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Semiclassical Physics
Semiclassical physics, or simply semiclassical refers to a theory in which one part of a system is described quantum mechanically whereas the other is treated classically. For example, external fields will be constant, or when changing will be classically described. In general, it incorporates a development in powers of Planck's constant, resulting in the classical physics of power 0, and the first nontrivial approximation to the power of (−1). In this case, there is a clear link between the quantum-mechanical system and the associated semi-classical and classical approximations, as it is similar in appearance to the transition from physical optics to geometric optics. Instances Some examples of a semiclassical approximation include: * WKB approximation: electrons in classical external electromagnetic fields. * semiclassical gravity: quantum field theory within a classical curved gravitational background (see general relativity). * quantum chaos; quantization of classical c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Physics
Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which relates to the order of nature, or, in other words, to the regular succession of events." Physics is one of the most fundamental scientific disciplines, with its main goal being to understand how the universe behaves. "Physics is one of the most fundamental of the sciences. Scientists of all disciplines use the ideas of physics, including chemists who study the structure of molecules, paleontologists who try to reconstruct how dinosaurs walked, and climatologists who study how human activities affect the atmosphere and oceans. Physics is also the foundation of all engineering and technology. No engineer could design a flat-screen TV, an interplanetary spacecraft, or even a better mousetrap without first understanding the basic laws of physic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chaos Theory
Chaos theory is an interdisciplinary area of scientific study and branch of mathematics focused on underlying patterns and deterministic laws of dynamical systems that are highly sensitive to initial conditions, and were once thought to have completely random states of disorder and irregularities. Chaos theory states that within the apparent randomness of chaotic complex systems, there are underlying patterns, interconnection, constant feedback loops, repetition, self-similarity, fractals, and self-organization. The butterfly effect, an underlying principle of chaos, describes how a small change in one state of a deterministic nonlinear system can result in large differences in a later state (meaning that there is sensitive dependence on initial conditions). A metaphor for this behavior is that a butterfly flapping its wings in Brazil can cause a tornado in Texas. Small differences in initial conditions, such as those due to errors in measurements or due to rounding errors i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theoretical Chemistry
Theoretical chemistry is the branch of chemistry which develops theoretical generalizations that are part of the theoretical arsenal of modern chemistry: for example, the concepts of chemical bonding, chemical reaction, valence, the surface of potential energy, molecular orbitals, orbital interactions, and molecule activation. Overview Theoretical chemistry unites principles and concepts common to all branches of chemistry. Within the framework of theoretical chemistry, there is a systematization of chemical laws, principles and rules, their refinement and detailing, the construction of a hierarchy. The central place in theoretical chemistry is occupied by the doctrine of the interconnection of the structure and properties of molecular systems. It uses mathematical and physical methods to explain the structures and dynamics of chemical systems and to correlate, understand, and predict their thermodynamic and kinetic properties. In the most general sense, it is explanation of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Quantum Chemistry
Quantum chemistry, also called molecular quantum mechanics, is a branch of physical chemistry focused on the application of quantum mechanics to chemical systems, particularly towards the quantum-mechanical calculation of electronic contributions to physical and chemical properties of Molecule, molecules, Material, materials, and solutions at the atomic level. These calculations include systematically applied approximations intended to make calculations computationally feasible while still capturing as much information about important contributions to the computed Wave function, wave functions as well as to observable properties such as structures, spectra, and thermodynamic properties. Quantum chemistry is also concerned with the computation of quantum effects on molecular dynamics and chemical kinetics. Chemists rely heavily on spectroscopy through which information regarding the Quantization (physics), quantization of energy on a molecular scale can be obtained. Common metho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Quantum Field Theory
In theoretical physics, quantum field theory (QFT) is a theoretical framework that combines classical field theory, special relativity, and quantum mechanics. QFT is used in particle physics to construct physical models of subatomic particles and in condensed matter physics to construct models of quasiparticles. QFT treats particles as excited states (also called Quantum, quanta) of their underlying quantum field (physics), fields, which are more fundamental than the particles. The equation of motion of the particle is determined by minimization of the Lagrangian, a functional of fields associated with the particle. Interactions between particles are described by interaction terms in the Lagrangian (field theory), Lagrangian involving their corresponding quantum fields. Each interaction can be visually represented by Feynman diagrams according to perturbation theory (quantum mechanics), perturbation theory in quantum mechanics. History Quantum field theory emerged from the wo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Quantum Mechanics
Quantum mechanics is a fundamental theory in physics that provides a description of the physical properties of nature at the scale of atoms and subatomic particles. It is the foundation of all quantum physics including quantum chemistry, quantum field theory, quantum technology, and quantum information science. Classical physics, the collection of theories that existed before the advent of quantum mechanics, describes many aspects of nature at an ordinary (macroscopic) scale, but is not sufficient for describing them at small (atomic and subatomic) scales. Most theories in classical physics can be derived from quantum mechanics as an approximation valid at large (macroscopic) scale. Quantum mechanics differs from classical physics in that energy, momentum, angular momentum, and other quantities of a bound system are restricted to discrete values ( quantization); objects have characteristics of both particles and waves (wave–particle duality); and there are limits to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Old Quantum Theory
The old quantum theory is a collection of results from the years 1900–1925 which predate modern quantum mechanics. The theory was never complete or self-consistent, but was rather a set of heuristic corrections to classical mechanics. The theory is now understood as the semi-classical approximation to modern quantum mechanics. The main and final accomplishments of the old quantum theory were the determination of the modern form of the periodic table by Edmund Stoner and the Pauli Exclusion Principle which were both premised on the Arnold Sommerfeld enhancements to the Bohr model of the atom. The main tool of the old quantum theory was the Bohr–Sommerfeld quantization condition, a procedure for selecting out certain states of a classical system as allowed states: the system can then only exist in one of the allowed states and not in any other state. History The old quantum theory was instigated by the 1900 work of Max Planck on the emission and absorption of light in a bla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Einstein–Brillouin–Keller Method
The Einstein–Brillouin–Keller method (EBK) is a semiclassical method (named after Albert Einstein, Léon Brillouin, and Joseph B. Keller) used to compute eigenvalues in quantum-mechanical systems. EBK quantization is an improvement from Bohr-Sommerfeld quantization which did not consider the caustic phase jumps at classical turning points. This procedure is able to reproduce exactly the spectrum of the 3D harmonic oscillator, particle in a box, and even the relativistic fine structure of the hydrogen atom. In 1976–1977, Michael Berry and M. Tabor derived an extension to Gutzwiller trace formula for the density of states of an integrable system starting from EBK quantization. There have been a number of recent results on computational issues related to this topic, for example, the work of Eric J. Heller and Emmanuel David Tannenbaum using a partial differential equation gradient descent approach. Procedure Given a separable classical system defined by coordinates (q_i, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eikonal Approximation
In theoretical physics, the eikonal approximation (Greek εἰκών for likeness, icon or image) is an approximative method useful in wave scattering equations which occur in optics, seismology, quantum mechanics, quantum electrodynamics, and partial wave expansion. Informal description The main advantage that the eikonal approximation offers is that the equations reduce to a differential equation in a single variable. This reduction into a single variable is the result of the straight line approximation or the eikonal approximation which allows us to choose the straight line as a special direction. Relation to the WKB approximation The early steps involved in the eikonal approximation in quantum mechanics are very closely related to the WKB approximation for one-dimensional waves. The WKB method, like the eikonal approximation, reduces the equations into a differential equation in a single variable. But the difficulty with the WKB approximation is that this variable is described ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Classical Limit
The classical limit or correspondence limit is the ability of a physical theory to approximate or "recover" classical mechanics when considered over special values of its parameters. The classical limit is used with physical theories that predict non-classical behavior. Quantum theory A heuristic postulate called the correspondence principle was introduced to quantum theory by Niels Bohr: in effect it states that some kind of continuity argument should apply to the classical limit of quantum systems as the value of the Planck constant normalized by the action of these systems becomes very small. Often, this is approached through "quasi-classical" techniques (cf. WKB approximation). More rigorously, the mathematical operation involved in classical limits is a group contraction, approximating physical systems where the relevant action is much larger than the reduced Planck constant , so the "deformation parameter" / can be effectively taken to be zero (cf. Weyl quantization.) Thus ty ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Correspondence Principle
In physics, the correspondence principle states that the behavior of systems described by the theory of quantum mechanics (or by the old quantum theory) reproduces classical physics in the limit of large quantum numbers. In other words, it says that for large orbits and for large energies, quantum calculations must agree with classical calculations. The principle was formulated by Niels Bohr in 1920, though he had previously made use of it as early as 1913 in developing his model of the atom. The term codifies the idea that a new theory should reproduce under some conditions the results of older well-established theories in those domains where the old theories work. This concept is somewhat different from the requirement of a formal limit under which the new theory reduces to the older, thanks to the existence of a deformation parameter. Classical quantities appear in quantum mechanics in the form of expected values of observables, and as such the Ehrenfest theorem (which pre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bohr Model
In atomic physics, the Bohr model or Rutherford–Bohr model, presented by Niels Bohr and Ernest Rutherford in 1913, is a system consisting of a small, dense nucleus surrounded by orbiting electrons—similar to the structure of the Solar System, but with attraction provided by electrostatic forces in place of gravity. It came after the solar system Joseph Larmor model (1897), the solar system Jean Perrin model (1901), the cubical model (1902), the Hantaro Nagaoka Saturnian model (1904), the plum pudding model (1904), the quantum Arthur Haas model (1910), the Rutherford model (1911), and the nuclear quantum John William Nicholson model (1912). The improvement over the 1911 Rutherford model mainly concerned the new quantum physical interpretation introduced by Haas and Nicholson, but forsaking any attempt to align with classical physics radiation. The model's key success lay in explaining the Rydberg formula for the spectral emission lines of atomic hydrogen. While the Rydberg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
