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authorPrefetch2021-03-30 17:17:39 +0200
committerPrefetch2021-03-30 17:17:39 +0200
commit06e2d1f11d2d390c3f31e4ad9cfe28ff039d075f (patch)
treeb23dedd764c62860b025eb20b4b2f2aff90ca574 /content/know/concept/wkb-approximation/index.pdc
parent922a0bbeb81f9a0297c6a728d243cbec75cf9c3b (diff)
Expand knowledge base
Diffstat (limited to 'content/know/concept/wkb-approximation/index.pdc')
-rw-r--r--content/know/concept/wkb-approximation/index.pdc27
1 files changed, 13 insertions, 14 deletions
diff --git a/content/know/concept/wkb-approximation/index.pdc b/content/know/concept/wkb-approximation/index.pdc
index 985bcec..b8ace29 100644
--- a/content/know/concept/wkb-approximation/index.pdc
+++ b/content/know/concept/wkb-approximation/index.pdc
@@ -29,17 +29,17 @@ $$\begin{aligned}
m^2 (x')^2 = 2 m (E - V(x))
\end{aligned}$$
-The left-hand side of the rearrangement is simply the momentum squared,
+The left-hand side of the rearranged version is simply the momentum squared,
so we define the magnitude of the momentum $p(x)$ accordingly:
$$\begin{aligned}
p(x) = \sqrt{2 m (E - V(x))}
\end{aligned}$$
-Note that this is under the assumption that $E > V$, which is always the
-case in classical mechanics, but not necessarily so in quantum
-mechanics, but we stick with it for now. We rewrite the Schrödinger
-equation:
+Note that this is under the assumption that $E > V$,
+which is always true in classical mechanics,
+but not necessarily in quantum mechanics.
+We rewrite the Schrödinger equation:
$$\begin{aligned}
0
@@ -172,19 +172,18 @@ $$\begin{aligned}
}
\end{aligned}$$
-What if $E < V$? In classical mechanics, this is not allowed; a ball
+What if $E < V$? In classical mechanics, this is just not allowed; a ball
cannot simply go through a potential bump without the necessary energy.
-However, in quantum mechanics, particles can **tunnel** through barriers.
+On the other hand, in quantum physics, particles can **tunnel** through barriers.
-Conveniently, all we need to change for the WKB approximation is to let
-the momentum take imaginary values:
+Luckily, the only thing we need to change for the WKB approximation
+is to let the momentum take imaginary values:
$$\begin{aligned}
p(x) = \sqrt{2 m (E - V(x))} = i \sqrt{2 m (V(x) - E)}
\end{aligned}$$
-And then take the absolute value in the appropriate place in front of
-$\psi(x)$:
+And then take the absolute value in the appropriate place in front of $\psi(x)$:
$$\begin{aligned}
\boxed{
@@ -193,9 +192,9 @@ $$\begin{aligned}
\end{aligned}$$
In the classical region ($E > V$), the wave function oscillates, and
-in the quantum-mechanical region ($E < V$) it is exponential. Note that for
-$E \approx V$ the approximation breaks down, due to the appearance of
-$p(x)$ in the denominator.
+in the quantum-physical region ($E < V$) it is exponential.
+Note that for $E \approx V$ the approximation breaks down,
+because of the appearance of $p(x)$ in the denominator.
## References