Mysterious universe and Heisenberg’s principles made shocking revelations, following these principles, people are researching the laws discovered by Newton. The laws of nature discovered in the early 20th century revolutionized our understanding of the universe. The laws discovered by Newton became the basis of our scientific thinking. These laws seem to be very true for our everyday things. According to these laws, we can measure any characteristic with absolute precision. For example, we understand that when a particle is in motion, we can measure both its position and its velocity without ambiguity.
Werner Heisenberg’s Discovery In 1927?
Werner Heisenberg discovered in 1927 that this was impossible according to quantum mechanical laws. If we know the position of an object very accurately, its velocity becomes highly uncertain, and when we measure the velocity more precisely, its position becomes highly uncertain. This law is known as the Heisenberg uncertainty principle.
Measuring Instruments And Equipment?
Mysteriously, this surprising result has nothing to do with how accurate our measuring devices are. No matter how ideal our measuring instruments are, we cannot measure the position and velocity of a particle simultaneously with perfect accuracy. Why is this, how is it possible? In this blog, I will try to present simple arguments to explain this very surprising result.
Thomas Young’s Double-Slit Experiment
I have argued in previous articles that quantum mechanics is based on the principle of wave-particle duality. For example, I mentioned in my article on light that there are experiments like Thomas Young’s double slit experiment in which light behaves like a wave. Then there are experiments, such as the emission of electrons when light hits a metal, that can only be explained by considering the light to consist of particles or photons.
The Revolutionary Thought Of Louis De Broglie In 1924
In 1924 Louis de Broglie, a French Ph.D. student, argued that, if light can behave as both a wave and a particle, then a particle such as an electron can behave like a wave in some experiments and as a wave in others. Must behave like a particle. It was a revolutionary thought that contributed to the discovery of quantum mechanics.
For example, in a landmark experiment, it was shown that electrons behave as waves in a double-slit experiment, just like light. But then there are countless experiments where electrons reveal their particle-like nature. For example, we consider an electron as a particle with a certain mass and charge to understand electric current. Now we try to understand how it is possible that we cannot measure the position and velocity of any object with absolute accuracy. And the basis of this surprising result is a wave. How about particle duality?
What Is The Basis Of Heisenberg’s Principle?
Here I only mention that it is the measurement process that is a primary source of uncertainty.
In his 1927 paper, Heisenberg defined the position of an object as:
“If one wants to be clear about what is meant by ‘the position of an object’, for example, an electron. So he has to describe specific experiments by which the ‘electron position’ can be measured. Otherwise, the term has no meaning.”
For example, if we want to measure the position of an electron, we have to bring an instrument like a microscope. It will first illuminate the electron and then determine the position of the electron by looking at the scattered light. Light consists of photons that behave like particles. As with any other particle, when photons collide with electrons, both the electron’s position and speed are affected.
Difficult To Measure Position And Velocity
To understand this scenario, suppose we are in a completely dark room with a small object moving. The question is how to determine the position of this object. The way to do this is to send a beam of light at the object and see the reflected light with your eyes. The direction the light is coming from will determine the position of the object. Since light rays consist of photons that act like particles, in the process of measuring an object’s position, photons of light will collide with the object and thus affect the object’s speed, just like something hitting something else. The result is that if we know the position of the object correctly, we will not be able to measure the speed of the object.
Basically, the measurement process perturbs any object in such a way that it becomes impossible to measure the object’s position and velocity simultaneously. From this reasoning, it is known that the basis of Heisenberg’s principle is that when we want to know one characteristic of an object, in the process of measurement, another characteristic is affected. For example, if you want to know the position of an object, its velocity is affected as a result of the measurement.
An Easy Way To Understand Heisenberg’s Principle
Another simple way to understand Heisenberg’s principle is the common observation that light spreads when it passes through a small hole. If this light falls on a screen, a large bright circle will appear. The smaller the hole, the larger the bright circle.
We now see how Heisenberg’s principle can be understood from this simple observation.
Description Of The Electron
For this purpose instead of a light beam, we consider an electron. The question is, where will the electron pass through a small hole and be found on the screen?
Now if we consider the electron as a particle, the answer is simple, the electron will travel straight and hit the center of the screen. However, according to quantum mechanics, the electron will behave like a wave in this experiment. According to de Broglie, the electron will behave like a wave whose wavelength will be related to the speed at which the electron is moving. If the electron is moving slowly, its wavelength will be larger, and if it is moving faster, its wavelength will be shorter. Thus, electrons will behave like light waves.
Difference Between Electron And LightWave
The light wave will pass through the hole and spread on the screen. In exactly the same way, the wave of electrons will spread across the screen. But the electron wave is not a real wave, it is a potential wave. Electrons are more likely to be found where the wave is deeper on the screen. Thus, the electron is more likely to be found in the center of the screen, and as one moves away from the center, the electron is less likely to be found. As with light, if the hole is small, the electron is likely to be found on the screen in a larger circle and if the hole is large, the electron will be found near the center of the screen.
Electron Velocity In The Vertical Direction
Now we come to the real problem and see how best we can measure the position and velocity of the electron. We consider the problem of measuring the position and velocity of an electron in the vertical direction. We note first that, the electron can pass through any of the holes. So if the hole is small, we can accurately measure the electron’s position. Thus the position of the electron in the vertical direction can be well determined. If the electron is found at a central point on the screen, there is no deflection and the vertical component of the electron’s velocity is zero. However, if it is found away from the center, the vertical component of the velocity must be non-zero.
Electron Velocity And Uncertainty
Let us now return to the question of the dispersion or uncertainty in the velocity of the electron in the vertical direction. Passing through a very small hole, the wave associated with the electron is greatly expanded, just as light is spread through a very narrow hole. This means that there is a large range of areas where electrons are likely to be found on the screen. As a result, the uncertainty in the vertical velocity becomes large.
The Smaller The Hole, The Better The Position
Thus, we conclude that if the hole is small we can measure the position very accurately and the uncertainty in the position of the electron will be small. However, in this case, the wave associated with the electron propagates and consequently the velocity component in the vertical direction becomes very uncertain. Similarly, if the hole is large, we do not know where the electron passed through and as a result, the position of the electron is very uncertain. However, in this case, the propagation of the wave is very small, and we can be sure of how fast it is moving in the vertical direction. This helps to understand Heisenberg’s surprising principle.
Conclusion
Now an important question comes to mind. When it is said that there is an element of uncertainty in the measurement of position or velocity. So can we say that the position and velocity of the particle are actually completely determined, it’s just that the nature of the measurements is such that we can never know them with absolute certainty.
Surprisingly, according to quantum mechanics, this is not true at all. According to quantum mechanics, properties such as position and velocity do not exist prior to measurement. These properties come about as a result of measurements. These results shake up our conceptions of the universe.
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