{\cal H}\to{\cal H}$ where T is the time-reversal operator. If H is…
We study certain linear and antilinear symmetry generators and involution operators associated with pseudo-Hermitian Hamiltonians and show that the theory of pseudo-Hermitian operators provides a simple explanation for the recent results of…
In recent reports, suggestions have been put forward to the effect that parity and time-reversal (PT) symmetry in quantum mechanics is incompatible with causality. It is shown here, in contrast, that PT-symmetric quantum mechanics is fully…
While Hermiticity of a time-independent Hamiltonian leads to unitary time evolution, in and of itself, the requirement of Hermiticity is only sufficient for unitary time evolution. In this paper we provide conditions that are both necessary…
It is shown that, in the framework of non-relativistic quantum mechanics, any conserved Hermitian operator (which may depend explicitly on the time) is the generator of a one-parameter group of unitary symmetries of the Hamiltonian and…
This paper proposes to broaden the canonical formulation of quantum mechanics. Ordinarily, one imposes the condition $H^\dagger=H$ on the Hamiltonian, where $\dagger$ represents the mathematical operation of complex conjugation and matrix…
Theories described by non-Hermitian Hamiltonians are known to possess strictly positive energy eigenvalues and exhibit unitary time evolution if the Hamiltonian is symmetric under discrete parity and time (PT) transformation. In this work,…
A quantum-mechanical theory is PT-symmetric if it is described by a Hamiltonian that commutes with PT, where the operator P performs space reflection and the operator T performs time reversal. A PT-symmetric Hamiltonian often has a…
The Hamiltonian H specifies the energy levels and time evolution of a quantum theory. A standard axiom of quantum mechanics requires that H be Hermitian because Hermiticity guarantees that the energy spectrum is real and that time evolution…
For a diagonalizable linear operator $H:\mathscr{H}\to\mathscr{H}$ acting in a separable Hilbert space $\mathscr{H}$, i.e., an operator with a purely point spectrum, eigenvalues with finite algebraic multiplicities, and a set of…
Update: A time-independent $n\times n$ PT-symmetric (and symmetric) Hamiltonian is diagonalizable since it has all distinct real eigenvalues and the resulting diagonal matrix is a real symmetric matrix. The diagonalization results an…
PT-symmetric quantum mechanics is an alternative formulation of quantum mechanics in which the mathematical axiom of Hermiticity (transpose and complex conjugate) is replaced by the physically transparent condition of space-time reflection…
The complex eigenvalues of some non-Hermitian Hamiltonians, e.g. parity-time symmetric Hamiltonians, come in complex-conjugate pairs. We show that for non-Hermitian scattering Hamiltonians (of a structureless particle in one dimension)…