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ERIC Number: EJ851823
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2009-Sep
Pages: 9
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0143-0807
EISSN: N/A
Renormalizing the Kinetic Energy Operator in Elementary Quantum Mechanics
Coutinho, F. A. B.; Amaku, M.
European Journal of Physics, v30 n5 p1015-1023 Sep 2009
In this paper, we consider solutions to the three-dimensional Schrodinger equation of the form [psi](r) = u(r)/r, where u(0) [is not equal to] 0. The expectation value of the kinetic energy operator for such wavefunctions diverges. We show that it is possible to introduce a potential energy with an expectation value that also diverges, exactly cancelling the kinetic energy divergence. This renormalization procedure produces a self-adjoint Hamiltonian. We solve some problems with this new Hamiltonian to illustrate its usefulness.
Institute of Physics Publishing. The Public Ledger Building Suite 929, 150 South Independence Mall West, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 215-627-0880; Fax: 215-627-0879; e-mail: info@ioppubusa.com; Web site: http://www.iop.org/EJ/journal/EJP
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A