Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 18, 2026

Experimental Methods for Trapping Ions Using Microfabricated Surface Ion Traps
Published on: August 17, 2017
Sticky eigenstates in systems with sharply divided phase space
1University of Maribor, Center for Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, Mladinska 3, SI-2000 Maribor, Slovenia.
Abstract:
We investigate mixed eigenstates in systems with sharply divided phase space, using different piecewise-linear maps whose regular-chaotic boundaries are formed by marginally unstable periodic orbits (MUPOs) or by quasiperiodic orbits. With the overlap index and the entropy localization length, we classify mixed eigenstates and show that the contribution from dynamical tunneling scales as ∼ℏexp(-b/ℏ), with b>0 associated with the relative size of the regular region. The dominant fraction of states that remain sticky to the boundaries, referred to as sticky eigenstates, scales approximately as ℏ^{1/2} in the MUPO case and oscillates around this algebraic behavior in the quasiperiodic case. This behavior generalizes established predictions for hierarchical states in Kolmogorov-Arnold-Moser (KAM) systems, which scale as ℏ^{1-1/γ}, with γ set by the corresponding classical stickiness reflected in the algebraic decay of cumulative recurrence-time distributions t^{-γ}. For the piecewise-linear maps studied here, γ=2. These results reveal a clear quantum signature of classical stickiness in non-KAM systems.
Related Concept Videos
The Pauli Exclusion Principle
Atomic Nuclei: Nuclear Spin State Population Distribution
Atomic Nuclei: Nuclear Spin State Overview
Stability
The stability of an LTI system is determined by the roots of its characteristic equation, known as poles. A system is stable if it produces a bounded...
Stability of Equilibrium Configuration
A stable equilibrium occurs when a system tends to return to its original position when given a small displacement, and the potential energy is at its minimum. An example of a stable equilibrium is when a cantilever beam is fixed at one end and a weight is attached to the other end. If the weight...
First Law: Particles in Two-dimensional Equilibrium
Newton's first law tells us about the...
