Wave packets, Maslov indices, and semiclassical quantization

Abstract

The Bohr-Sommerfeld quantization condition, as refined by Keller and Maslov, reads I=(n + m/4)h, where I is the classical action, n is the quantum number, and where m is the Maslov index, an even integer. The occurrence of the integers n and m in this formula is a reflection of underlying topological features of semiclassical quantization. In particular, the work of Arnold and others has shown that m/2 is a winding number of closed curves on the classical symplectic group manifold, Sp(2N). Wave packets provide a simple and elegant means of establishing the connection between semiclassical quantization and the homotopy classes of Sp(2N), as well as a practical way of calculating Maslov indices in complex problems. Topological methods can also be used to derive general formulas for the Maslov indices of invariant tori in the classical phase space corresponding to resonant motion.