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Below is the worksheet with the whole material presented yesterday in the webinar, “Applying the power of computer algebra to theoretical physics”, broadcasted by the “Institute of Physics” (IOP, England). The material was very well received, rated 4.5 out of 5 (around 30 voters among the more than 300 attendants), and generated a lot of feedback. The webinar was recorded so that it is possible to watch it (for free, of course, click the link above, it will ask you for registration, though, that’s how IOP works).

Anyway, you can reproduce the presentation with the worksheet below (mw file linked at the end, or the corresponding pdf also linked with all the input lines executed). As usual, to reproduce the input/output you need to have installed the latest version of Physics, available in the Maplesoft R&D Physics webpage.

Why computer algebra?
 

 

 

... and why computer algebra?


We can concentrate more on the ideas instead of on the algebraic manipulations

 

We can extend results with ease

 

We can explore the mathematics surrounding a problem

 

We can share results in a reproducible way

 

Representation issues that were preventing the use of computer algebra in Physics
 

 


Notation and related mathematical methods that were missing:


coordinate free representations for vectors and vectorial differential operators,

covariant tensors distinguished from contravariant tensors,

functional differentiation, relativity differential operators and sum rule for tensor contracted (repeated) indices

Bras, Kets, projectors and all related to Dirac's notation in Quantum Mechanics

 

Inert representations of operations, mathematical functions, and related typesetting were missing:

 

inert versus active representations for mathematical operations

ability to move from inert to active representations of computations and viceversa as necessary

hand-like style for entering computations and textbook-like notation for displaying results

 

Key elements of the computational domain of theoretical physics were missing:

 

ability to handle products and derivatives involving commutative, anticommutative and noncommutative variables and functions

ability to perform computations taking into account custom-defined algebra rules of different kinds

(commutator, anticommutator and bracket rules, etc.)

 

 

Examples

 

The Maple computer algebra environment
   

Classical Mechanics
 

Inertia tensor for a triatomic molecule
   

Classical Field Theory
 

*The field equations for the lambda*Phi^4 model
   

*Maxwell equations departing from the 4-dimensional Action for Electrodynamics
   

*The Gross-Pitaevskii field equations for a quantum system of identical particles
   

Quantum mechanics
 

*The quantum operator components of  `#mover(mi("L",mathcolor = "olive"),mo("→",fontstyle = "italic"))` satisfy "[L[j],L[k]][-]=i `ε`[j,k,m] L[m]"
   

Quantization of the energy of a particle in a magnetic field
   

Unitary Operators in Quantum Mechanics
 

*Eigenvalues of an unitary operator and exponential of Hermitian operators
   

Properties of unitary operators
 

 

Consider two set of kets " | a[n] >" and "| b[n] >", each of them constituting a complete orthonormal basis of the same space.


One can always build an unitary operator U that maps one basis to the other, i.e.: "| b[n] >=U | a[n] >"

*Verify that "U=(&sum;) | b[k] >< a[k] |" implies on  "| b[n] >=U | a[n] >"
   

*Show that "U=(&sum;) | b[k] > < a[k] | "is unitary
   

*Show that the matrix elements of U in the "| a[n] >" and  "| b[n] >" basis are equal
   

Show that A and `&Ascr;` = U*A*`#msup(mi("U"),mo("&dagger;"))`have the same spectrum
   

````

Schrödinger equation and unitary transform
 

 

Consider a ket "| psi[t] > " that solves the time-dependant Schrödinger equation:

 

"i `&hbar;` (&PartialD;)/(&PartialD;t) | psi[t] >=H(t) | psi[t] >"

and consider

"| phi[t] > =U(t) | psi[t] >",

 

where U(t) is a unitary operator.

 

Does "| phi[t] >" evolves according a Schrödinger equation

 "i*`&hbar;` (&PartialD;)/(&PartialD;t) | phi[t] >=`&Hscr;`(t) | phi[t] >"

and if yes, which is the expression of `&Hscr;`(t)?

 

Solution
   

Translation operators using Dirac notation
 

In this section, we focus on the operator T[a] = exp((-I*a*P)*(1/`&hbar;`))

Settings
   

The Action (translation) of the operator T[a]"=(e)^(-i (a P)/(`&hbar;`))" on a ket
   

Action of T[a] on an operatorV(X)
   

General Relativity
 

*Exact Solutions to Einstein's Equations  Lambda*g[mu, nu]+G[mu, nu] = 8*Pi*T[mu, nu]
   

*"Physical Review D" 87, 044053 (2013)
 

Given the spacetime metric,

g[mu, nu] = (Matrix(4, 4, {(1, 1) = -exp(lambda(r)), (1, 2) = 0, (1, 3) = 0, (1, 4) = 0, (2, 1) = 0, (2, 2) = -r^2, (2, 3) = 0, (2, 4) = 0, (3, 1) = 0, (3, 2) = 0, (3, 3) = -r^2*sin(theta)^2, (3, 4) = 0, (4, 1) = 0, (4, 2) = 0, (4, 3) = 0, (4, 4) = exp(nu(r))}))

a) Compute the Ricci and Weyl scalars

 

b) Compute the trace of

 

"Z[alpha]^(beta)=Phi R[alpha]^(beta)+`&Dscr;`[alpha]`&Dscr;`[]^(beta) Phi+T[alpha]^(beta)"

 

where `&equiv;`(Phi, Phi(r)) is some function of the radial coordinate, R[alpha, `~beta`] is the Ricci tensor, `&Dscr;`[alpha] is the covariant derivative operator and T[alpha, `~beta`] is the stress-energy tensor

 

T[alpha, beta] = (Matrix(4, 4, {(1, 1) = 8*exp(lambda(r))*Pi, (1, 2) = 0, (1, 3) = 0, (1, 4) = 0, (2, 1) = 0, (2, 2) = 8*r^2*Pi, (2, 3) = 0, (2, 4) = 0, (3, 1) = 0, (3, 2) = 0, (3, 3) = 8*r^2*sin(theta)^2*Pi, (3, 4) = 0, (4, 1) = 0, (4, 2) = 0, (4, 3) = 0, (4, 4) = 8*exp(nu(r))*Pi*epsilon}))

c) Compute the components of "W[alpha]^(beta)"" &equiv;"the traceless part of  "Z[alpha]^(beta)" of item b)

 

d) Compute an exact solution to the nonlinear system of differential equations conformed by the components of  "W[alpha]^(beta)" obtained in c)

 

Background: paper from February/2013, "Withholding Potentials, Absence of Ghosts and Relationship between Minimal Dilatonic Gravity and f(R) Theories", by P. Fiziev.

 

a) The Ricci and Weyl scalars
   

b) The trace of " Z[alpha]^(beta)=Phi R[alpha]^(beta)+`&Dscr;`[alpha]`&Dscr;`[]^(beta) Phi+T[alpha]^(beta)"
   

b) The components of "W[alpha]^(beta)"" &equiv;"the traceless part of " Z[alpha]^(beta)"
   

c) An exact solution for the nonlinear system of differential equations conformed by the components of  "W[alpha]^(beta)"
   

*The Equivalence problem between two metrics
 

 

From the "What is new in Physics in Maple 2016" page:

  

In the Maple PDEtools package, you have the mathematical tools - including a complete symmetry approach - to work with the underlying [Einstein’s] partial differential equations. [By combining that functionality with the one in the Physics and Physics:-Tetrads package] you can also formulate and, depending on the metrics also resolve, the equivalence problem; that is: to answer whether or not, given two metrics, they can be obtained from each other by a transformation of coordinates, as well as compute the transformation.

Example from: A. Karlhede, "A Review of the Geometrical Equivalence of Metrics in General Relativity", General Relativity and Gravitation, Vol. 12, No. 9, 1980
   

*Equivalence for Schwarzschild metric (spherical and Krustal coordinates)
   

Tetrads and Weyl scalars in canonical form
 

 

Generally speaking a canonical form is obtained using transformations that leave invariant the tetrad metric in a tetrad system of references, so that theWeyl scalars are fixed as much as possible (conventionally, either equal to 0 or to 1).

 

Bringing a tetrad in canonical form is a relevant step in the tackling of the equivalence problem between two spacetime metrics.

The implementation is as in "General Relativity, an Einstein century survey", edited by S.W. Hawking (Cambridge) and W. Israel (U. Alberta, Canada), specifically Chapter 7 written by S. Chandrasekhar, page 388:

 

 

`&Psi;__0`

`&Psi;__1`

`&Psi;__2`

`&Psi;__3`

`&Psi;__4`

Residual invariance

Petrov type I

0

"<>0"

"<>0"

1

0

none

Petrov type II

0

0

"<>0"

1

0

none

Petrov type III

0

0

0

1

0

none

Petrov type D

0

0

"<>0"

0

0

`&Psi;__2`  remains invariant under rotations of Class III

Petrov type N

0

0

0

0

1

`&Psi;__4` remains invariant under rotations of Class II
 

 

The transformations (rotations of the tetrad system of references) used are of Class I, II and III as defined in Chandrasekar's chapter - equations (7.79) in page 384, (7.83) and (7.84) in page 385. Transformations of Class I can be performed with the command Physics:-Tetrads:-TransformTetrad using the optional argument nullrotationwithfixedl_, of Class II using nullrotationwithfixedn_ and of Class III by calling TransformTetrad(spatialrotationsm_mb_plan, boostsn_l_plane), so with the two optional arguments simultaneously.

 

The determination of appropriate transformation parameters to be used in these rotations, as well as the sequence of transformations happens all automatically by using the optional argument, canonicalform of TransformTetrad .

 

> 

restart; with(Physics); with(Tetrads)

`Setting lowercaselatin letters to represent tetrad indices `

  

0, "%1 is not a command in the %2 package", Tetrads, Physics

  

0, "%1 is not a command in the %2 package", Tetrads, Physics

  

[IsTetrad, NullTetrad, OrthonormalTetrad, PetrovType, SimplifyTetrad, TransformTetrad, e_, eta_, gamma_, l_, lambda_, m_, mb_, n_]

 (7.4.1)

Petrov type I
   

Petrov type II
   

Petrov type III
   

Petrov type N
   

Petrov type D
   

 

 

Physics_2016_IOP_webinar.mw     Physics_2016_IOP_webinar.pdf


Edgardo S. Cheb-Terrab
Physics, Differential Equations and Mathematical Functions, Maplesoft
physics relativity quantum mechanics

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