Using the relation between the number of bound states and the number of zeros of the radial eigen-functionψ(r), or equivalently, that ofφ(r)=rψ(r) in the range 0⩽r⩽∞, the upper bounds on the number of bound states generated by potentialV(r) in different angular momentum channels are obtained in three dimension. Using a similar procedure, the upper bound on the number of bound states in one dimension is also deduced. The analysis is restricted to a class of potentials for whichE=0 is the threshold. By taking a number of specific examples, it is demonstrated that both in one and three dimensions, the estimate of the upper bound obtained by this procedure is very close to or equal to the exact number of bound states. The correlation of the present method with the Levison’s theorem and WKB approximation is discussed.

Using the appropriate harmonic oscillator states and reasonable approximations, we construct coherent wavepackets corresponding to the solutions of the Klein-Gordon equation for the attractive potentialV(r)=−k/r, k>0, in two and three space dimensions. We deduce the corresponding classical limit in two dimension by requiring that the expectation value 〈r〉 of the radial variable is large. In the case of three dimensions, besides the condition of large 〈r〉, we make the uncertainty Δr=[〈r²〉 − 〈r〉²]^1/2 a minimum with respect to certain parameter of the wavepacket. We then investigate the trajectory traversed by the wavepacket in the classical limit. We find that the classical limit of this relativistic quantal problem gives, in the leading order, the same expression for the rate of motion of the perihelion as that given by the solution of the corresponding special relativistic classical dynamical problem. We also briefly discuss some of the subtle aspects of the classical limit of the relativistic quantal system, in general.