Inverse Problems In Quantum Scattering Theory

Inverse Problems in Quantum Scattering Theory

Inverse Problems in Quantum Scattering Theory

The normal business of physicists may be schematically thought of as predic ting the motions of particles on the basis of known forces, or the propagation of radiation on the basis of a known constitution of matter. The inverse problem is to conclude what the forces or constitutions are on the basis of the observed motion. A large part of our sensory contact with the world around us depends on an intuitive solution of such an inverse problem: We infer the shape, size, and surface texture of external objects from their scattering and absorption of light as detected by our eyes. When we use scattering experiments to learn the size or shape of particles, or the forces they exert upon each other, the nature of the problem is similar, if more refined. The kinematics, the equations of motion, are usually assumed to be known. It is the forces that are sought, and how they vary from point to point. As with so many other physical ideas, the first one we know of to have touched upon the kind of inverse problem discussed in this book was Lord Rayleigh (1877). In the course of describing the vibrations of strings of variable density he briefly discusses the possibility of inferring the density distribution from the frequencies of vibration. This passage may be regarded as a precursor of the mathematical study of the inverse spectral problem some seventy years later.

Direct and Inverse Problems

Rapid progress in quantum theory brings us new important results which are often not immediately clear to all who need them. But fortunately, this is also followed by simplifications and unifications of our previous concepts. The inverse problem method ("The most beautiful idea of the XX-th century" - Zakharov et aI., 1980) has just both these aspects. It is rather astonishing that it took 50 years after the foundation of quantum mechanics for the creation of the "pictures" showing the direct connection of obser vables with interactions. Recently, illustrations of this type began to appear in the literature (e. g., how potentials are deformed with thc shift of one energy level or change of some resonance reduced width). Although they are transparent to those studying the quantum world and can be included within the necessary elements of quantum literacy, they are still largely unknown even to many specialists. For the first time, the most interesting of these pictures enriching our quantum intuition are col lected here and placed at your disposal. The readers of this monograph have the advantage of getting the latest information which became available after the publication of the Russian edition. It has been incor porated here in the simplest presentation possible. For example, new sections con cerning exactly solvable models, including the multi-channel, multi-dimensional ones and with time dependent potentials have been added. The first attempts in solving the three-body inverse problem are also mentioned.