Spawning semiclassical wavepackets

Abstract

The semiclassical (or Hagedorn) wavepackets depending on a fixed set of parameters are an orthonormal L2-basis of generalized coherent states. They have been used to solve numerically the time-dependent Schrödinger equation in its semiclassical formulation, yet their localization property makes them inefficient in case of non-local phenomena such as quantum tunneling. In order to overcome this difficulty, we use simultaneously several bases with different parameters. We propose an algorithm to expand a given wavefunction in terms of multiple families of Hagedorn wavepackets; each family can then be accurately and efficiently propagated using modern semiclassical time-splittings.