We discuss the discrete spectrum of N particles in a curved planar waveguide. If they are neutral fermions, the maximum number of particles that the waveguide can bind is given by a one-particle BirmanSchwinger bound in combination with the Pauli principle. On the other hand, if they are charged, e.g., electrons in a bent quantum wire, the Coulomb repulsion plays a crucial role. We prove a sufficient condition under which the discrete spectrum of such a system is empty.

We show how the von Neumann theory of self-adjoint extensions can be used to investigatequantum systems the configuration space of which can be decomposed into parts of different dimensionalities. The method can be applied in many situations; we illustrate it on examples including point contact spectroscopy, nanotube systems, microwave resonators, or spin conductance oscillations.

Nonlinear dynamics of wave packets in parity-time-symmetric optical lattices near the phase-transition point is analytically studied. A nonlinear Klein–Gordon equation is derived for the envelope of these wave packets. A variety of phenomena known to exist in this envelope equation are shown to also exist in the full equation, including wave blowup, periodic bound states, and solitary wave solutions.

The longstanding open problem of approximating all singular vertex couplings in a quantum graph is solved. We present a construction in which the edges are decoupled; an each pair of their endpoints is joined by an edge carrying a potential and a vector potential coupled to the loose edges by a coupling. It is shown that if the lengths of the connecting edges shrink to zero and the potentials are properly scaled, the limit can yield any prescribed singular vertex coupling, and moreover, that such an approximation converges in the norm-resolvent sense.

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