I Normalization of an Eigenvector in a Matrix

Dwye
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
TL;DR Summary
I am working through some linear algebra questions in the Griffith's Book "Introduction to Quantum Mechanics", and I am unsure why a constant of 1/sqrt(2) is added into the answer.
I understand that the question is detailing a rotation about axis x & y, and that 1/sqrt(2) is the value of 45 degrees for both Sin and Cos, is this the reason for the addition; a generalization?
In fact I have seen this number quite a lot in Quantum Mechanics, is there something more to this number?
ProblemA.18.JPG
AnswerA.18.JPG
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Do you know, how to get the norm of a vector in ##\mathbb{C}^2## or, more generally, how to define a scalar product on a complex vector space? It's very important to get these concepts right, before starting to study quantum theory, for which you need the "infinite-dimensional version" of these ideas, the socalled (separable) Hilbert space (more precisely what physicists do with this is rather the extension to a "rigged Hilbert space").
 
Dwye said:
Summary:: I am working through some linear algebra questions in the Griffith's Book "Introduction to Quantum Mechanics", and I am unsure why a constant of 1/sqrt(2) is added into the answer.
I understand that the question is detailing a rotation about axis x & y, and that 1/sqrt(2) is the value of 45 degrees for both Sin and Cos, is this the reason for the addition; a generalization?
In fact I have seen this number quite a lot in Quantum Mechanics, is there something more to this number?

The vector ##(1, i)## has magnitude ##\sqrt 2##, so Griffiths decided to normalise it. The question doesn't actually ask for a normalised eigenvector, so ##(1, i)## would be just as valid an answer.

In QM it's generally a good idea to normalise vectors. The factor here has nothing directly to do with being the sine of ##45°##. If the eigenvector were ##(1, 2i)##, then the normalisation factor would be ##\frac 1 {\sqrt{5}}##.
 
  • Like
Likes vanhees71 and Dwye
PeroK said:
The vector ##(1, i)## has magnitude ##\sqrt 2##, so Griffiths decided to normalise it. The question doesn't actually ask for a normalised eigenvector, so ##(1, i)## would be just as valid an answer.

In QM it's generally a good idea to normalise vectors. The factor here has nothing directly to do with being the sine of ##45°##. If the eigenvector were ##(1, 2i)##, then the normalisation factor would be ##\frac 1 {\sqrt{5}}##.
PeroK said:
The vector ##(1, i)## has magnitude ##\sqrt 2##, so Griffiths decided to normalise it. The question doesn't actually ask for a normalised eigenvector, so ##(1, i)## would be just as valid an answer.

In QM it's generally a good idea to normalise vectors. The factor here has nothing directly to do with being the sine of ##45°##. If the eigenvector were ##(1, 2i)##, then the normalisation factor would be ##\frac 1 {\sqrt{5}}##.
Thank you very much!
 
I am not sure if this belongs in the biology section, but it appears more of a quantum physics question. Mike Wiest, Associate Professor of Neuroscience at Wellesley College in the US. In 2024 he published the results of an experiment on anaesthesia which purported to point to a role of quantum processes in consciousness; here is a popular exposition: https://neurosciencenews.com/quantum-process-consciousness-27624/ As my expertise in neuroscience doesn't reach up to an ant's ear...
Insights auto threads is broken atm, so I'm manually creating these for new Insight articles. Towards the end of the first lecture for the Qiskit Global Summer School 2025, Foundations of Quantum Mechanics, Olivia Lanes (Global Lead, Content and Education IBM) stated... Source: https://www.physicsforums.com/insights/quantum-entanglement-is-a-kinematic-fact-not-a-dynamical-effect/ by @RUTA
I am reading WHAT IS A QUANTUM FIELD THEORY?" A First Introduction for Mathematicians. The author states (2.4 Finite versus Continuous Models) that the use of continuity causes the infinities in QFT: 'Mathematicians are trained to think of physical space as R3. But our continuous model of physical space as R3 is of course an idealization, both at the scale of the very large and at the scale of the very small. This idealization has proved to be very powerful, but in the case of Quantum...
Back
Top