22 Spin Angular Momentum

The goal of this section is to introduce the spin angular momentum S, as a generalized angular
momentum operator that satises the general commutation relations S S = iS . The main dif-
ference between the angular momenta S, and L, is that S can have half-integer quantum numbers.
Note: Remember that the quantization rules established by the commutation relations did not rule
out the possibility of half-integer values for j. However, such possibility was ruled out by the
periodicity requirement, Y ( + 2) = Y (), associated with the eigenfunctions of L
z
and L
2
.
Since the spin eigenfunctions (i.e., the spinors) do not depend on spatial coordinates, they do not
have to satisfy any periodicity condition and therefore their eigenvalues can be half-integer.
Electron Spin:
A particular case of half-integer spin is the spin angular momentum of an electron with l = 1/2
(see Goudsmits historical recount of the discovery of the electron spin). In discussing the spin
properties of a particle we adopt the notation l = S, and m = m
s
.
The spin functions and are eigenfunctions of S
z
with eigenvalues +
1
2
and
1
2
, respectively.
These eigenfunctions are normalized according to,
1/2

ms=1/2
|(m
s
)|
2
= 1,
1/2

ms=1/2
|(m
s
)|
2
= 1, (61)
since m
s
can be either
1
2
, or
1
2
. Also, since the eigenfunctions and correspond to different
eigenvalues of S
z
, they must be orthogonal:
1/2

ms=1/2

(m
s
)(m
s
) = 0. (62)
In order to satisfy the conditions imposed by Eqs. (61) and (62),
(m
s
) =
ms,1/2
, and, (m
s
) =
ms,1/2
.
It is useful to dene the spin angular momentumladder operators, S
+
= S
x
+ iS
y
and S

= S
x
iS
y
.
Here, we prove that the raising operator S
+
satises the following equation:
S
+
= .
Proof:
Using the normalization condition introduced by Eq. ( 61) we obtain,
1/2

ms=1/2

(m
s
)(m
s
) =
1/2

ms=1/2
(

S
+

c
)

S
+

c
) = 1,
and
|c|
2
=

ms
(

S
+
)

S
x
+ i

S
y
).
57
Now, using the hermitian property of S
x
and S
y
,

ms
f

S
x
g =

ms
gS

x
f

,
we obtain:
|c|
2
=

ms
S

x
(S
+
)

+ iS

y
(S
+
)

,
where,
|c|
2
=

ms

S
x
S
+
i

S
y
S
+
,
|c|
2
=

ms

S
+
,
|c|
2
=

ms

(S
2
S
2
z
S
z
),
|c|
2
=

ms

(
3
4

2
4
+

2
2
),
|c|
2
=
2
.
Since the phase of c is arbitrary, we can choose c=.
Similarly, we obtain S

= .
Since is the eigenfunction with highest eigenvalue, the operator S
+
acting on it must annihilate
it as follows,
S
+
= 0, and S

= 0.
S
x
= (S
+
+ S

2
=

2
, S
x
=
1
2
.
S
y
= (S
+
S

2i
=

2i
, S
y
=
1
2
i.
Similarly, we nd S
x
=
1
2
, and S
y
=
1
2
i .
< |S
x
| >
0 /2
/2 0
< |S
y
| >
0 i/2
+i/2 0
< |S
z
| >
/2 0
0 /2
Therefore, S =
1
2
, where are the Pauli matrices dened as follows,

x
=
_
0 1
1 0
_
,
y
=
_
0 i
i 0
_
,
z
=
_
1 0
0 1
_
,
where,
2
x
=
2
y
=
2
z
= 1.
58
22.1 Exercise 25
Prove that the Pauli matrices anti-commute with each other, i.e.,

j
+
j

i
= 0,
where i = j, and i, j = (x, y, z).
In order to nd the eigenfunctions of S
z
, called eigenspinors, consider the following eigenvalue
problem:
S
z
_
u

_
=

2
_
u

_
,
_
1 0
0 1
__
u

_
=
_
u

_
,
_
u

_
=
_
u

_
,
_
u
+
v
+
_
=
_
u
+
v
+
_
, v
+
= 0 , u
+
= 1 .
Similarly we obtain, u

= 0 , and v

= 1 . Therefore, electron eigenspinors satisfy the eigen-

,
with,

=
_
0
1
_
, and
+
=
_
1
0
_
.
Any spinor can be expanded in the complete set of eigenspinors as follows,
_

+

_
=
+
_
1
0
_
+

_
0
1
_
,
where |
+
|
2
, and |

|
2
, are the probabilities that a measurement of S
z
yields the value +
1
2
, and

1
2
, respectively, when the system is described by state
_

+

_
.
22.2 Exercise 26
Prove that, S
2

+
=

2
2
(
1
2
+ 1)
+
.
59
22.3 Exercise 27
Consider an electron localized at a crystal site. Assume that the spin is the only degree of freedom
of the system and that due to the spin the electron has a magnetic moment,
M =
eg
2mc
S,
where g 2, m is the electron mass, e is the electric charge and c is the speed of light. Therefore,
in the presence of an external magnetic eld B the Hamiltonian of the system is,
H = M B.
Assume that B points in the z direction and that the state of the system is,
(t) = e
it
_

+

_
.
Consider that initially (i.e., at time t = 0) the spin points in the x direction (i.e., the spinor is an
eigenstate of
x
with eigenvalue
1
2
).
Compute the expectation values of S
x
and S
y
at time t.
Addition of Angular Momenta
Since L depends on spatial coordinates and S does not, then the two operators commute (i.e.,
[L, S] = 0). It is, therefore, evident that the components of the total angular momentum,
J = L + S,
satisfy the commutation relations,
J J = iJ.
Eigenfunctions of J
2
and J
z
are obtained from the individual eigenfunctions of two angular mo-
mentum operators L
1
and L
2
with quantum numbers (l
1
, m
1
) and (l
2
, m
2
), respectively, as follows:

m
j
=

l
1
,m
1
,l
2
,m
2
C(jm, l
1
m
1
l
2
m
2
)
. .

m
1
l
1

m
2
l
2
,
Clebsch-Gordan Coefcients
where,
J
2

jm
=
2
j(j + 1)
jm
,
J
z

jm
= m
jm
.
60
22.4 Exercise 28
Show that,
m+1/2
j
= C
1
Y
m
l

+
+ C
2
Y
m+1
l

, is a common eigenfunction of J
2
and J
z
when,
C
1
=
_
l+m+1
2l+1
, and C
2
=
_
lm
2l+1
, or when, C
1
=
_
lm
2l+1
, and C
2
=
_
l+m+1
2l+1
.
Hint: Analyze the particular case j = l 1/2, and j = l + 1/2. Note that,
J
2
= L
2
+ S
2
+ 2LS = L
2
+ S
2
+ 2L
z
S
z
+ L
+
S

+ L

S
+
,
J
z
= L
z
+ S
z
,
23 Central Potential
Consider a two-particle system represented by the following diagram,R1(123) R3(168)
6
-

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
................................
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

:
X
X
X
X
X
Xz
x
y
z
x
1
y
1
z
1
m
1
m
2
r
1
r
r
2
u
u
where x, y and z represent distances between the two particles along the three Cartesian axes,
where r = (x, y, z) = r
2
r
1
, with r
1
and r
2
the position vectors of particles 1 and 2, respectively.
The central potential V (x, y, z) is a function of | r| =
_
x
2
+ y
2
+ z
2
, rather than a function of the
individual Cartesian components. Assuming that such function denes the interaction between the
two particles, the Hamiltonian of the system has the form,
H =
P
2
1
2m
1
+
P
2
2
2m
2
+ V (|r
2
r
1
|) = T + V (|r
2
r
1
|),
where, T =
m
1
2
|

r
1
|
2
+
m
2
2
|

r
2
|
2
, with |

r
1
|
2
=

r
1

r
1
.
Changing variables r
1
, and r
2
, by the center-of-mass coordinates

R, and the relative coordinates,
r = r
2
r
1
, where,

R
m
1
r
1
+ m
2
r
2
m
1
+ m
2
; r = r
2
r
1
,
we obtain,
r
1
=

R
m
2
m
1
+ m
2
r, r
2
=

R +
m
1
m
1
+ m
2
r.
61
Therefore,
T =
m
1
2
_

R
m
2
m
1
+ m
2

r
__

R
m
2
m
1
+ m
2

r
_
+
m
2
2
_

R +
m
1
m
1
+ m
2

r
__

R +
m
1
m
1
+ m
2

r
_
,
or,
T =
m
1
+ m
2
2
|

R|
2
+
1
2
m
1
m
2
m
1
+ m
2
|

r|
2
=
1
2
M|

R|
2
+
1
2
|

r|
2
,
where M = m
1
+ m
2
is the total mass of the system, and
m
1
m
2
m
1
+m
2
is the reduced mass of the
two-particle system. Therefore, the total Hamiltonian of the system can be written as follows,
H =
1
2
M|

R|
2
+
1
2
|

r|
2
+ V (|r|) =

P
2
M
2M
+

P
2

2
+ V (|r|),
where the rst term corresponds to the kinetic energy of a particle of mass M, and the second
and third terms constitute the Hamiltonian of a single particle with coordinates r. Therefore, the
time-independent Schr odinger equation for the system is,
_

P
2
M
2M
+

P
2

2
+ V (|r|)
_
(

R, r) = E(

R, r).
Trying a factorizable solution, by separation of variables,
(r,

R) =

(r)
M
(

R),
we obtain,

R
2

M
2M
. .

r
2

M
2
+

M
V (|r|)
. .
= E

M
.
depends on R depends on r
Therefore, each one of the parts of the Hamiltonian have to be equal to a constant,

2
2M
1

R
2

M
= E
M
, (63)

2
2
1

r
2

+ V (|r|) = E

, with E
M
+ E

= E. (64)
Eq. (64) is the Schr odinger equation for a free particle with mass M. The solution of such equation
is,

M
(R) = (2)
3/2
e
i

k

R
, where
|

k|
2

2
2M
= E
M
. (65)
According to Eq. (65), the energy E

is found by solving the equation,

2
2

r
2

+ V (| r|)

= E

. (66)
62
Equations ((65)) and ((66)) have separated the problem of two particles interacting according to a
central potential V (| r
2
r
1
|) into two separate one-particle problems that include:
(1) The translational motion of the entire system of mass M.
(2) The relative (e.g., internal) motion.
These results apply to any problem described by a central potential (e.g., the hydrogen atom, the
two-particle rigid rotor, and the isotropic multidimensional harmonic-oscillator).
Consider Eq. (66), with
2

2
x
2
+

2
y
2
+

2
z
2
, and V (| r|) a spherically-symmetric potential, i.e.,
a function of the distance r = | r|. It is natural to work in spherical coordinates.
23.1 Exercise 29
Prove that the Laplacian
2
can written in spherical coordinates as follows,

2
=

2
r
2
+
2
r

r

1
r
2

L
2
, where

L
2
=
2
_

2

2
+
Cos
sin

+
1
sin
2

2
_
.
It is important to note that the commutator
[
2
, L
2
] =
_

2
r
2
+
2
r

r
,

L
2
_

_
1
r
2

L
2
,

L
2
_
= 0,
because

L
2
does not involve r, but only and . Also, since

L
2
does not involve r, and V is a
function of r,
[V, L
2
] = 0.
Consequently,
[H, L
2
] = 0,
whenever the potential energy of the systemis dened by a central potential. Furthermore, [H, L
z
] =
0, because

L
z
= i

.
Conclusion: A system described by a central-potential has eigenfunctions that are common to the
operators H, L
2
and L
Z
:

= E

L
2

=
2
l(l + 1)

, l = 0, 1, 2, ...

L
z

= m

, m = l, l + 1, ..., l.
Substituting these results into Eq. (66) we obtain,

2
2
_

2
r
2
+
2
r

r
_

+

2
2

2
r
2

2
l(l + 1)

+ V (| r|)

= E

.
Since the eigenfunctions of

L
2
are spherical harmonics Y
m
l
(, ), we consider the solution,

= R(r)Y
m
l
(, ),
63
and we nd that R(r) must satisfy the equation,

2
2
_

2
R
r
2
+
2
r
R
r
_
+

2
2r
2
l(l + 1)R + V (| r|)R = E

R. (67)
24 Two-Particle Rigid-Rotor
The rigid-rotor is a system of two particles for which the distance between them| r| = d is constant.
The Hamiltonian of the system is described by Eq. (67), where the rst two terms are equal to zero,
and E

=

2
2d
2
l(l + 1) + V (d), with

= Y
m
l
(, ).
The moment of inertia of a system of particles is I

2
i=1
m
i
r
2
i
, where m
i
is the mass of particle
i and r
i
is the particle distance to the axis.
24.1 Exercise 30
Prove that I = d
2
for the two-particle rigid rotor, where =
m
1
m
2
m
1
+m
2
, d = r
2
r
1
, and is an axis
with the center of mass of the system and is perpendicular to the axis that has the center of mass of
both particles. Assume that the center of mass lies at the origin of coordinates, and that the x axis
has the center of mass of both particles in the system.
The rotational energy levels of the rigid rotor are:
E

=

2
2I
l(l + 1), with l = 0, 1, 2, ... (68)
These energy levels usually give a good approximation of the rotational energy levels of di-
atomic molecules (e.g., the HCl molecule).
25 Problem Set
25.1 Exercise 31
Solve problems 6.5 and 6.6 of reference 1.
25.2 Exercise 32
Prove that the angular momentum operator L = r p is hermitian.
64
25.3 Exercise 33
Prove that,
(x + a) = e
(i/)ap
(x),
where p = i/x, and a is a nite displacement.
25.4 Exercise 34
Let

H be the Hamiltonian operator of a system. Denote
k
the eigenfunctions of

H with eigenval-
ues E
k
. Prove that <
n
|[

Q,

H]|
k
>= 0, for any arbitrary operator

Q, when n = k.
25.5 Exercise 35
Prove that,
[x, H] = ip/m,
where, H = p
2
/(2m) + V (x).
25.6 Exercise 36
Prove that,
L

Y
m
l
=
_
(l + m)(l m + 1)Y
m1
l
,
where L
z
Y
m
l
= mY
m
l
, and L
2
Y
m
l
=
2
l(l + 1)Y
m
l
.
25.7 Exercise 37
Consider a system described by the Hamiltonian matrix,
H =
_
E
0

E
0
_
,
where the matrix elements H
jk
=<
j
|

H|
k
>. Consider that the system is initially prepared in
the ground state, and is then inuenced by the perturbation W(t) dened as follows,
W(t) =
_
0 e
t
2
/
2
it
e
t
2
/
2
+it
0
_
.
Calculate the probability of nding the system in the excited state at time t >> .
65