Impact of a tunneling particle on the quantum state of a barrier: Two-particle wave-packet model
Phys. Rev. A 112, 012217 – Published 18 July, 2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/g7yp-nmvy
Abstract
We investigate the scattering of two distinguishable particles with unequal masses and a mutual short-range interaction with the aim of quantifying the impact of a tunneling “projectile” particle on the quantum mechanical state of the “barrier” particle. We find that the states of the barrier particle after the tunneling or reflection of the projectile are shifted by a distance which consists of a classical uniform motion and an aditional displacement that is given by the derivative of the phase of the transmission or reflection amplitudes multiplied by factors dependent on particles' masses, respectively. We demonstrate these results on a numerical example with a resonant interaction between a projectile and barrier. Our work demonstrates physical implications of the concept of phase time delay in the form of displacements of particles that are, in principle, experimentally measurable.
