Wigner's theorem


Wigner's theorem

[′wig·nərz ‚thir·əm] (quantum mechanics) The theorem that, if ψ is an eigenfunction of the Hamiltonian operator and R is a symmetry element of the Hamiltonian, then R ψ is an eigenfunction of the Hamiltonian having the same eigenvalue as ψ. Angular momentum of the electron spin is conserved in a collision of the second kind.