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Use the quantum harmonic oscillator in units with reduced Planck constant $\hslash =1$, mass $m=1$, and angular frequency $\omega =1$. Its Hamiltonian operator and trial Gaussian wave packet areThis is the same Gaussian wave packet used for the Heisenberg uncertainty relation: $|{\psi }_{\sigma }{|}^2$ is a normal distribution with mean zero and variance ${\sigma }^2$. The Gaussian integral gives wavefunction normalization and $⟨x^2⟩={\sigma }^2$. These smooth, rapidly decaying trials lie in the one-dimensional harmonic oscillator form domain and even in the operator domain.

Since ${\psi }_{\sigma }^{\prime }=-x{\psi }_{\sigma }/(2{\sigma }^2)$, integration by parts with vanishing boundary terms gives the kinetic energy and potential energy:Narrow trials cost kinetic energy, while broad trials cost potential energy. The exact differenceshows that the unique optimal width is ${\sigma }^2=1/2$, with $E=1/2$. At $\sigma =1/2$ and $\sigma =1$, the trial energies are both $5/8=0.625$; the kinetic energy and potential energy contributions exchange places.

Minimizing within this trial family alone establishes $E_0\le 1/2$. To establish exactness, use the Heisenberg uncertainty relation to obtain $E_{\psi }\ge 1/2$ for every admissible quantum state, as in its existing oscillator example. Together the bounds give $E_0=1/2$. Direct substitution also yields $H{\psi }_{1/\sqrt{2}}={\psi }_{1/\sqrt{2}}/2$, agreeing with the Gaussian eigenstate for a quadratic potential. This is a useful distinction: the variational method supplies the upper bound, while the Heisenberg uncertainty relation supplies the complementary lower bound.

For $c>0$ and smooth compactly supported $u$, integration by parts givesDropping the nonnegative weighted derivative term proves the displayed bound. For a weak resolvent solution in the one-dimensional harmonic oscillator form domain, apply the bound to ${\chi }_{R}u$, where ${\chi }_R$ is a smooth cutoff. The cutoff error $-2{\chi }_R^{\prime }{u}^{\prime }-{\chi }_R^{\prime \prime }u$ is bounded in L2 space and tends to zero. The Fatou lemma then shows that $u^{\prime \prime }$ and $x^{2}u$ belong to L2 space, identifying the strong operator domain.

A contraction semigroup on a Banach space $X$ consists of bounded linear operators $S(t)$ with $S(0)=I$, $S(t+s)=S(t)S(s)$, $\Vert S(t)\Vert \le 1$, and $S(t)x\to x$ as $t\downarrow 0$ for each $x\in X$. Its infinitesimal generator of a semigroup isFor density, Yosida averaging of a semigroup gives $x_h=h^{-1}{\int }_0^{h}S(s)xds$. Taking the difference quotient of this Bochner integral shows that $x_h\in D(A)$ and $A{x}_h=(S(h)x-x)/h$. Strong continuity gives $x_h\to x$, so $D(A)$ is dense.

For closedness, the semigroup restricted to its generator domain satisfiesIf $x_n\to x$ and $A{x}_n\to y$, pass to the limit in this identity. After dividing by $t$, strong continuity gives $(S(t)x-x)/t\to y$. Hence $x\in D(A)$ and $Ax=y$. This proves generator of a strongly continuous semigroup is closed and densely defined.

The contraction form of the Hille-Yosida theorem states that a linear operator $A$ generates a contraction semigroup if and only if it is densely defined and closed, every real $\lambda >0$ lies in its resolvent set, andHere the $n=1$ bound implies the others by taking powers of the same bounded resolvent.

The H1 space is $H^1(\mathbb{R})=\{u\in L^2:u^{\prime }\in L^2\}$ with weak derivative $u^{\prime }$ and squared norm $\Vert u{\Vert }_2^2+\Vert u^{\prime }{\Vert }_2^2$. The displayed weighted space is the one-dimensional harmonic oscillator form domain, with inner productIf $u_n$ is Cauchy in $X$, it converges in $H^1$ to $u$, and $x{u}_n$ converges in L2 space to some $w$. On each bounded interval, multiplication by $x$ is bounded, so $w=xu$ there. Thus $xu\in L^2$ and convergence holds in $X$, proving completeness and the Hilbert space property. Equivalently this is closedness of the multiplication operator by $x$.

For the Sobolev characterization by bounded difference quotients, if $f\in H^1$ thenThe last assertion uses continuity of translation of a function in L2 space. Conversely, if $f\in L^2$ and the quotients are uniformly bounded for $0<|h|<1$, take a weakly convergent subsequence as $h\to 0$. For every test function $v$,The weak limit is therefore the weak derivative $f^{\prime }\in L^2$. This proves the characterization.

Write $B=-A=-{\partial }_x^2+1+x^2$. Smooth compactly supported functions lie in $D(A)$ and are dense in L2 space, so $A$ is densely defined.

For $\lambda >0$, use the formon the one-dimensional harmonic oscillator form domain $X$. It is bounded and coercive in the $X$ norm. The Lax-Milgram theorem gives a unique $u\in X$ satisfying $a_{\lambda }(u,v)=⟨g,v⟩$ for every $v\in X$. Thus $-u^{\prime \prime }+(1+\lambda +x^2)u=g$ in distributions.

We must verify the full specified operator domain, not just the form domain. The equation first gives $u\in H_{\mathrm{loc}}^2$. For compactly supported $H^2$ functions, integration by parts gives the graph estimate for the harmonic oscillator, obtained fromApply this to $v={\chi }_{R}u$, with ${\chi }_R=1$ on $[-R,R]$, supported in $[-2R,2R]$, and derivatives bounded by $C/R$ and $C/R^2$. Its right-hand source is ${\chi }_{R}g-2{\chi }_R^{\prime }{u}^{\prime }-{\chi }_R^{\prime \prime }u$, uniformly bounded in L2 space. The estimate and the Fatou lemma give $x^{2}u\in L^2$; the original equation then gives $u^{\prime \prime }\in L^2$, and hence $u\in H^2$. Thus $u\in D(A)$, proving that $\lambda -A$ is onto. The energy identity proves injectivity and the resolvent of the shifted harmonic oscillator estimateTo prove closedness, suppose $u_n\to u$ and $A{u}_n\to v$ in L2 space. For one fixed $\lambda >0$,Therefore $u$ belongs to the range of the resolvent, namely $D(A)$, and $Au=v$.

All hypotheses of the Hille-Yosida theorem now hold; the resolvent bound is stronger than $1/\lambda$. Let $S(t)$ be its contraction semigroup. The exponentially shifted semigrouphas generator $A+I={\partial }_x^2-x^2$. It is continuous in L2 space, takes the initial value ${\psi }_0$, and satisfies $\boxed{\Vert \psi (t){\Vert }_2\le e^t\Vert {\psi }_0{\Vert }_2}$. For ${\psi }_0\in D(A)$, its time derivative exists in L2 space and equals $(A+I)\psi (t)$, so the equation holds as a strong L2 space solution. For general initial data it is the semigroup solution, without an unproved pointwise differentiability claim.

For $Au=u^{\prime \prime }-(1+x^2)u$ on $D(A)=\{u\in H^2(\mathbb{R}):x^{2}u\in L^2\}$, the form $a_{\lambda }(u,v)=\int u^{\prime }\overline{v^{\prime }}+(1+\lambda +x^2)u\bar{v}$ is coercive on the one-dimensional harmonic oscillator form domain when $\lambda >0$. The Lax-Milgram theorem gives a unique weak solution of $(\lambda -A)u=g$. The graph estimate for the harmonic oscillator puts it in $D(A)$, and $a_{\lambda }(u,u)\ge (1+\lambda )\Vert u{\Vert }_2^2$ gives the displayed resolvent bound. The domain is dense and the bounded resolvent proves closedness, so the Hille-Yosida theorem gives a contraction semigroup. An exponentially shifted semigroup with generator $A+I$ solves the heat equation with oscillator potential.