Expectation values for an harmonic oscillator

samedi 28 juin 2014

1. The problem statement, all variables and given/known data

Find the expectation values of x and p for the state

[itex]\vert \alpha \rangle = e^{-\frac{1}{2}\vert\alpha\vert^2}exp(\alpha a^{\dagger})\vert 0 \rangle[/itex], where ##a## is the destruction operator.



2. Relevant equations

Destruction and creation operators

##a=Ax+Bp##

##a^{\dagger}=Ax-Bp##

For some constants A (real) and B (imaginary) whose value is not important now.

3. The attempt at a solution

I've found a solution, but it is so simple it looks dumb. State the expectation value:

##\langle x \rangle = \langle 0 \vert e^{- \frac{1}{2}\vert\alpha \vert ^2} e^{\alpha^*a}\hat{x}e^{\alpha a^{\dagger}}e^{- \frac{1}{2}\vert\alpha \vert ^2} \vert 0\rangle = ##



Now if we descompose the first exponential ##e^{\alpha^*a}## there will be an annihilation operator acting on the ground state, which is equal to 0 and therefore ANY expectation value for this state is zero...



That seems wrong. Where did I go wrong?





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