Commutator methods for unitary operators

DOI10.4171/JST/45MaRDI QIDQ361717zbMATH OpenOpenAlexFDO

Authors Claudio Fernández, Serge Richard, Rafael Tiedra de Aldecoa

Publication date 19 August 2013

Published in Journal of Spectral Theory (Search for Journal in Brave)

Full work available at URL https://arxiv.org/abs/1112.0167

cocycles over irrational rotations limiting absorption principle Mourre theory spectral analysis unitary operator

Ergodic theory of linear operators (47A35) Commutators, derivations, elementary operators, etc. (47B47) Selfadjoint operator theory in quantum theory, including spectral analysis (81Q10)

Abstract: We present an improved version of commutator methods for unitary operators under a weak regularity condition. Once applied to a unitary operator, the method typically leads to the absence of singularly continuous spectrum and to the local finiteness of point spectrum. Large families of locally smooth operators are also exhibited. Half of the paper is dedicated to applications, and a special emphasize is put on the study of cocycles over irrational rotations. It is apparently the first time that commutator methods are applied in the context of rotation algebras, for the study of their generators.

Review text

Commutator methods initiated by E. Mourre have become efficient tools for investigating spectral properties of selfadjoint operators; see [\textit{W. O. Amrein}, \textit{A. Boutet de Monvel} and \textit{V. Georgescu}, \(C_0\)-groups, commutator methods and spectral theory of N-body Hamiltonians. Basel: Birkhäuser (1996; Zbl 0962.47500)]. The authors present similar ideas and results for unitary operators.NEWLINENEWLINEA unitary operator \(U\) is assumed smooth with respect to a selfadjoint operator \(A\). This means various smoothness assumptions on the function \(t\mapsto e^{-itA}Ue^{itA}\). Under a commutator inequality of Mourre type, the operator \(U\) is shown to have no singular continuous spectrum; its point spectrum is locally finite. Several examples are considered, including perturbations of bilateral shifts, perturbations of the Schrödinger free evolution, and cocycles over irrational rotations.

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