What does this notation mean exactly?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the interpretation of a specific notation involving bra-ket notation in quantum mechanics, particularly focusing on the expression = . Participants are exploring the implications of this notation, the properties of the functions involved, and whether it may contain a typo.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses confusion over the notation and questions if it might be a typo.
  • Another participant suggests that the notation may emphasize that p is a self-adjoint operator.
  • A different participant elaborates on the properties of self-adjoint operators, indicating that the relation could hold due to these properties.
  • There is a query regarding the specific properties of functions f and g that would allow the notation to be valid, particularly whether they must belong to a specific Hilbert space.
  • One participant questions the presence of both a | and a comma in the notation, suggesting alternative representations in LaTeX.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the meaning of the notation, with multiple interpretations and questions remaining unresolved.

Contextual Notes

There are uncertainties regarding the assumptions about the functions f and g, the specific properties required for the notation to hold, and the implications of the notation's structure.

Demon117
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I have been staring at this practically all day. I understand bra-ket notation but this is weird. Possibly a typo?

<f|p, g> = <pf|g>

f and g are functions in Hilbert space and p is the spherical momentum operator. What properties of f and g would make this possible? I guess I just want someone to explain this, and also how do you put this in terms of latex command?
 
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The_Duck said:

That is kinda what I thought, because if you go through some properties you end up with

<f|p, g> = (<f|p)|g> = <f|(p|g>) = <f|pg> = <pf|g> which is a property of self-adjoint operators.

So maybe that is all it means, but what properties of f and g allow this, do they have to be elements of the specific Hilbert space you are working with?
 
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If an operator is self adjoint, then the relation would hold for all elements f and g.
 
matumich26 said:
I have been staring at this practically all day. I understand bra-ket notation but this is weird. Possibly a typo?

<f|p, g> = <pf|g>

f and g are functions in Hilbert space and p is the spherical momentum operator.
Why is there both a | and a comma on the left? It should be [itex]\langle f|p|g\rangle[/itex] or [itex]\langle f,pg\rangle[/itex]
 

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