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Set $\hslash =1$ and let $N=2I\in {\mathbb{Z}}_{\ge 0}$. A concrete irreducible spin representation is the symmetric powerStart with $N$ copies of the defining SU(2) doublet and restrict their tensor product representation to the completely symmetric subspace. Its orthonormal basis consists of symmetric states with $I+m$ up components and $I-m$ down components, where $m=I,I-1,\dots ,-I$. There are $N+1=2I+1$ such states. The total generators are $J_i={\sum }_{a=1}^N{\sigma }_i^{(a)}/2$, acting on this subspace, where ${\sigma }_i$ are the Pauli matrices. This also constructs the trivial representation when $I=0$.

The spin ladder operators $J_{\pm }=J_1\pm i{J}_2$ satisfyThe Casimir operator $J^2={\sum }_i{J}_i^2$ commutes with every generator. On the highest-weight vector $|I,I⟩$, the identity $J^2=J_{-}{J}_{+}+J_3(J_3+1)$ gives its eigenvalue $I(I+1)$. With phases chosen to make the lowering coefficients positive,The squared norm of the lowered state follows from $J_{+}{J}_{-}=J^2-J_3(J_3-1)$. The ladder stops exactly at $m=-I$. Every weight is connected to every other by these operators, and $J_3$ has distinct eigenvalues. Hence any invariant subspace contains a weight vector and then the whole ladder: the representation is irreducible.

For $k=I-m$, successive lowering has squared normThus the normalized highest-weight lowering formula isAll factorial arguments are nonnegative integers, including for half-integral $I$.

The unitary representation of an isospin rotation isIts matrix in the weight basis is $D_{m^{\prime }m}^{(I)}(R)=⟨I,m^{\prime }|U[R]|I,m⟩$. Insert the completeness relation between two operators to obtainThese verify the group representation and unitarity properties, and the ladder argument gives irreducibility. Here rotations carry their SU(2) lifts: $U(2\pi )=(-1{)}^{2I}I$. Integer $I$ descends to the ordinary SO(3) group; half-integral $I$ is a representation of its double cover, not a single-valued representation of $SO(3)$.

For $I=1$, order the basis as $(|1,1⟩,|1,0⟩,|1,-1⟩)$. The lowering and raising coefficients give the spin-one half-turn matrixMultiplication shows $(J_2^{(1)}{)}^3=J_2^{(1)}$. Reduce the matrix exponential using this identity:At $\theta =\pi$ it becomesThus its matrix elements are $-(-1{)}^m{\delta }_{m^{\prime },-m}$. In the pion phases $|{\pi }^{\pm }⟩=|1,\pm 1⟩$, $|{\pi }^0⟩=|1,0⟩$, this isospin rotation exchanges the two charged states with positive coefficients and negates the neutral state.

Charge conjugation is linear and unitary here. Similarity preserves commutators, soConsequently the conjugated generators obey the same Lie algebra. The specified signs also give $\mathcal{C}{J}_{\pm }{\mathcal{C}}^{-1}=-J_{\mp }$. Since $|{\pi }^{\pm }⟩=J_{\pm }|{\pi }^0⟩/\sqrt{2}$ and the neutral state has positive charge conjugation eigenvalue,The signs depend on the chosen charged-state phases, which have been fixed by the ladder convention.

Conjugation by $R_{\pi }=e^{-i\pi J_2}$ changes $(J_1,J_2,J_3)$ to $(-J_1,J_2,-J_3)$, exactly as charge conjugation does. Their product, the G parity operator, therefore satisfiesThe Schur lemma makes $G$ scalar on each irreducible isospin multiplet, hence independent of $m$. On the neutral pion, $G|{\pi }^0⟩=-\mathcal{C}|{\pi }^0⟩=-|{\pi }^0⟩$. Therefore the pion G-parity is

Each bond of the classical Heisenberg antiferromagnet is minimized when its two spins are antiparallel. Since the periodic chain has an even number of sites, all bonds can be minimized simultaneously:The ground-state degeneracy is a continuous sphere of orientations $\hat{\mathbf{n}}\in S^2$. Choose the Néel state with even sites in $|S,S⟩$ and odd sites in $|S,-S⟩$.

This product state is not an energy eigenstate. The spin ladder operators inproduce states with both neighboring magnetic quantum numbers changed. On an up-down bond, $S_n^{-}{S}_{n+1}^{+}$ has a nonzero matrix element $2S$, hence coefficient $JS$ in the Hamiltonian. These orthogonal spin configurations show explicitly why the classical minimum is not an exact quantum eigenstate for $S>0$.

The angular momentum commutation relations implyThus $S_{\pm }|s,\sigma ⟩$ has the same total-spin eigenvalue and magnetic quantum number $\sigma \pm 1$. Its squared norm follows fromChoosing the conventional positive phases gives the spin ladder operator formula

For $s=1$, in the ordered basis $|1,1⟩,|1,0⟩,|1,-1⟩$,Since $S_x=(S_{+}+S_{-})/2$,

The incident state is the spin coherent state obtained by rotating $|1,1⟩$ through $\theta$ about the $y$ axis. Its amplitudes in the $S_z$ basis areup to an irrelevant phase convention. The Born rule therefore gives

The spin raising operator and spin lowering operator areThe angular momentum commutation relations implyso $S_{\pm }|s,\sigma ⟩$ is proportional to $|s,\sigma \pm 1⟩$. Sinceits squared norm isChoosing the conventional positive phase gives

Using the spin ladder operators,and thereforeIn the ordered product basis of the tensor product of quantum systemsthe matrix representation isThe two parallel-spin states are already eigenvectors. Diagonalizing the central block gives the four energy eigenvaluesThis is the spectrum of the Two-spin Heisenberg Hamiltonian in an opposing longitudinal field.

The asserted ground-state ordering requires the antiferromagnetic case $\alpha >0$. As $B\to 0$,The corresponding state at $E_{-}$ is the unique spin-one-half singlet statewhereas the three states at the first excited energy form the spin-one-half triplet state.

Indeed, for the total angular momentum operatorone has at $B=0$The Hamiltonian then has rotational symmetry, so energy depends only on the total-spin sector. The singlet has total spin $s=0$ and multiplicity one; the triplet has $s=1$ and multiplicity $2s+1=3$. This rotational symmetry explains why the triplet energy eigenspace has dimension three.

On the tensor-product Hilbert space, addition of angular momentum givesSuppressing the identity operators, its components and ladder operators are

The components of spin angular momentum satisfy $[S_i,S_j]=i\hslash {ϵ}_{ijk}{S}_k$. In units $\hslash =1$, the spin ladder operators obey $[S^{+},S^{-}]=2S^z$ and $[S^z,S^{\pm }]=\pm S^{\pm }$.