Dual Spaces Structure of Quantum Kinetic Equations - Quantum Systems vs Classical Systems

The relation between the Hilbert space structure and the generalized spaces structure represented by dual states for dissipative kinetic equation is discussed for quantum systems. As working examples, we consider the systems of a harmonic oscillator or a particle interacting with a thermal reservoir and construct analytic solutions to the eigenvalue problem of the quantum collision operators of these systems. The generalized spaces structure of the eigenfunctions indicates that dissipation destroys the Hilbert space structure of the undamped system. In the Wigner representation where the quantum collision operators closely resemble the classical kinetic operators in phase space, the Hilbert space structure can be restored to certain extent by introducing a weighted norm or a similarity transformation on the operators. However, in the position space where the collision operators have no classical counterpart, generalized spaces description cannot be avoided.