Quantum mechanics of ‘free’ spin-1/2 particles in an expanding universe

Abstract

This paper deals with the gravi-quantum mechanical interaction on the level of the first quantisation and in the framework of a metric theory of gravitation (no field quantisation). The interaction is introduced by embedding the quantum mechanics of the otherwise unaffected (i.e. ‘free’) spin-1/2 particle in the given curved space-time of the 3-flat expanding Robertson-Walker universe. The metric acts thereby as an external field. The corresponding Hilbert space formalism is established in interpreting the generally covariant theory of the Dirac field in the Riemann space in question as the Dirac representation of the spin-1/2 particle in the Schrödinger picture. The evolution operator is then extracted out of the general relativistic Dirac equation, while contractions of the symmetric energy momentum tensor with the tetrad vectors of the reference system lead to the operators of energy, linear momentum and total angular momentum. The temporal behaviour of the corresponding expectation values is calculated.