Related papers: Should PT symmetric quantum mechanics be interpret…
We show that the PT symmetric Hamiltonians (and their generalizations defined in the text) may be all assigned the projected (so called Feshbach or effective) nonlinear Hamiltonians which are "locally" Hermitian. This implies that many (if…
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…
The overall principles of what is now widely known as PT-symmetric quantum mechanics are listed, explained and illustrated via a few examples. In particular, models based on an elementary local interaction V(x) are discussed as motivated by…
A diagonalizable non-Hermitian Hamiltonian having a real spectrum may be used to define a unitary quantum system, if one modifies the inner product of the Hilbert space properly. We give a comprehensive and essentially self-contained review…
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 Hamiltonian for quantum electrodynamics becomes non-Hermitian if the unrenormalized electric charge $e$ is taken to be imaginary. However, if one also specifies that the potential $A^\mu$ in such a theory transforms as a pseudovector…
The Hilbert space in PT-symmetric quantum mechanics is formulated as a linear vector space with a dynamic inner product. The most general PT-symmetric matrix Hamiltonians are constructed for 2*2 and 3*3 cases. In the former case, the…
A $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetric, non-Hermitian Hamiltonian in the $\mathcal{PT}$-unbroken regime can lead to unitary dynamics under the appropriate choice of the Hilbert space. The Hilbert space is determined by a Hamiltonian-compatible inner…
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…
In conventional Schr\"{o}dinger representation the unitarity of the evolution of bound states is guaranteed by the Hermiticity of the Hamiltonian. A non-unitary isospectral simplification of the Hamiltonian, $\mathfrak{h} \to…
The author discusses a different kind of Hermitian quantum mechanics, called $J$-Hermitian quantum mechanics. He shows that $PT$-symmetric quantum mechanics is indeed $J$-Hermitian quantum mechanics, and that time evolution (in the Krein…
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…
We survey some of the main conceptual developments in the study of PT-symmetric and pseudo-Hermitian Hamiltonian operators that have taken place during the past ten years or so. We offer a precise mathematical description of a quantum…
One of the postulates of quantum mechanics is that the Hamiltonian is Hermitian, as this guarantees that the eigenvalues are real. Recently there has been an interest in asking if $H^\dagger = H$ is a necessary condition, and has lead to…
Extended quantum mechanics using non-Hermitian, pseudo-Hermitian Hamiltonians is briefly reviewed. Supersymmetric regularizations, solvable simulations and large-N expansion techniques are recollected as suitable means for the study of…
In ${\cal PT}-$symmetric quantum mechanics one of the most characteristic mathematical features of the formalism is the explicit Hamiltonian-dependence of the physical Hilbert space of states ${\cal H}={\cal H}(H)$. Some of the most…
A consistent physical theory of quantum mechanics can be built on a complex Hamiltonian that is not Hermitian but instead satisfies the physical condition of space-time reflection symmetry (PT symmetry). Thus, there are infinitely many new…
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…
In most introductory courses on quantum mechanics one is taught that the Hamiltonian operator must be Hermitian in order that the energy levels be real and that the theory be unitary (probability conserving). To express the Hermiticity of a…
The impact of an anti-unitary symmetry on the spectrum of non-hermitean operators is studied. Wigner's normal form of an anti-unitary operator is shown to account for the spectral properties of non-hermitean, PT-symmetric Hamiltonians. Both…