Momentum distribution

A momentum distribution describes the statistical weight of particle momenta, with its normalization stated. A one-particle distribution $n(p)$ can be normalized to one as a probability density or to the particle number; these conventions differ by a factor.

For a pure state with momentum-space wavefunction $\tilde{\psi }(p)$, the probability density is $|\tilde{\psi }(p){|}^2$ under the chosen Fourier normalization. In many-body systems, the one-body density matrix determines the single-particle momentum occupation. A narrow momentum peak can indicate coherence, but finite size, interactions and the measurement protocol also affect the observed profile.