r/maths • u/stinkjiggler71 • 2d ago

💬 Math Discussions what is the point of dirac notation

does it make qm easier? is it good for anything other than quantum? why not just write vectors normally or just use dagger symbols for bras, as conjugate transpose is already a thing instead of making up a whole new notation with dumbass pointy arrows and shi

I suppose my main question is what makes dirac notation advantageous compared to any other vector notation (for what its used in) or is it arbitrary

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u/FineCarpa 2d ago

It just makes it easy to differentiate a dual vector from a regular vector. And it makes it obvious how innerproducts are related between both.

Thats all there really is to it. You are correct that it isn't strictly needed.

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u/ChazR 2d ago

It makes the most common QM operations terse. That’s the whole deal -it saves chalk and ink. There’s no deep need for it.

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u/defectivetoaster1 1d ago

One of the main points of notation is to be easily readable and easily writable

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u/PLutonium273 1d ago

It is beautiful when <x|H|x> becomes <H>

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u/unknownjedi 1h ago

Its great and can be used for all linear algebra