Eigenstate Thermalization Hypothesis

⟨n|Â|n⟩ = A(Ē) + e^{-S(Ē)/2} f_A(Ē,ω) R_{nm} — ETH Ansatz

Hamiltonian

Diagonal variance:
Off-diag RMS:
ETH satisfied:
Level spacing:
ETH (Srednicki 1994, Deutsch 1991): matrix elements of physical observables in energy eigenstates are smooth functions of energy.

Integrable → conserved quantities → no thermalization. Chaotic → ETH holds → eigenstate → thermal state.

Left: diagonal ⟨n|A|n⟩ vs energy. Right: off-diagonal |⟨n|A|m⟩|² distribution.