The rolling sphere, the quantum spin and a （滚球,量子自旋和）.pdf

The rolling sphere, the quantum spin and a simple view of the Landau-Zener problem Alberto G. Rojo∗ Department of Physics, Oakland University, Rochester, MI 48309. Anthony M. Bloch† Department of Mathematics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 (Dated: April 20, 2010) We consider the problem of a sphere rolling on a curved surface and solve it by mapping it to the precession of a spin 1/2 in a magnetic field of variable magnitude and direction. The mapping can be of pedagogical use in discussing both rolling and spin precession. As an interesting example we show that the Landau-Zener problem corresponds to the rolling of a sphere on a Cornu spiral, and derive the probability of a non-adiabatic transition using the rolling language. We also discuss the adiabatic limit and the vanishing of geometric phases for rolling on curved surfaces. PACS numbers: 01.40.Fk, 02.40.Yy I. INTRODUCTION paper is to use the isomorphism to discuss rolling spheres on an arbitrary surface. In this paper we consider a question similar to that The precession of a spin 1/2 is widely treated in the posed in the title of Ref. [1]: How much does a sphere literature and one can borrow those results to acquire rotate when rolling on a curved surface? In Ref. [1], an intuition for the rolling sphere. Conversely, since a the old problem of the rotation of a torq