Quantum theory with an energy operator defined as a quartic form of the momentum

Quantum theory of the non-harmonic oscillator defined by the energy operator proposed by Yurke and Buks (2006) is presented. Although these authors considered a specific problem related to a model of transmission lines in a Kerr medium, our ambition is not to discuss the physical substantiation of their model. Instead, we consider the problem from an abstract, logically deductive, viewpoint. Using the Yurke–Buks energy operator, we focus attention on the imaginary-time propagator. We derive it as a functional of the Mehler kernel and, alternatively, as an exact series involving Hermite polynomials. For a statistical ensemble of identical oscillators defined by the Yurke–Buks energy operator, we calculate the partition function, average energy, free energy and entropy. Using the diagonal element of the canonical density matrix of this ensemble in the coordinate representation, we define a probability density, which appears to be a deformed Gaussian distribution. A peculiarity of this probability density is that it may reveal, when plotted as a function of the position variable, a shape with two peaks located symmetrically with respect to the central point.