Infinite Divisibility in Euclidean Quantum Mechanics

Abstract

In simple -- but selected -- quantum systems, the probability distribution determined by the ground state wave function is infinitely divisible. Like all simple quantum systems, the Euclidean temporal extension leads to a system that involves a stochastic variable and which can be characterized by a probability distribution on continuous paths. The restriction of the latter distribution to sharp time expectations recovers the infinitely divisible behavior of the ground state probability distribution, and the question is raised whether or not the temporally extended probability distribution retains the property of being infinitely divisible. A similar question extended to a quantum field theory relates to whether or not such systems would have nontrivial scattering behavior.