Exploring phase space localization of chaotic eigenstates via parametric variation

In a previous paper [Phys. Rev. Lett. 77, 4158 (1996)], a new correlation measure was introduced that sensitively probes phase space localization properties of eigenstates. It is based on a system’s response to varying an external parameter. The measure correlates level velocities with overlap intensities between the eigenstates and some localized state of interest. Random matrix theory predicts the absence of such correlations in chaotic systems whereas in the stadium billiard, a paradigm of chaos, strong correlations were observed. Here, we develop further the theoretical basis of that work, extend the stadium results to the full phase space, study the ħ dependence, and demonstrate the agreement between this measure and a semiclassical theory based on homoclinic orbits.