arXiv subjects

P. A. Dando

Publications and source records attributed to P. A. Dando.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2002

Superiority of semiclassical over quantum mechanical calculations for a three-dimensional system

In systems with few degrees of freedom modern quantum calculations are, in general, numerically more efficient than semiclassical methods. However, this situation can be reversed with increasing dimension of the problem. For a three-dimensional system, viz. the hyperbolic four-sphere scattering system, we demonstrate the superiority of semiclassical versus quantum calculations. Semiclassical resonances can easily be obtained even in energy regions which are unattainable with the currently available quantum techniques.

nlin.CD↗

arXiv2002

Contribution of forbidden orbits in the photoabsorption spectra of atoms and molecules in a magnetic field

In a previous work [Phys. Rev. A \textbf{66}, 0134XX (2002)] we noted a partial disagreement between quantum R-matrix and semiclassical calculations of photoabsorption spectra of molecules in a magnetic field. We show this disagreement is due to a non-vanishing contribution of processes which are forbidden according to the usual semiclassical formalism. Formulas to include these processes are obtained by using a refined stationary phase approximation. The resulting higher order in $\hbar$ contributions also account for previously unexplained ``recurrences without closed-orbits''. Quantum and semiclassical photoabsorption spectra for Rydberg atoms and molecules in a magnetic field are calculated and compared to assess the validity of the first-order forbidden orbit contributions.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2002

Cold atoms in optical lattices :a Hamiltonian ratchet

We investigate a new type of quantum ratchet which may be realised by cold atoms in a double-well optical lattice which is pulsed with unequal periods. The classical dynamics is chaotic and we find the classical diffusion rate $D$ is asymmetric in momentum up to a finite time $t_r$. The quantum behaviour produces a corresponding asymmetry in the momentum distribution which is 'frozen-in' by Dynamical Localisation provided the break-time $t^* > t_r$. We conclude that the cold atom ratchets require $Db/ \hbar \sim 1$ where b is a small deviation from period-one pulses.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv1999

Decimation and Harmonic Inversion of Periodic Orbit Signals

We present and compare three generically applicable signal processing methods for periodic orbit quantization via harmonic inversion of semiclassical recurrence functions. In a first step of each method, a band-limited decimated periodic orbit signal is obtained by analytical frequency windowing of the periodic orbit sum. In a second step, the frequencies and amplitudes of the decimated signal are determined by either Decimated Linear Predictor, Decimated Pade Approximant, or Decimated Signal Diagonalization. These techniques, which would have been numerically unstable without the windowing, provide numerically more accurate semiclassical spectra than does the filter-diagonalization method.

chao-dyn↗

arXiv1999

Semiclassical Quantization by Pade Approximant to Periodic Orbit Sums

Periodic orbit quantization requires an analytic continuation of non-convergent semiclassical trace formulae. We propose a method for semiclassical quantization based upon the Pade approximant to the periodic orbit sums. The Pade approximant allows the re-summation of the typically exponentially divergent periodic orbit terms. The technique does not depend on the existence of a symbolic dynamics and can be applied to both bound and open systems. Numerical results are presented for two different systems with chaotic and regular classical dynamics, viz. the three-disk scattering system and the circle billiard.

chao-dyn↗

arXiv1998

Atoms in static fields: Chaos or Diffraction?

A brief review of the manifestations of classical chaos observed in atomic systems is presented. Particular attention is paid to the analysis of atomic spectra by periodic orbit-type theories. For diamagnetic non-hydrogenic Rydberg atoms, the dynamical explanation for observed spectral features has been disputed. By building on our previous work on the photoabsorption spectrum, we show how, by the addition of diffractive terms, the spectral fluctuations in the energy level spectrum of general Rydberg atoms can be obtained with remarkable precision from the Gutzwiller trace formula. This provides further evidence that non-hydrogenic systems are most naturally described in terms of diffraction rather than classical chaos.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv1998

Periodic Orbit Theory for Rydberg Atoms in External Fields

Although hydrogen in external fields is a paradigm for the application of periodic orbits and the Gutzwiller trace formula to a real system, the trace formula has never been applied successfully to other Rydberg atoms. We show that spectral fluctuations of general Rydberg atoms are given with remarkable precision by the addition of diffractive terms. Previously unknown features in atomic spectra are exposed: there are new modulations that are neither periodic orbits nor combinations of periodic orbits; `core-shadowing' generally decreases primitive periodic orbit amplitudes but can also lead to increases.

chao-dyn↗