Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2007/ib/paper-2/16b/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2007 ib Paper 2 16B Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-14
The orbital angular momentum operators are , soThe canonical commutation relations are and . On a common domain of smooth wavefunctions, the product commutator identity givesContract this with . The first term contributes and the second contributes . Their sum isThis verifies the angular momentum commutation relations explicitly. Similarly,
In the position representation . For a radial wavefunction, , parallel to , soWrite with . The operator annihilates the radial factor. It gives , , and , henceThus these components, when nonzero, are the specified eigenfunctions with eigenvalues . This is an example of angular momentum of a radial function times a linear polynomial.
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