Inadequacy of Ehrenfest’s theorem to characterize the classical regime

Abstract

The classical limit of quantum mechanics is usually discussed in terms of Ehrenfest's theorem, which states that, for a sufficiently narrow wave packet, the mean position in the quantum state will follow a classical trajectory. We show, however, that that criterion is neither necessary nor sufficient to identify the classical regime. Generally speaking, the classical limit of a quantum state is not a single classical orbit, but an ensemble of orbits. The failure of the mean position in the quantum state to follow a classical orbit often merely reflects the fact that the centroid of a classical ensemble need not follow a classical orbit. A quantum state may behave essentially classically, even when Ehrenfest's theorem does not apply, if it yields agreement with the results calculated from the Liouville equation for a classical ensemble. We illustrate this fact with examples that include both regular and chaotic classical motions.