Annihilation operator acting on a Fock state

In summary, the conversation is discussing the process of converting a ket into a series of creation operators acting on the vacuum state |0>, and the necessary relations and rules that need to be invoked for it to be clear. The canonical commutation relations between the a/c operators are mentioned, and the textbook being used is also mentioned. The conversation also suggests attempting the N=1 case explicitly using equations from the textbook.
  • #1
L.W.C
2
0
I'm trying to show:

a(p)|q1,q2,...,qN> =
[itex]\sum[/itex]Ni=1(2pi)32Ep\delta(3)(p-qi)x|qi,...,qi-1,qi+1,...,qN>

I'm pretty sure you have to turn the ket into a series of creation operators acting on the vacuum |0>, but then not sure what relations need to be invoked for it to be clear.

Any help would be appreciated.
 
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  • #2
L.W.C said:
I'm trying to show:

a(p)|q1,q2,...,qN> =
[itex]\sum[/itex]Ni=1(2pi)32Ep\delta(3)(p-qi)x|qi,...,qi-1,qi+1,...,qN>

I'm pretty sure you have to turn the ket into a series of creation operators acting on the vacuum |0>, but then not sure what relations need to be invoked for it to be clear.

Any help would be appreciated.

You might get more help if you attempt a little more yourself, according to the PF rules for homework help. For starters, write down the canonical commutation relations between the a/c operators, and the rules for how they act individually on the vacuum. Then try and do the N=2 case.

It might also help if you mention which textbook you're working from.
 
  • #3
O.K., so you just use the relation:

a(p)a+(q) = [a(p),a+(q)] + a+(q)a(p)

for each case.

Also can I just clarify that in the answer when it says:

|qi-1> if i=1, is that just ignored?

I' learning form these notes:

http://www.hep.man.ac.uk/u/pilaftsi/QFT/qft.pdf

With the aide of peskin and schroeder.

Thank you
 
  • #4
L.W.C said:
O.K., so you just use the relation:

a(p)a+(q) = [a(p),a+(q)] + a+(q)a(p)

for each case.
OK, so now try to do the N=1 case explicitly, using equations (2.29), (2.35) and maybe (2.36) from P&S.

Also can I just clarify that in the answer when it says:

|qi-1> if i=1, is that just ignored?

I think it's the vacuum [itex]|0\rangle[/itex].
 

FAQ: Annihilation operator acting on a Fock state

What is an annihilation operator?

An annihilation operator is a mathematical operator used in quantum mechanics to describe the destruction or removal of a particle from a quantum state.

What is a Fock state?

A Fock state, also known as a number state, is a quantum state that represents a certain number of particles in a given state. It is often used to describe the state of a quantum system with a fixed number of particles.

How does the annihilation operator act on a Fock state?

The annihilation operator acts on a Fock state by reducing the number of particles in the state by one. For example, if the Fock state represents 3 particles, the annihilation operator will reduce it to 2 particles.

What is the result of the annihilation operator acting on a Fock state?

The result of the annihilation operator acting on a Fock state is a new Fock state with a reduced number of particles. In mathematical notation, if the annihilation operator is represented by "a" and the Fock state is represented by "|n⟩" where n is the number of particles, then the result would be a new Fock state represented by "a|n⟩".

How is the commutation relation between annihilation operators and creation operators related to Fock states?

The commutation relation between annihilation operators and creation operators is a fundamental relationship in quantum mechanics. It is related to Fock states because the creation operator creates new particles in a Fock state while the annihilation operator destroys particles in a Fock state. The commutation relation describes how these operators interact with each other when applied to a Fock state.

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