Quantum Mechanics in a Spherical Wedge: Complete Solution and Implications for Angular Momentum Theory

• URL: http://arxiv.org/abs/2512.17558v1
• Date: Fri, 19 Dec 2025 13:28:40 GMT
• Title: Quantum Mechanics in a Spherical Wedge: Complete Solution and Implications for Angular Momentum Theory
• Authors: Mustafa Bakr, Smain Amari,
• Abstract summary: We solve the stationary Schrdinger equation for a particle confined to a 3D spherical wedge.<n>This model exhibits spectral reorganisation under symmetry-breaking BCs.<n>It provides an operator-domain viewpoint on angular momentum quantisation.
• Score: 0.0
• License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Abstract: We solve the stationary Schrödinger equation for a particle confined to a 3D spherical wedge -- the region $\{(r,θ,φ): 0 \leq r \leq R,\, 0 \leq θ\leq π,\, 0 \leq φ\leq Φ\}$ with Dirichlet BCs on all surfaces. This exactly solvable constrained-domain model exhibits spectral reorganisation under symmetry-breaking BCs and provides an operator-domain viewpoint on angular momentum quantisation. We obtain three main results. First, the stationary states are standing waves in the azimuthal coordinate and consequently are \emph{not} eigenstates of $\hat{L}_z$; we prove $\langle L_z \rangle = 0$ with $ΔL_z = \hbar n_φπ/Φ\neq 0$, demonstrating that angular momentum projection becomes an observable with genuine quantum uncertainty rather than a good quantum number. Second, the effective azimuthal quantum number $μ= n_φπ/Φ$ is generically non-integer, and square-integrability of the polar wavefunctions at both poles requires the angular eigenvalue parameter $ν$ to satisfy $ν- μ\in \mathbb{Z}_{\geq 0}$. This regularity constraint yields a hierarchy: sectoral solutions ($ν= μ$, satisfying the first-order highest-weight condition) exist for any real $μ> 0$, while tesseral and zonal solutions require integer steps, appearing only when $μ$ itself is integer. Third, application to a Coulomb potential shows that the familiar integer angular momentum spectrum of hydrogen arises from the periodic identification $φ\sim φ+ 2π$ that defines the full-sphere Hilbert space domain; modified boundary conditions yield a reorganised spectrum with non-integer effective angular momentum. The model clarifies the distinct roles of single-valuedness (selecting integer $m$ via azimuthal topology) and polar regularity (selecting integer $\ell \geq |m|$ via analytic constraints) in the standard quantisation of orbital angular momentum.

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