Functional integrals
This chapter presents a short review of path integrals in quantum mechanics. This is followed by a detailed discussion of the evaluation of the semi-classical propagator, involving quadratic expansions of the action and the calculation of determinants. The concept of functionals is introduced for multi-dimensional cases, using a system linearly coupled to many oscillators as an example. The use of path integrals in statistical mechanics is described and quantum corrections to the classical limit are obtained. The connection with Green functions and level density is presented, with an excursion to periodic orbit theory and to the Gutzwiller formula for the oscillating part of the single particle level density. Many-body systems with separable interactions are treated by the Hubbard-Stratonovich transformation. For quantum corrections to the partition function, the static- and perturbed static path approximations are developed. The breakdown for unstable modes is discussed and a possible extension to damped motion is sketched.
Keywords: path integrals, semi-classical propagator, determinants, quantum corrections, Green functions, level density, periodic orbit theory, Gutzwiller formula, Hubbard-Stratonovich transformation, perturbed static path approximation
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