Related papers: Bras and Kets in Euclidean Path Integrals

Quantum theory's irreducible empirical core is a probability calculus. While it presupposes the events to which (and on the basis of which) it serves to assign probabilities, and therefore cannot account for their occurrence, it has to be…

We investigate quantum mechanical Hamiltonians with explicit time dependence. We find a class of models in which an analogue of the time independent \S equation exists. Among the models in this class is a new exactly soluble model, the…

I will provide a pedagogical introduction to non-Hermitian quantum systems that are PT-symmetric, that is they are left invariant under a simultaneous parity transformation (P) and time-reversal (T). I will explain how generalised versions…

Quantum mechanics in its presently known formulation requires an external classical time for its description. A classical spacetime manifold and a classical spacetime metric are produced by classical matter fields. In the absence of such…

The recognition that the eigenvalues of a non-Hermitian Hamiltonian could all be real if the Hamiltonian had an antilinear symmetry such as $PT$ stimulated new insight into the underlying structure of quantum mechanics. Specifically, it…

We extend to a non-Hermitian fermionic quantum field theory with PT symmetry our previous discussion of second quantization, discrete symmetry transformations, and inner products in a scalar field theory [arXiv:2006.06656]. For…

Time evolution of quantum tunneling is studied when the tunneling system is immersed in thermal medium. We analyze in detail the behavior of the system after integrating out the environment. Exact result for the inverted harmonic oscillator…

If a system is at thermodynamic equilibrium, an observer cannot tell whether a film of it is being played forward or in reverse: any transition will occur with the same frequency in the forward as in the reverse direction. However, if…

Spacetime inversion symmetries such as parity and time reversal play a central role in physics, but they are usually treated as global symmetries. In quantum gravity there are no global symmetries, so any spacetime inversion symmetries must…

We study the role of time-reversal symmetry on the dynamical response of nonlinear optical systems that behave as unidirectional ("one-way") devices. It is shown that lossless nonlinear materials, despite being nonreciprocal, are typically…

The existence of a hermitian time operator is proposed in the framework of non-relativistic quantum mechanics.The Heisenberg equation of motion is shown to yield constant rate of flow of time.It is shown to yield results consistent with…

A given Hamiltonian matrix H with real spectrum is assumed tridiagonal and non-Hermitian. Its possible Hermitizations via an amended, ad hoc inner-product metric are studied. Under certain reasonable assumptions, all of these metrics are…

We analyze two simple models derived from a quantum-mechanical particle on an elliptical path. The first Hamiltonian operator is non-Hermitian but equivalent to an Hermitian operator. It appears to exhibit the same two-fold degeneracy as…

We consider in detail the quantum-mechanical problem associated with the motion of a one-dimensional particle under the action of the double-well potential. Our main tool will be the euclidean (imaginary time) version of the path-integral…

This paper builds on our earlier proposal for construction of a positive inner product for pseudo-Hermitian Hamiltonians and we give several examples to clarify our method. We show through the example of the harmonic oscillator how our…

We discuss the problem of time in spherically symmetric pure Einstein gravity with the cosmological term by using an exact solution to the Wheeler-DeWitt equation. A positive definite inner product is defined, based on the momentum…

Optical mirrors determine cavity properties by means of light reflection. Imperfect reflection gives rise to open cavities with photon loss. We study an open cavity made of atom-dimer mirrors with a tunable reflection spectrum. We find that…

Reflectionless defects in Hermitian tight-binding lattices, synthesized by the intertwining operator technique of supersymmetric quantum mechanics, are generally not invisible and time-of-flight measurements could reveal the existence of…

We here put forward a new path-integral over Hilbert space and show that it reproduces quantum mechanics exactly. This approach works by optimizing the generating functional under a variation of the final state; it is hence an example of a…

We study classical Hamiltonian systems in which the intrinsic proper time evolution parameter is related through a probability distribution to the physical time, which is assumed to be discrete. In this way, a physical clock with discrete…