We examine the revival structure of Rydberg wave packets. These wave packets exhibit initial classical periodic motion followed by a sequence of collapse, fractional/full revivals, and fractional/full superrevivals. The effects of quantum defects on wave packets in alkali-metal atoms and a squeezed-state description of the initial wave packets are also described. We then examine the revival structure of Rydberg wave packets in the presence of an external electric field, i.e., the revival structure of Stark wave packets. These wave packets have energies that depend on two quantum numbers and exhibit new types of interference behavior.
After a Rydberg wave packet forms, it is known to undergo a series of collapses and revivals within a time period called the revival time $t_{\rm rev}$, at the end of which it resembles its original shape. We study the behavior of Rydberg wave packets on time scales much greater than $t_{\rm rev}$. We find that after a few revival cycles the wave packet ceases to reform at multiples of the revival time. Instead, a new series of collapses and revivals commences, culminating after a time period $t_{\rm sr} \gg t_{\rm rev}$ with the formation of a wave packet that more closely resembles the initi…
It is known that, after formation, a Rydberg wave packet undergoes a series of collapses and revivals within a time period called the revival time, $t_{\rm rev}$, at the end of which it is close to its original shape. We study the behavior of Rydberg wave packets on time scales much greater than $t_{\rm rev}$. We show that after a few revival cycles the wave packet ceases to reform at multiples of the revival time. Instead, a new series of collapses and revivals commences, culminating after a time period $t_{\rm sr} \gg t_{\rm rev}$ with the formation of a wave packet that more closely resembl…
The revival structure and evolution of Rydberg wave packets are studied on a time scale much greater than the revival time $t_{\rm rev}$. We find a new level of revival structure and periodic motion different from that of the known fractional revivals. The new sequence of revivals culminates with the formation of a wave packet that more closely resembles the initial packet than does the full revival at time $t_{\rm rev}$. We refer to such a revival as a superrevival. We also show that an initial radial wave packet may be described as a type of squeezed state known as a radial squeezed state. O…
This paper begins with an examination of the revival structure and long-term evolution of Rydberg wave packets for hydrogen. We show that after the initial cycle of collapse and fractional/full revivals, which occurs on the time scale $t_{\rm rev}$, a new sequence of revivals begins. We find that the structure of the new revivals is different from that of the fractional revivals. The new revivals are characterized by periodicities in the motion of the wave packet with periods that are fractions of the revival time scale $t_{\rm rev}$. These long-term periodicities result in the autocorrelation…
We present a generic treatment of wave-packet revivals for quantum-mechanical systems. This treatment permits a classification of certain ideal revival types. For example, wave packets for a particle in a one-dimensional box are shown to exhibit perfect revivals. We also examine the revival structure of wave packets for quantum systems with energies that depend on two quantum numbers. Wave packets in these systems exhibit quantum beats in the initial motion as well as new types of long-term revivals. As an example, we consider the revival structure of a particle in a two-dimensional box.
The revival structure of wave packets is examined for quantum systems having energies that depend on two nondegenerate quantum numbers. For such systems, the evolution of the wave packet is controlled by two classical periods and three revival times. These wave packets exhibit quantum beats in the initial motion as well as new types of long-term revivals. The issue of whether fractional revivals can form is addressed. We present an analytical proof showing that at certain times equal to rational fractions of the revival times the wave packet can reform as a sum of subsidiary waves and that bot…
The revival structure of Stark wave packets is considered. These wave packets have energies depending on two quantum numbers and are characterized by two sets of classical periods and revival times. The additional time scales result in revival structures different from those of free Rydberg wave packets. We show that Stark wave packets can exhibit fractional revivals. We also show that these wave packets exhibit particular features unique to the Stark effect. For instance, the wave functions can be separated into distinct sums over even and odd values of the principal quantum number. These eve…
Wave packet revivals and fractional revivals are studied by means of newly derived uncertainty relations that involve Rényi entropies and position and momentum dispersions.
Wave packet revivals and fractional revivals are striking quantum interference phenomena that can occur under suitable conditions in a system with a nonlinear spectrum. In the framework of a specific model (the propagation of an initially coherent wave packet in a Kerr-like medium), it is shown that distinctive signatures of these revivals and fractional revivals are displayed by the time evolution of the expectation values of physical observables and their powers, i.e., by experimentally measurable quantities. Moreover, different fractional revivals can be selectively identified by examining …
We show that the time frequency analysis of the autocorrelation function is, in many ways, a more appropriate tool to resolve fractional revivals of a wave packet than the usual time domain analysis. This advantage is crucial in reconstructing the initial state of the wave packet when its coherent structure is short-lived and decays before it is fully revived. Our calculations are based on the model example of fractional revivals in a Rydberg wave packet of circular states. We end by providing an analytical investigation which fully agrees with our numerical observations on the utility of time…
The numerical prediction, theoretical analysis, and experimental verification of the phenomenon of wave packet revivals in quantum systems has flourished over the last decade and a half. Quantum revivals are characterized by initially localized quantum states which have a short-term, quasi-classical time evolution, which then can spread significantly over several orbits, only to reform later in the form of a quantum revival in which the spreading reverses itself, the wave packet relocalizes, and the semi-classical periodicity is once again evident. Relocalization of the initial wave packet int…
Quantum carpets- in position and momentum space- woven by the self-interference of de Broglie wave of an atom or an electron, trapped in an infinitely deep potential well, are explained. The recurrence of self-similar structures in designs of these carpets mimics the phenomena of quantum revivals and fractional revivals. We identify fractional revivals of various order by means of these space-time and momentum-time interference patterns.
Using the fact that the energy eigenstates of the equilateral triangle infinite well (or billiard) are available in closed form, we examine the connections between the energy eigenvalue spectrum and the classical closed paths in this geometry, using both periodic orbit theory and the short-term semi-classical behavior of wave packets. We also discuss wave packet revivals and show that there are exact revivals, for all wave packets, at times given by $T_{rev} = 9 μa^2/4\hbar π$ where $a$ and $μ$ are the length of one side and the mass of the point particle respectively. We find additional cases…
Localized quantum wave packets can be produced in a variety of physical systems and are the subject of much current research in atomic, molecular, chemical, and condensed-matter physics. They are particularly well suited for studying the classical limit of a quantum-mechanical system. The motion of a localized quantum wave packet initially follows the corresponding classical motion. However, in most cases the quantum wave packet spreads and undergoes a series of collapses and revivals. We present a generic treatment of wave-packet evolution, and we provide conditions under which various types …
We examine the long-term time-dependence of Gaussian wave packets in a circular infinite well (billiard) system and find that there are approximate revivals. For the special case of purely $m=0$ states (central wave packets with no momentum) the revival time is $T_{rev}^{(m=0)} = 8μR^2/\hbar π$, where $μ$ is the mass of the particle, and the revivals are almost exact. For all other wave packets, we find that $T_{rev}^{(m \neq 0)} = (π^2/2) T_{rev}^{(m=0)} \approx 5T_{rev}^{(m=0)}$ and the nature of the revivals becomes increasingly approximate as the average angular momentum or number of $m \n…
We study the dynamics of superposed wave packets in a specific nonlinear Hamiltonian which models the wave packet propagation in Kerr-like media and the dynamics of Bose-Einstein condensates. We show the dependence of initial wave packet superposition on fractional revival times using analysis based on the expectation values, Rényi entropy and Wigner function. We also show how the selective identification of fractional revivals using moments of appropriate observables depends on the number of wave packets present in the initial state.
Wave packet revivals and fractional revivals are studied by means of a measure of nonclassicality based on the Fisher information. In particular, we show that the spreading and the regeneration of initially Gaussian wave packets in a quantum bouncer and an in the infinite square-well correspond, respectively, to high and low nonclassicality values. This result is in accordance with the physical expectations that at a quantum revival wave packets almost recover their initial shape and the classical motion revives temporarily afterward.
We present theoretical study of revival phenomena for a wave packet initially well localized in a one-dimensional potential in the presence of an external periodic modulating field. The classical motion, revival, and super-revival time scale are derived exactly for wave packet excited in the one dimension box potential.
We discuss the time development of Gaussian wave packet solutions of the quantum bouncer' (a quantum mechanical particle subject to a uniform downward force, above an impermeable flat surface). We focus on the evaluation and visualization of the expectation values and uncertainties of position and momentum variables during a single quasi-classical period as well as during the long term collapsed phase and several revivals. This approach complements existing analytic and numerical analyses of this system, as well as being useful for comparison with similar results for the harmonic oscillator an…
The article discusses the properties of time evolution of wave packets in a few systems. Dynamics of wave packet motion for Rydberg atoms with the hierarchy of collapses and revivals is briefly reviewed. The main part of the paper focuses on the new mechanism of quantum reccurrences in wave packet dynamics. This mechanism can occur (in principle) in any physical system with strong enough spin-orbit interaction. We discuss here the SPIN_ORBIT PENDULUM effect that consists in different motions of subpackets possessing different spin fields and results in oscillations of a fraction of average ang…
We show that Jaynes-Cummings dynamics can be observed in mesoscopic atomic ensembles interacting with a classical electromagnetic field in the regime of Rydberg blockade, where the time dynamics of the average number of Rydberg excitations in mesoscopic ensembles displays collapses and revivals typical of this model. As the frequency of Rabi oscillations between collective states of Rydberg blockaded ensembles depends on the number of interacting atoms, for randomly loaded optical dipole traps we predict collapses and revivals of Rabi oscillations. We have studied the effects of finite interac…
In this work we study the effects of collapse and revival as well as {\it Zitterbewegung} (ZB) phenomenon, for the relativistic electron wave packets, which are a superposition of the states with quantum numbers sharply peaked around some level $n_0$ of the order of few tens. The probability densities as well as average velocities of the packet center and the average spin components were calculated analytically and visualized. Our computations demonstrate that due to dephasing of the states for times larger than the cyclotron period the initial wave packet (which includes the states with the p…
A terahertz half-cycle pulse was used to retrieve information stored as quantum phase in an $N$-state Rydberg atom data register. The register was prepared as a wave packet with one state phase-reversed from the others (the "marked bit"). A half-cycle pulse then drove a significant portion of the electron probability into the flipped state via multimode interference.
We construct minimum-uncertainty solutions of the three-dimensional Schrödinger equation with a Coulomb potential. These wave packets are localized in radial and angular coordinates and are squeezed states in three dimensions. They move on elliptical keplerian trajectories and are appropriate for the description of the corresponding Rydberg wave packets, the production of which is the focus of current experimental effort. We extend our analysis to incorporate the effects of quantum defects in alkali-metal atoms, which are used in experiments.
Non dispersive electronic Rydberg wave packets may be created in atoms illuminated by a microwave field of circular polarization. We discuss the spontaneous emission from such states and show that the elastic incoherent component (occuring at the frequency of the driving field) dominates the spectrum in the semiclassical limit, contrary to earlier predictions. We calculate the frequencies of single photon emissions and the associated rates in the "harmonic approximation", i.e. when the wave packet has approximately a Gaussian shape. The results agree well with exact quantum mechanical calculat…
We investigate the short-, medium-, and long-term time dependence of wave packets in the infinite square well. In addition to emphasizing the appearance of wave packet revivals, i.e., situations where a spreading wave packet reforms with close to its initial shape and width, we also examine in detail the approach to the collapsed phase where the position-space probability density is almost uniformly spread over the well. We focus on visualizing these phenomena in both position- and momentum-space as well as by following the time-dependent expectation values of and uncertainties in position and…
We outline an analytical framework for the treatment of radial Rydberg wave packets produced by short laser pulses in the absence of external electric and magnetic fields. Wave packets of this type are localized in the radial coordinates and have p-state angular distributions. We argue that they can be described by a particular analytical class of squeezed states, called radial squeezed states. For hydrogenic Rydberg atoms, we discuss the time evolution of the corresponding hydrogenic radial squeezed states. They are found to undergo decoherence and collapse, followed by fractional and full re…
We theoretically study the optical tomography of the time evolved states generated by the evolution of different kinds of initial wave packets in a Kerr medium. Exact analytical expression for the optical tomogram of the quantum state at any instant during the evolution of a generic initial wave packet is derived in terms of Hermite polynomials. Time evolution of the optical tomogram is discussed for three kinds of initial states: a coherent state, an $m$-photon-added coherent state, and even and odd coherent states. We show the manifestation of revival and fractional revivals in the optical t…
We demonstrate an information hiding and retrieval scheme with the relative phases between states in a Rydberg wave packet acting as the bits of a data register. We use a terahertz half-cycle pulse (HCP) to transfer phase-encoded information from an optically accessible angular momentum manifold to another manifold which is not directly accessed by our laser pulses, effectively hiding the information from our optical interferometric measurement techniques. A subsequent HCP acting on these wave packets reintroduces the information back into the optically accessible data register manifold which …
We connect three phenomena of wave packet dynamics: Talbot images, revivals of a particle in a box and fractional revivals. The physical origin of these effects is deeply rooted in phase factors which are quadratic in the quantum number. We show that the characteristic structures in the time evolution of these systems allow us to factorize large integers.
A kick from a unipolar half-cycle pulse (HCP) can redistribute population and shift the relative phase between states in a radial Rydberg wave packet. We have measured the quantum coherence properties following the kick, and show that selected coherences can be destroyed by applying an HCP at specific times. Quantum mechanical simulations show that this is due to redistribution of the angular momentum in the presence of noise. These results have implications for the storage and retrieval of quantum information in the wave packet.
We study the time-evolution of localized wavepackets in graphene quantum dots under a perpendicular magnetic field, focusing on the quasiclassical and revival periodicities, for different values of the magnetic field intensities in a theoretical framework. We have considered contributions of the two inequivalent points in the Brillouin zone. The revival time has been found as an observable that shows the break valley degeneracy.
Wave packet fractional revivals is a relevant feature in the long time scale evolution of a wide range of physical systems, including atoms, molecules and nonlinear systems. We show that the sum of information entropies in both position and momentum conjugate spaces is an indicator of fractional revivals by analyzing three different model systems: $(i)$ the infinite square well, $(ii)$ a particle bouncing vertically against a wall in a gravitational field, and $(iii)$ the vibrational dynamics of hydrogen iodide molecules. This description in terms of information entropies complements the usual…
We show in the framework of a tractable model that revivals and fractional revivals of wave packets afford clear signatures of the extent of departure from coherence and from Poisson statistics of the matter wave field in a Bose-Einstein condensate, or of a suitably chosen initial state of the radiation field propagating in a Kerr-like medium.
We investigate non-classical effects such as fractional revivals, squeezing and higher-order squeezing of photon-added coherent states propagating through a Kerr-like medium.The Wigner functions corresponding to these states at the instants of fractional revivals are obtained, and the extent of non-classicality quantified.
We present a theoretical construction for closest-to-classical wave packets localized in both angular and radial coordinates and moving on a keplerian orbit. The method produces a family of elliptical squeezed states for the planar Coulomb problem that minimize appropriate uncertainty relations in radial and angular coordinates. The time evolution of these states is studied for orbits with different semimajor axes and eccentricities. The elliptical squeezed states may be useful for a description of the motion of Rydberg wave packets excited by short-pulsed lasers in the presence of external fi…
Wave packets in a system governed by a Hamiltonian with a generic nonlinear spectrum typically exhibit both full and fractional revivals. It is shown that the latter can be eliminated by inducing suitable geometric phases in the states, by varying the parameters in the Hamiltonian cyclically with a period T. Further, with the introduction of this natural time step T, the occurrence of near revivals can be mapped onto that of Poincaré recurrences in an irrational rotation map of the circle. The distinctive recurrence time statistics of the latter can thus serve as a clear signature of the dynam…
Treating the ideal coherent state as a reference state, the effects due to departure from coherence of an initial wave packet propagating through a nonlinear medium, were examined, specifically in the context of non-classical effects such as revivals, fractional revivals, squeezing and higher-order squeezing during its temporal evolution. Further, these studies were extended to examine the role of quantum entanglement in bipartite systems. The dynamics of quantum expectation values were tracked carefully in various cases and the conditions under which a wave packet spreads chaotically, were in…
We study radial wave packets produced by short-pulsed laser fields acting on Rydberg atoms, using analytical tools from supersymmetry-based quantum-defect theory. We begin with a time-dependent perturbative calculation for alkali-metal atoms, incorporating the atomic-excitation process. This provides insight into the general wave packet behavior and demonstrates agreement with conventional theory. We then obtain an alternative analytical description of a radial wave packet as a member of a particular family of squeezed states, which we call radial squeezed states. By construction, these have c…
The rigid pendulum, both as a classical and as a quantum problem, is an interesting system as it has the exactly soluble harmonic oscillator and the rigid rotor systems as limiting cases in the low- and high-energy limits respectively. The energy variation of the classical periodicity ($τ$) is also dramatic, having the special limiting case of $τ\to \infty$ at the 'top' of the classical motion (i.e. the separatrix.) We study the time-dependence of the quantum pendulum problem, focusing on the behavior of both the (approximate) classical periodicity and especially the quantum revival and superr…
We calculate the Wigner quasi-probability distribution for position and momentum, P_W^(n)(x,p), for the energy eigenstates of the standard infinite well potential, using both x- and p-space stationary-state solutions, as well as visualizing the results. We then evaluate the time-dependent Wigner distribution, P_W(x,p;t), for Gaussian wave packet solutions of this system, illustrating both the short-term semi-classical time dependence, as well as longer-term revival and fractional revival behavior and the structure during the collapsed state. This tool provides an excellent way of demonstrating…
We probe the dynamic evolution of a Stark wave packet in cesium using weak half-cycle pulses (HCP's). The state-selective field ionization(SSFI) spectra taken as a function of HCP delay reveal wave packet dynamics such as Kepler beats, Stark revivals and fractional revivals. A quantum-mechanical simulation explains the results as multi-mode interference induced by the HCP.
A two-level atom interacting with an electromagnetic mode in a cavity experiences population collapses and revivals. They are an indirect signature of the field quantization, and also hold information about the mode. Thus, they may be harnessed for quantum-state reconstruction. In this work, we study the revival structures with the characteristic function approach. The characteristic function is essentially a spectral decomposition of the photon-number probability distribution. Exploiting the characteristic function periodicity, we find that the atomic population inversion can be understood as…
Time evolution of wave packets built from the eigenstates of the Dirac equation for a hydrogenic system is considered. We investigate the space and spin motion of wave packets which, in the non-relativistic limit, are stationary states with a probability density distributed uniformly along the classical, elliptical orbit (elliptic WP). We show that the precession of such a WP, due to relativistic corrections to the energy eigenvalues, is strongly correlated with the spin motion. We show also that the motion is universal for all hydrogenic systems with an arbitrary value of the atomic number Z.
We consider a model Hamiltonian describing the interaction of a single-mode radiation field with the atoms of a nonlinear medium, and study the dynamics of entanglement for specific non-entangled initial states of interest: namely, those in which the field mode is initially in a Fock state, a coherent state, or a photon-added coherent state. The counterparts of near-revivals and fractional revivals are shown to be clearly identifiable in the entropy of entanglement. The ``overlap fidelity'' of the system is another such indicator, and its behaviour corroborates that of the entropy of entanglem…
We study the dissipative dynamics of a wave packet passing through two different non-linear media. The effect of dissipation on the phenomenon of collapses and revivals of a wave packet as it evolves in a Kerr-type non-linear medium (represented by the Hamiltonian $({a}^† a)^2$) is investigated. We find that partial revivals do take place when dissipation values are moderate. For a certain regime of parameters we find a solution where revivals do not die even in the presence of dissipation and the non-linearity appears to compensate for the energy and coherence loss. We consider the next order…
The quantum Hall effect is necessarily accompanied by low-energy excitations localized at the edge of a two-dimensional electron system. For the case of electrons interacting via the long-range Coulomb interaction, these excitations are edge magnetoplasmons. We address the time evolution of localized edge-magnetoplasmon wave packets. On short times the wave packets move along the edge with classical E cross B drift. We show that on longer times the wave packets can have properties similar to those of the Rydberg wave packets that are produced in atoms using short-pulsed lasers. In particular, …
In this paper a coherent superposition of angular momentum states created by absorption of polarized light by molecules is analyzed. Attention is paid to the time evolution of wave packets representing spatial orientation of internuclear axis of diatomic molecule. Two examples are considered in detail. Molecules absorbing light in a permanent magnetic field experiencing Zeeman effect and molecules absorbing light in a permanent electric field experiencing quadratic Stark effect. In a magnetic field we have a wave packet that evolves in time exactly as classical dipole oscillator in a permanent…
We calculate the quantum revival time for a wave-packet initially well localized in a one-dimensional potential in the presence of an external periodic modulating field. The dependence of the revival time on various parameters of the driven system is shown analytically. As an example of application of our approach, we compare the analytically obtained values of the revival time for various modulation strengths with the numerically computed ones in the case of a driven gravitational cavity. We show that they are in very good agreement.
Time evolution of radial wave packets built from the eigenstates of Dirac equation for a hydrogenic systems is considered. Radial wave packets are constructed from the states of different $n$ quantum number and the same lowest angular momentum. In general they exhibit a kind of breathing motion with dispersion and (partial) revivals. Calculations show that for some particular preparations of the wave packet one can observe interesting effects in spin motion, coming from inherent entanglement of spin and orbital degrees of freedom. These effects manifest themselves through some oscillations in …
We examine the dynamical evolution of wave packets in a cubical billiard where three quantum numbers ($n_x,n_y,n_z$) determine its energy spectrum and consequently its dynamical behavior. We have constructed the wave packet in the cubical billiard and have observed its time evolution for various closed orbits. The closed orbits are possible for certain specific values of quantum numbers ($n_x,n_y,n_z$) and initial momenta ($k_x,k_y,k_z$). We observe that a cubical billiard exhibits degenerate energy levels and the path lengths of the closed orbits for these degenerate energy levels are identic…
We investigate the time evolution of Gaussian wave packet (GWP) in the tight-binding chain with uniform nearest neighbor (NN) hopping integral. Analytical analysis and numerical simulations show that the fractional revival of the quantum state occurs in such system, i.e., at appropriate time, a GWP can evolve into many copies of the initial state at different positions. The application of this quantum phenomenon to the scheme of quantum information transfer in solid-state system is discussed.
Quantum revival is described as the time-periodic reconstruction of a wave packet initially localized in space and time. This effect is expected in finite-size systems which exhibits commensurable discrete spectrum such as the infinite quantum well. Here, we report on the experimental observation of full and fractional quantum revival for classical waves in a two dimensional cavity. We consider flexural waves propagating in thin plates, as their quadratic dispersion at low frequencies mimics the dispersion relation of quantum systems governed by Schrödinger equation. Time-dependent excitation …
We report on time-resolved pulsed four-wave mixing (FWM) signals in a thermal Rubidium vapor involving a Rydberg state. We observe FWM signals with dephasing times up to 7 ns, strongly dependent on the excitation bandwidth to the Rydberg state. The excitation to the Rydberg state is driven by a pulsed two-photon transition on ns time scales. Combined with a third cw de-excitation laser, a strongly directional and collective emission is generated according to a combination of the phase matching effect and averaging over Doppler classes. In contrast to a previous report [1] using off-resonant FW…
By using a test-function method, we construct $n$ exact solutions of a quantum harmonic oscillator with a time-dependent "spring constant". Any $n$-th solution describes a wave-packet train consisting of $n+1$ packets. Its center oscillates like the classically harmonic oscillator with variable frequency, and width and highness of each packet change simultaneously. When the deformation is small, it behaves like a soliton train, and the large deformation is identified with collapse and revival of the wave-packet train.
The dynamics of a laser-excited Rydberg electron under the influence of a fluctuating laser field are investigated. Rate equations are developed which describe these dynamics in the limit of large laser bandwidths for arbitrary types of laser fluctuations. These equations apply whenever all coherent effects have already been damped out. The range of validity of these rate equations is investigated in detail for the case of phase fluctuations. The resulting asymptotic power laws are investigated which characterize the long time dynamics of the laser-excited Rydberg electron and it is shown to w…
