Lecture Notes: Module 2

BAPHY105
Mathematical Foundations of Quantum Mechanics

Contents
1 Introduction to Linear Vector Spaces 1

2 Basis Vectors 2

3 Orthonormal Sets 2

4 Hilbert Space (Simple Introduction) 3

5 Representation of Quantum States (Dirac Notation Introduction) 3

6 Linear Operators 7

7 Pauli Matrices 10
7.1 Properties of Pauli Matrices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
7.2 Algebra of Pauli Matrices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

8 Applications of Pauli Matrices 12

9 Tensor Product of Vector Spaces 12

9.1 Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

1 Introduction to Linear Vector Spaces

A vector space (or linear space) is a set of objects, called vectors, which can be added
together and multiplied (scaled) by numbers, called scalars, usually real or complex num-
bers.
Formally, a vector space V over a field F (such as R or C) satisfies the following
⃗ ∈ V and scalars a, b ∈ F:
properties for all ⃗u, ⃗v , w

1. Closure under addition: ⃗u + ⃗v ∈ V

2. Commutativity: ⃗u + ⃗v = ⃗v + ⃗u

3. Associativity of addition: (⃗u + ⃗v ) + w

⃗ = ⃗u + (⃗v + w)
⃗

1
 4. Zero vector: There exists ⃗0 ∈ V such that ⃗v + ⃗0 = ⃗v

5. Additive inverse: For each ⃗v ∈ V , there exists −⃗v ∈ V such that ⃗v + (−⃗v ) = ⃗0

6. Closure under scalar multiplication: a⃗v ∈ V

7. Distributivity over vector addition: a(⃗u + ⃗v ) = a⃗u + a⃗v

8. Distributivity over scalar addition: (a + b)⃗v = a⃗v + b⃗v

9. Associativity of scalar multiplication: a(b⃗v ) = (ab)⃗v

10. Identity element: 1 · ⃗v = ⃗v

Examples:

ˆ Rn : Set of all real-valued n-dimensional column vectors.

ˆ Set of all continuous functions on [a, b].

ˆ Complex-valued wavefunctions ψ(x) such that

R
|ψ(x)|2 dx < ∞.

2 Basis Vectors
A set of vectors {⃗e1 , ⃗e2 , ..., ⃗en } in a vector space V is called a basis if:

1. The vectors are linearly independent.

2. They span the space V (i.e., any vector ⃗v ∈ V can be written as a linear combination
of the basis vectors).

That is, for a basis {⃗ei }, any vector ⃗v in V can be written as:
n
X
⃗v = ci⃗ei , with ci ∈ F
i=1

Example: In R3 , the standard basis is:

     
1 0 0
⃗e1 = 0 , ⃗e2 = 1 , ⃗e3 = 0
0 0 1

3 Orthonormal Sets
A set of vectors {⃗e1 , ⃗e2 , ..., ⃗en } in an inner product space is called:

ˆ Orthogonal if ⟨⃗ei , ⃗ej ⟩ = 0 for i ̸= j

ˆ Orthonormal if in addition ⟨⃗ei , ⃗ei ⟩ = 1 for all i

2
 Example: In R3 , the standard basis {î, ĵ, k̂} is orthonormal under the dot product.
Benefits of Orthonormal Basis: If {⃗ei } is an orthonormal basis, then the coefficient
ci in X
⃗v = ci⃗ei
i

is given by:
ci = ⟨⃗ei , ⃗v ⟩
√ √ √ √
Exercise: Show that the vectors (1/ 2, 1/ 2) and (1/ 2, −1/ 2) are orthonormal
in R2 .

4 Hilbert Space (Simple Introduction)

A Hilbert space is a special kind of vector space that satisfies the following properties:

1. It is a vector space over the field of real or complex numbers.

2. It has an inner product defined between any two vectors in the space.

3. It is complete, meaning that if a sequence of vectors converges, its limit is also

part of the space.

In simpler terms, a Hilbert space allows us to work with concepts like length, distance,
angle, and orthogonality, just like in regular Euclidean space, but possibly in infinite
dimensions.

5 Representation of Quantum States (Dirac Nota-

tion Introduction)
In quantum mechanics, the state of a system is described by a vector in a Hilbert space.
To represent this formally, we use Dirac notation:

ˆ A ket |ψ⟩ denotes a state vector ( Column vector).

ˆ A bra ⟨ψ| is its dual (complex conjugate transpose) (Row vector).

If {|ei ⟩} is an orthonormal basis of a Hilbert space, any state |ψ⟩ can be expanded as:
X
|ψ⟩ = ci |ei ⟩, where ci = ⟨ei |ψ⟩
i

Example: For a spin-1/2 particle, a basis can be {| ↑⟩, | ↓⟩}, and a general state is:

|ψ⟩ = α| ↑⟩ + β| ↓⟩

with normalization |α|2 + |β|2 = 1.

Dirac’s bra-ket notation is a powerful and elegant way to represent quantum states
and operations. It is closely related to familiar linear algebra concepts of row and column
vectors.

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1. Ket as a Column Vector
A ket |ψ⟩ is a column vector:  
ψ1
 ψ2 
|ψ⟩ =  .. 
 
 . 
ψn

2. Bra as a Row Vector

A bra ⟨ϕ| is the Hermitian conjugate (complex conjugate transpose) of a ket:

⟨ϕ| = ϕ∗1 ϕ∗2 · · · ϕ∗n

3. Inner Product (Bra Ö Ket)

The inner product ⟨ϕ|ψ⟩ is a scalar:
n
X
⟨ϕ|ψ⟩ = ϕ∗i ψi
i=1

4. Outer Product (Ket Ö Bra)

The outer product |ψ⟩⟨ϕ| is a matrix:
 
ψ1
 ψ2 
|ψ⟩⟨ϕ| =  ..  ϕ∗1 ϕ∗2 · · · ϕ∗n
 

 . 
ψn

5. Example
Let    
1 2
|ψ⟩ = , |ϕ⟩ =
i −1
Then

⟨ϕ| = 2 −1
Inner product:
⟨ϕ|ψ⟩ = 2 · 1 + (−1) · i = 2 − i
Outer product:    
1
2 −1
|ψ⟩⟨ϕ| = 2 −1 =
i 2i −i
   
1 0
Example: If |ψ⟩ = and |ϕ⟩ = , then:
0 1
   
1   0 1
|ψ⟩⟨ϕ| = 0 1 =
0 0 0

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Practice Problems
1. Verify whether |ψ⟩ = √1 (|0⟩ + i|1⟩) is normalized.
2

2. Compute the outer product |ψ⟩⟨ψ| for the above state.

3. Let |α⟩ and |β⟩ represent two normalized wave functions and orthogonal to each
other. Let
1 1
|ψ⟩ = √ |α⟩ + 2i |β⟩ , and |ϕ⟩ = √ |α⟩ − 2i |β⟩
5 3

(a) Check whether |ψ⟩ and |ϕ⟩ are normalized functions or not
(b) Calculate the scalar product < ψ|ϕ >.

4. Consider the vectors in R2 :

   
1 3
v1 = , v2 =
2 1

(a) Determine whether the vectors are linearly independent.

(b) If they are independent, find a basis for the subspace spanned by them.

Solution

(a) Check linear dependence

Suppose:      
1 3 0
av1 + bv2 = 0 ⇒ a +b =
2 1 0

Compute: (
   
a + 3b 0 a + 3b = 0
= ⇒
2a + b 0 2a + b = 0

Solve the system:

ˆ From the first equation: a = −3b

ˆ Plug into the second: 2(−3b) + b = −6b + b = −5b = 0 ⇒ b = 0 ⇒ a = 0

Conclusion: Only solution is a = b = 0, so the vectors are linearly independent.

(b) Find a basis

Since the vectors are linearly independent and lie in R2 , they span the space. Hence,
they form a basis for R2 .

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5. Let the vectors    
1 1 1 1
v1 = √ , v2 = √
2 1 2 −1
be given in R2 .
(a) Show that {v1 , v2 } is an orthonormal set.
 
3
(b) Express the vector a = as a linear combination of v1 and v2 .
1

Solution
(a) Orthonormality Check

To check orthonormality, we verify:

ˆ Normalization:
s 2  2 r
1 1 1 1 √
∥v1 ∥ = √ + √ = + = 1=1
2 2 2 2
s 2  2 r
1 1 1 1 √
∥v2 ∥ = √ + −√ = + = 1=1
2 2 2 2
ˆ Orthogonality:
 
1 1 1 1 1 1
v1 · v2 = √ · √ + √ · − √ = − =0
2 2 2 2 2 2
Therefore, {v1 , v2 } is an orthonormal set.

(b) Expansion in Orthonormal Basis

Since {v1 , v2 } is an orthonormal basis, we can write:

a = c1 v1 + c2 v2
where:
c1 = v1 · a, c2 = v2 · a
Compute:
1 1 3+1 4 √
c1 = √ · 3 + √ · 1 = √ = √ = 2 2
2 2 2 2
1 1 3−1 2 √
c2 = √ · 3 + (− √ ) · 1 = √ = √ = 2
2 2 2 2
So: √ √
a = 2 2 v1 + 2 v2

Final Answer:
√ √
     
1 1 1 1 3
a=2 2· √ + 2· √ =
2 1 2 −1 1

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6 Linear Operators
A linear operator  on a vector space satisfies:

Â(c1 ψ1 + c2 ψ2 ) = c1 Âψ1 + c2 Âψ2

where c1 , c2 are scalars and ψ1 , ψ2 are vectors.

Example:
d
If  = dx
, then
d
Â(3x2 + 4x) = (3x2 + 4x) = 6x + 4
dx

Matrix Algebra
Operators in quantum mechanics are often represented by matrices.

Addition and Multiplication

   
1 2 0 1
If A = ,B= , then:
3 4 1 0
   
1 3 2 1
A+B = , AB =
4 4 4 3

Hermitian Operators
A matrix H is Hermitian if H = H † . That is, H is equal to its conjugate transpose.

Example:
   
2 i † 2 −i
H= , H = ⇒ H = H†
−i 3 i 3

Unitary Operators
An operator U is unitary if:
U †U = U U † = I

Example:
   
1 1 1 1
† 1 −1
U=√ ⇒U = √
2 −1 1 2 1 1
U †U = I

Projection Operators
A projection operator P satisfies:

P 2 = P, P = P†

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Example:
   
1 0 2 1 0
P = , P = ⇒ P2 = P
0 0 0 0

Eigenvalues and Eigenvectors

For a given linear operator (or matrix) Â, if there exists a non-zero vector v such that

Âv = λv,

then v is called an eigenvector of  and λ is called the corresponding eigenvalue.

Procedure to Find Eigenvalues

1. Write the matrix A. 2. Solve the characteristic equation:

det(A − λI) = 0.

3. Substitute λ back to solve for eigenvectors.

Example
Find eigenvalues and eigenvectors of
 
2 1
A= .
1 2

Solution: The characteristic equation is

 
2−λ 1
det = (2 − λ)2 − 1 = 0.
1 2−λ

⇒ λ2 − 4λ + 3 = 0 ⇒ λ = 1, 3.
For λ = 3:    
−1 1 1
v=0 ⇒ v= .
1 −1 1
For λ = 1:    
1 1 1
v=0 ⇒ v= .
1 1 −1

Property: Eigenvalues of a Hermitian operator are real

Statement. Let Ĥ be a Hermitian operator on a (complex) Hilbert space, i.e.

Ĥ † = Ĥ.

If |ψ⟩ is an eigenvector of Ĥ with eigenvalue λ,

Ĥ |ψ⟩ = λ |ψ⟩ ,

then the eigenvalue λ is real: λ ∈ R.

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 Proof. Assume |ψ⟩ =
̸ |0⟩ and Ĥ |ψ⟩ = λ |ψ⟩. Consider the inner product

⟨ψ|Ĥ|ψ⟩.

Using the eigenvalue equation we get

⟨ψ|Ĥ|ψ⟩ = ⟨ψ|λ |ψ⟩ = λ⟨ψ|ψ⟩. (1)

On the other hand, because Ĥ is Hermitian,

⟨ψ|Ĥ|ψ⟩ = ⟨Ĥψ|ψ⟩∗ = ⟨λψ|ψ⟩∗ = (λ⟨ψ|ψ⟩)∗ = λ∗ ⟨ψ|ψ⟩,

where (·)∗ denotes complex conjugation. Combining this with (1) yields

λ⟨ψ|ψ⟩ = λ∗ ⟨ψ|ψ⟩.

Since |ψ⟩ =
̸ |0⟩ we have ⟨ψ|ψ⟩ > 0, so we can cancel it to obtain

λ = λ∗ .

Therefore λ is equal to its complex conjugate and hence is real. □

Remark (matrix version). If H is a Hermitian matrix (H † = H) and Hv = λv

with v ̸= 0, the same argument using the vector inner product v† Hv shows λ ∈ R.

Corollary (orthogonality of eigenvectors). If Ĥ is Hermitian and |ψ1 ⟩, |ψ2 ⟩ are

eigenvectors corresponding to distinct eigenvalues λ1 ̸= λ2 , then ⟨ψ1 |ψ2 ⟩ = 0.
Proof (sketch). Apply ⟨ψ1 | on Ĥ |ψ2 ⟩ = λ2 |ψ2 ⟩ and use Hermiticity to show

λ2 ⟨ψ1 |ψ2 ⟩ = λ1 ⟨ψ1 |ψ2 ⟩,

hence (λ2 − λ1 )⟨ψ1 |ψ2 ⟩ = 0, which implies orthogonality when λ1 ̸= λ2 .

This result is fundamental in quantum mechanics because observables are represented

by Hermitian operators, the reality of eigenvalues ensures measured values are real num-
bers.

Solved Numerical Problem

 
4 1
1. Let A = . Find the eigenvalues and eigenvectors.
1 4
Solution:
4−λ 1
det(A − λI) = = (4 − λ)2 − 1 = λ2 − 8λ + 15 = 0 ⇒ λ = 3, 5
1 4−λ
 
1
For λ = 5: (A − 5I)⃗v = 0 ⇒ ⃗v ∝
1
 
1
For λ = 3: (A − 3I)⃗v = 0 ⇒ ⃗v ∝
−1

9
 2. Consider the following kets
   
5i 3
|ψ⟩ =  2  , |ϕ⟩ =  8i 
   

−i −9i

(a) Find |ψ⟩∗ and ⟨ψ|.

(b) Is |ψ⟩ normalized? If not, normalize it.

Solution. (a) The complex conjugate (component-wise) of |ψ⟩ is

(5i)∗
   
−5i
|ψ⟩∗ =  2∗  =  2  .
   

(−i)∗ i

The bra ⟨ψ| is the Hermitian conjugate (conjugate transpose) of the ket:

⟨ψ| = |ψ⟩† = −5i 2 i .

(b) Compute the norm squared of |ψ⟩:

⟨ψ|ψ⟩ = |5i|2 + |2|2 + | − i|2 = 25 + 4 + 1 = 30.

√
Thus ∥ψ∥ = 30 ̸= 1, so |ψ⟩ is not normalized.
A normalized ket is  
5i
|ψ⟩ 1  
|ψnorm ⟩ = = √  2 .
∥ψ∥ 30
−i

7 Pauli Matrices
In quantum mechanics, the Pauli spin matrices, denoted by σi , are a set of three 2 × 2
complex matrices that play a fundamental role in describing spin- 12 systems. The spin
operator for such particles is defined as

⃗ = ℏ ⃗σ ,
S
2
where the Pauli matrices are explicitly given by
" #
0 1 0 −i
   
1 0
σx = , σy = , σz = .
1 0 i 0 0 −1

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7.1 Properties of Pauli Matrices
The Pauli matrices satisfy the following properties:

1. Hermitian: σi† = σi .

2. Unitary: σi σi† = I.

3. Determinant: det(σi ) = −1.

4. Trace: Tr(σi ) = 0.

5. Square: (σi )2 = I.

6. Eigenvalues: ±1 for each σi .

7. Orthogonality: Tr(σi σj ) = 2δij .

7.2 Algebra of Pauli Matrices

The Pauli matrices obey simple algebraic relations that are fundamental in quantum
mechanics.

Commutation Relations
[σi , σj ] = σi σj − σj σi = 2i ϵijk σk ,
where ϵijk is the Levi-Civita antisymmetric symbol, defined as

+1
 if (i, j, k) is an even permutation of (1, 2, 3),
εijk = −1 if (i, j, k) is an odd permutation of (1, 2, 3),

0 if any two indices are equal.


For example:

ε123 = ε231 = ε312 = +1, ε132 = ε321 = ε213 = −1, ε112 = 0.

Example: Compute [σx , σy ]

    
0 1 0 −i i 0
σx σy = = = iσz .
1 0 i 0 0 −i
    
0 −i 0 1 −i 0
σy σx = = = −iσz .
i 0 1 0 0 i
Thus,
[σx , σy ] = σx σy − σy σx = 2iσz ,
which verifies the commutation relation.

11
Anticommutation Relations
{σi , σj } = σi σj + σj σi = 2δij I,
where δij is the Kronecker delta, defined as
(
+1 if i = j
δij =
0 if i ̸= j.

Product Relation
σi σj = δij I + iϵijk σk .

8 Applications of Pauli Matrices

ˆ Description of spin- 21 particles in quantum mechanics.

ˆ Qubit operations in quantum computation (Pauli gates).

9 Tensor Product of Vector Spaces

In linear algebra and quantum mechanics, we often need to describe systems that combine
two different vector spaces. For this purpose, we use the tensor product of vector
spaces.

Motivation
Suppose we have two vector spaces:

V = span{v1 , v2 , . . . , vm }, W = span{w1 , w2 , . . . , wn }.

We want to describe a system where both V and W are involved simultaneously. The
ordinary direct sum V ⊕ W is not sufficient, since it only puts them side by side without
interaction. Instead, we use the tensor product.

Definition (informal)
The tensor product V ⊗ W is a new vector space whose basis elements are written as

vi ⊗ wj ,

where vi ∈ V and wj ∈ W .
Thus, every element of V ⊗ W can be expressed as a linear combination of such basis
elements: m X n
X
u= αij (vi ⊗ wj ).
i=1 j=1

Example: Let

V = span{e1 , e2 }, W = span{f1 , f2 , f3 }.

12
 Then the tensor product space V ⊗ W has basis vectors:

{e1 ⊗ f1 , e1 ⊗ f2 , e1 ⊗ f3 , e2 ⊗ f1 , e2 ⊗ f2 , e2 ⊗ f3 }.

So, dim(V ⊗ W ) = dim(V ) × dim(W ) = 2 × 3 = 6.

In quantum mechanics, if one particle has state space V and another particle has
state space W , then the combined system lives in the tensor product space V ⊗ W . For
example, if |0⟩, |1⟩ are basis states of a qubit, then two qubits together have basis:

|0⟩ ⊗ |0⟩, |0⟩ ⊗ |1⟩, |1⟩ ⊗ |0⟩, |1⟩ ⊗ |1⟩.

The tensor product allows us to construct a new vector space that represents combined
systems, where the dimension multiplies:

dim(V ⊗ W ) = dim(V ) · dim(W ).

Tensor Product using Matrices

Example 1:
Take two vectors  
  3
1
u= , v = 4 .

2
5
The tensor product (Kronecker product) is
   
1·3 3
1 · 4  4 
   
1 · 5  5 
u⊗v =   =  .
2 · 3 6
  
2 · 4  8 
2·5 10

So the result is a 6 × 1 vector.

Example 2:
Let    
1 2 0 5
A= , B= .
3 4 6 7
The tensor product A ⊗ B is obtained by multiplying each element of A with the
whole matrix B:  
1·B 2·B
A⊗B = .
3·B 4·B
Thus,  
0 5 0 10
 6 7 12 14
A⊗B =
 0 15 0
.
20
18 21 24 28
So A ⊗ B is a 4 × 4 matrix.

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 Example 3: Let    
1 0 0 1
I2 = , σx = .
0 1 1 0
The tensor product is
 
  0 1 0 0
σx 0 1 0 0 0
I2 ⊗ σx = = .
0 σx 0 0 0 1
0 0 1 0

This kind of operation is widely used in quantum mechanics for multi-qubit systems.

9.1 Problem
Find all possible tensor products of the Pauli matrices σx , σy and σz .

14