Dirac particle in a box, and relativistic quantum Zeno dynamics

After developing a complete set of eigenfunctions for a Dirac particle restricted to a box, the quantum Zeno dynamics of a relativistic system is considered. The evolution of a continuously observed quantum mechanical system is governed by the theorem put forth by Misra and Sudarshan. One of the conditions for quantum Zeno dynamics to be manifest is that the Hamiltonian is semi-bounded. This Letter analyzes the effects of continuous observation of a particle whose time evolution is generated by the Dirac Hamiltonian. The theorem by Misra and Sudarshan is not applicable here since the Dirac operator is not semi-bounded. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.