Convergence estimates for the Magnus expansion II. $C^*$-algebras

TL;DR

This paper analyzes convergence properties of the Magnus and Baker--Campbell--Hausdorff expansions within $C^*$-algebras, providing simplified proofs, improved estimates, and concrete conditions for convergence in finite-dimensional and Hilbert space operator contexts.

Contribution

It introduces a spectral approach to the Magnus expansion in $C^*$-algebras, clarifies convergence criteria, and presents growth estimates and counterexamples for these expansions.

Findings

Norm condition $ orm{A}_2 + orm{B}_2 \

Convergence of BCH expansion for matrices when $ orm{A}_2 + orm{B}_2 \

Growth estimates for the Magnus expansion in Hilbert space operators

Abstract

We review and provide simplified proofs related to the Magnus expansion, and improve convergence estimates. Observations and improvements concerning the Baker--Campbell--Hausdorff expansion are also made. In this Part II, we consider the case of $C^*$-algebras, i. e. essentially the case of operators on Hilbert spaces. We present the spectral approach to the Magnus expansion in the context of the conformal range (which is a projection of the Davis--Wielandt shell), allowing a more effective approach. This makes possible to clarify certain convergence properties of the BCH expansion related to the critical cumulative norm $\pi$. In particular, we prove that for finite dimensional matrices $A,B$, the norm condition $\|A\|_2+\|B\|_2\leq\pi$ implies that the BCH expansion of $A$ and $B$ is convergent. Several counterexamples regarding convergence of the Magnus and BCH expansions are presented. In the rest, we prove growth estimates for the Magnus expansion in the setting of Hilbert space operators, both in terms of the overall sum and the individuals terms.