The question is the following:
At one instant, the electron in a hydrogen atom is in the state:

|phi>=sqrt(2/7) |E_2,1,-1,+> + 1/sqrt(7) |E_1,0,0,-> - sqrt(2/7) |E_1,0,0,+>

Express the state |phi> in the position representation, as a spinor wavefunction

How am I supposed to do this?

Some help would be very appreciated!:shy:

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tom.stoer
Get your script with the Dirac wave functions

$$\psi_{E_2,1,-1,+}(r) = <r|E_2, 1, -1, +>$$

etc. and calculate the sum.

Or do you have to solve the hydrogen atom problem first?

That is only a part of the state in the position representation, not the spinor wavefunction.

tom.stoer
what is the difference? can you give us an example what your problem really is? do you already know the solutions (wavefunctions) for the hydrogen atom?

The idea here is representing the state as a spinor wavefunction. The solutions are known and dont matter for the case, all you need to do is use the spinor representation.

The exercise is exactly the one I wrote above. From Principles of Quantum Mechanics by Hans C. Ohanian.

tom.stoer