Multiplicity of ground states in quantum field models: applications of asymptotic fields (Q2484257)

The problem of finding upper bounds for the number of ground states in quantum field models is considered. In an abstract interaction model over a coupled system \(\mathcal{F}=\mathcal{H}\otimes\mathcal{F}_b\) where \(\mathcal{F}_b\) is the bosonic Fock space and \(\mathcal{H}\) a Hilbert space, a coupled Hamiltonian is generally of the form \(H=H_0+gH_I\). Here, the decoupled part \[ H_0=A\otimes{1}+{1}\otimes d\Gamma(S) \] consists of a self-adjoint, bounded from below operator \(A\) on \(\mathcal{H}\), and the second quantisation \(d\Gamma(S)\) of an operator \(S\) acting on the base Hilbert space defining \(\mathcal{F}_b\). It is commonly assumed that \(H_I\) is \(H_0\)-bounded. Denote by \(P_H=E_H(\{\inf\sigma(H)\})\) the spectral projection onto the ground states of \(H\), and by \(m(H)=\dim P_H\mathcal{F}\) the multiplicity of ground states. The main obstacle to establishing upper bounds on \(m(H)\) in the massless case lies in showing that \(P_H\mathcal{F}\) lies in the domain of definition \(D({1}\otimes N^{1/2})\), where \(N\) is the number operator. As central results, the author achieves a necessary and sufficient condition for the latter property and from this arrives at the bound \(m(H)\leq m(A)\) under certain conditions. The strategy to establish a condition for \(P_H\mathcal{F}\subset D({1}\otimes N^{1/2})\) relies on the use of asymptotic scattering states. For ground states \(\varphi_g\), and test functions \(f\) from a dense subspace \(\mathcal{D}\) holds \[ a_+(f)\varphi_g=\mathop{\text{s-lim}}_{t\rightarrow\infty} e^{-itH}e^{itH_0}({1}\otimes a(f))e^{-itH_0}e^{itH}\varphi_g=0. \] This entails, in the decomposition \(a_+(f)\varphi_g=({1}\otimes a(f))\varphi_g-gG(f)\varphi_g\) the identity \[ ({1}\otimes a(f))\varphi_g=gG(f)\varphi_g=g\overline{T}_{\varphi_g}f. \] The closure of the operator \(\overline{T}_{\varphi_g}\) mapping \(f\) to \(G(f)\varphi_g\) is Hilbert-Schmidt with kernel \(\kappa_{\varphi_g}(k)\), such that, for any orthonormal system in \(\{e_m\}\) in the test function space \[ \int_{{R}^d}f(k)\| \kappa_{\varphi_g}(k)\| ^2\,dk =\text{Tr}(\overline{T}_{\varphi_g}^\ast\overline{T}_{\varphi_g})= \sum\| \overline{T}_{\varphi_g}e_m\| ^2. \] Now the condition, established as a lemma, \[ \varphi_g\in D({1}\otimes N^{1/2})\iff \sum\| ({1}\otimes a(e_m))\varphi_g\| ^2<\infty, \] entails, together with the last two identities above, the condition \[ P_H\mathcal{F} \subset D({1}\otimes N^{1/2})\iff \int_{{R}^d}\| \kappa_{\varphi_g}(k)\| ^2\,dk <\infty\quad\text{for all }\varphi_g\in P_H\mathcal{F}. \] Now it is used that a bound \[ \dim(P_H\mathcal{F}\cap D({1}\otimes N^{1/2}))\leq \frac{1}{1-\delta(g)}m(a) \] holds for some \(\delta(g)\) with \(\lim_{g\rightarrow0}\delta(g)=0\). It follows that \(m(H)\leq m(A)\) under the same conditions that ensure \(P_H\mathcal{F} \subset D({1}\otimes N^{1/2})\). Examples are shown for the case of generalised spin-boson models, the Pauli-Fierz model, and Coulomb-Dirac systems.