Speaker
James Freericks
(Georgetown University)
Description
In 1930, Born and Jordan wrote a quantum mechanics textbook. In that work, they used a curious map to convert the harmonic oscillator equations of motion into two linear (uncoupled) first-order equations. When used in classical mechanics, this mapping clearly shows how one should introduce complex numbers into the motion of a harmonic oscillator and how to solve for the position and momentum observables. In this talk, I will explain how this mapping works and show how to demystify complex numbers usage in damped-driven harmonic oscillators.
Primary author
James Freericks
(Georgetown University)
Co-authors
Mr
Jason Tran
(Georgetown University)
Dr
Leanne Doughty
(Georgetown University)
