PHYS 343 Midterm Exam

Professor: B. P. van Zyl

February 17, 2014
10:15 am
This exam has 5 questions, for a total of 20 points.
Name:
Student ID:
Answer the questions in the space provided on the question sheets. This
exam is 50 minutes in duration.
Question Points Score
1 6
2 2
3 2
4 5
5 5
Total: 20
PHYS 343
Professor:B. P. van Zyl
Midterm Exam
February 17, 2014
10:15 am
1. In class we carefully studied the innite square well. In our analysis, we found that the
energy of the particle was quantized.
(a) (2 points) Give a physical reason for the energy quantization of the particle.
(b) (2 points) Explain in words why the total energy of the particle cannot be E = 0
in quantum mechanics.
(c) (2 points) Why can the energy of the particle be identically E = 0 in classical
mechanics ?
PHYS 343
Professor:B. P. van Zyl
Midterm Exam
February 17, 2014
10:15 am
2. (2 points) Give a physical interpretation for the quantity |(x, t)|
2
dx, where (x, t) is
the state of the particle at time t.
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PHYS 343
Professor:B. P. van Zyl
Midterm Exam
February 17, 2014
10:15 am
3. (2 points) You overhear a conversation between two Dalhousie physics students in which
one of them claims that a free particle in quantum mechanics has a denite energy. Is
this student correct? Justify your answer.
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PHYS 343
Professor:B. P. van Zyl
Midterm Exam
February 17, 2014
10:15 am
4. (5 points) Find the allowed energies of the half harmonic oscillator
V (x) =

1
2
m
2
x
2
, for x > 0,
, for x < 0.
Recall that the energy spectrum for the full harmonic osciallator is E
n
= h(n+1/2),
where n = 0, 1, 2, ..... Make sure you justify any steps you make in your analysis. You
shouldnt have to do any detailed calculations for this problem!
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PHYS 343
Professor:B. P. van Zyl
Midterm Exam
February 17, 2014
10:15 am
5. (5 points) A particle is in the ground state of the harmonic oscillator,
0
(x), with clas-
sical frequency , when suddenly the spring constant quadrupoles, so

= 2 without
initially changing the wave function. What is the probability that a measurement of the
energy would still return the value h/2. You dont have to evaluate any integrals
to solve this problem, but you do have to justify all of your analysis.
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