Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-advanced-quantum-physics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2022/section-b/6/b/solution
Past exam of the advanced quantum physics course of the University of Cambridge 2022 Section B 6 b Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-18
The orthogonal projection onto the full spin- subspace isHere the identity acts on all oscillator states. The finite-time scattering operator in the question is the interaction picture time-evolution operator, so . Projecting its two orthogonal spin components yieldsExpand the right-hand side in the orthonormal basis . Taking its squared norm, and using the normalization of , givesThus one sums probabilities over unobserved final oscillator states, not their probability amplitudes. Unitarity of makes the sum over both equal to one.
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