A SOLVABLE ALMOST PERIODIC SCHRODINGER OPERATOR

by

Pierre MOUSSA and Daniel BESSIS

Service de Physique Theorique
Centre d'Etudes Nucleaires de Saclay
91191 GIF-SUR-YVETTE cedex - FRANCE

Abstract

The localisation properties of the solutions of almost periodic Schrodinger

equations are related to the theory of dynamical systems. Here we shall proceed in
a reverse way. We shall first discuss some algebraic properties of the iterations of
polynomials and show that these properties are related to almost periodic schrodin-
ger operators. The exactly solvable model introduced displays interesting features:
almost periodicity, singular spectrum, chaotic states, exact renormalization group
property. The relevance of this model with physical systems is also discussed.

I. INTRODUCTION

Many physical problems are connected with the spectral properties of almost
periodic operators: localisation, metal-insulator transition, fractal structures in
relation to percolation, electrons in magnetic fields, uncommensurate systems. The
solution of the corresponding Schrodinger equations may be extended when the energy
belongsto a band spectrum, or localized when the energy belong to the pure point
part of the spectrum. However, it has been shown in some cases that a uncommon
singular continuous part arises in the spectral density of states. Wery little is known
about the corresponding states Our work is an attempt to give a partial answer
to this question.

There exist a natural relation between the theory of almost periodic operators
and the theory of dynamical systems, therefore we shall here start from one of the
simplest dynamical systems: the iteration of polynomials. We will associate to this
iterative system a one dimensional operator, the spectral measure of which is inva-
riant under the transformation. This procedure is in fact to follow the line of re-
normalization group approach, which has become popular in the theory of critical
thermodynamical systems[27!In section will introduce some properties of a measure
which is invariant under a polynomial transformation. In section III,we show some orthogo-
nality prooerties of iterated polynomials. Following a standard procedure, we intro-
duce in section IV a one dimensional discrete operator which admits the previous in-
variant measure as spectral density of states. In section V we show that this opera-
tor has almost periodic properties. In section VI we sketch the physical context of
 137

our problem.

These notes represent two lectures given at Marseilles in the framework of the
"II Encounter between Mathematicians and Mathematical physicists of the Federal Republic
of Germany and France",March Ui83.We thank the organizers for the opportunity given
to us to report on our recent works.Part of the present material is based on works
made incollaboration mainly with J.Bellissard and M.L. Mehta and G.A. Baker. We
thank M.F. Barnsley, J.S. Geronimo and R. Rammal for helpful discussions related to
their work in the same domain.

II. INVARIANCE PROPERTIES OF REAL MEASURES UNDER POLYNOMIAL TRANSFORMATIONS

'
The 1terate d
po 1 ynom1a
'1' . ,
s sat1sfy spec1f1c ,
orthogona11ty ,
propert1es [1,2,3,4,5]
.
Here we shall restrict ourselves to the case where the Julia set (that is the at-
, [6 7 8]
tractive set for the inverse map) 1S real " . To be more precise we shall consider
a polynomial T(x) of degree d , the highest degree term of which being equal to one, and
we will assume that there exist a finite interval S of the real line such that for
any xES, all the roots of the equation T(y) = x are real and belong to S. Consider
i (-1)
an arbitrary point o in S. Let x(l) = Ti
X (x
o),
i = 1,2, ... , d,be the d first
preimages of x o' that 1S the d different points which are mapped on X o by T. More
generally let T(n) be the nth iterate of T:

T(x)
(I)
T(n-l) (T(x»

i (-n) , n n
and let x(n) = T (x 1 = 1,2, '" , d , be the d roots of equation
i o),
T(n) (x) x The set of accumulation points of all preimages x
X 1S just of
o' Cn) o
the Julia set of the polynomial T. Under our hypotheses this set is real, included
in S, and independant of x
o'
'
Fo 11 oW1ng Bro I'1n [8] , we shall consider the asymptotic distribution of predeces-

sors: we define for any given n and for arbitrary (but fixed) point xo,the measure:

n
(x) =
dn
(Ii=l o(x - x
i(
n
») dx (2)

This measure is a discrete one with equal weighmon all preimages of order n of x
o'
Bro11' n [ 8 ] asserts that the sequence '
has a limit in the weak topology, wh1ch ,
1S
independent on Xo when n goes to infinity. This limiting measure has been re-
cognized to have special invariance properties: it is invariant under T, and gives
equal weight to all inverse branches of T, a property sometimes called balanced pro-
[4]
perty .

For our purpose here, it is sufficient to define the generating function G(z)
of the above defined measure, which is supported by the Julia set, included in S.
We define for z E ans z S: