B QM: Quantization Dependent on Spatial Confinement?

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fog37
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Hello Forum,

Some observables in quantum mechanics are always quantized, i.e. come in discrete separate values, while other observables, like energy or momentum, can be quantized or not depending on the spatial confinement of the system. Is that correct?

Is spatial confinement of the physical system is main reason of why certain observables are sometimes quantized and sometimes not?

Thanks!
 
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Spatial confinement does lead to quantization of momentum (and so of energy) . Which observables are you considering to be always quantized?
 
Isn't spin always quantized? What about angular momentum?

Overall, the list of observables includes: position, momentum, energy, angular momentum, spin, polarization...Anything else?
 
fog37 said:
Isn't spin always quantized? What about angular momentum?
Both spin and angular momentum are always quantized.

fog37 said:
Overall, the list of observables includes: position, momentum, energy, angular momentum, spin, polarization...Anything else?
There is an infinity of observables, so there is no point listing them all :wink:
 
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
If we release an electron around a positively charged sphere, the initial state of electron is a linear combination of Hydrogen-like states. According to quantum mechanics, evolution of time would not change this initial state because the potential is time independent. However, classically we expect the electron to collide with the sphere. So, it seems that the quantum and classics predict different behaviours!

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