next up previous contents
Next: Correspondence Principle Up: Order of Magnitude Estimates Previous: Energy of Confinement

Balance between Kinetic and Potential Energy

that in this minimum energy state, the kinetic and potential energies are equal if tex2html_wrap_inline488 (simple harmonic oscillator), that T=-V/2 if tex2html_wrap_inline492 (hydrogen atom) and that tex2html_wrap_inline494 as tex2html_wrap_inline496 (particle in a rigid box). These are examples of the quantum mechanical version of the virial theorem.



Prof. Tomas Alberto Arias
Thu Feb 20 10:59:50 EST 1997