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Concept
Bra–ket notation
Summary
Bra–ket notation, also called Dirac notation, is a notation for linear algebra and linear operators on complex vector spaces together with their dual space both in the finite-dimensional and infinite-dimensional case. It is specifically designed to ease the types of calculations that frequently come up in quantum mechanics. Its use in quantum mechanics is quite widespread.
The name comes from the English word "Bracket".
Paul Dirac created Bra-ket notation in 1939 to make it easier to write quantum mechanical equations. In his 1939 publication, A New Notation for Quantum Mechanics, Dirac wrote:
A Hilbert-space vector, which was denoted in the old notation by the letter ψ, will now be denoted by a special new symbol . If we are concerned with a particular vector, specified by a label, a say, which would be used as a suffix to the ψ in the old notation, we write it .
In quantum mechanics, bra–ket notation is used ubiquitously to denote quantum states. The notation uses angle brackets, and , and a vertical bar , to construct "bras" and "kets".
A ket is of the form . Mathematically it denotes a vector, , in an abstract (complex) vector space , and physically it represents a state of some quantum system.
A bra is of the form . Mathematically it denotes a linear form , i.e. a linear map that maps each vector in to a number in the complex plane . Letting the linear functional act on a vector is written as .
Assume that on there exists an inner product with antilinear first argument, which makes an inner product space. Then with this inner product each vector can be identified with a corresponding linear form, by placing the vector in the anti-linear first slot of the inner product: . The correspondence between these notations is then . The linear form is a covector to , and the set of all covectors form a subspace of the dual vector space , to the initial vector space . The purpose of this linear form can now be understood in terms of making projections on the state , to find how linearly dependent two states are, etc.
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Quantum mechanics is a fundamental theory in physics that provides a description of the physical properties of nature at the scale of atoms and subatomic particles. It is the foundation of all quantum physics including quantum chemistry, quantum field theory, quantum technology, and quantum information science. Classical physics, the collection of theories that existed before the advent of quantum mechanics, describes many aspects of nature at an ordinary (macroscopic) scale, but is not sufficient for describing them at small (atomic and subatomic) scales.
Quantum state
In quantum physics, a quantum state is a mathematical entity that embodies the knowledge of a quantum system. Quantum mechanics specifies the construction, evolution, and measurement of a quantum state. The result is a quantum mechanical prediction for the system represented by the state. Knowledge of the quantum state together with the quantum mechanical rules for the system's evolution in time exhausts all that can be known about a quantum system. Quantum states may be defined in different ways for different kinds of systems or problems.
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