Concepts to understand Quantum Tunneling

[SameerTahir]

What concepts should be cleared to better understand quantum tunneling?.

 

[ZapperZ]

What concepts should be cleared to better understand quantum tunneling?.

This is a very vague question.

At what level do you wish to understand this "quantum tunneling"? Understanding it at the intro QM course is different than understanding it at the graduate level/research level.

The prerequisite for an undergraduate QM class is a very good start to know what is needed to understand intro quantum tunneling.

Zz.

 

[SameerTahir]

At undergraduate level.

 

[ZapperZ]

At undergraduate level.

Then I've given you an answer.

Zz.

 

[Delta2]

Basically, they are the concepts of energy (kinetic and potential) , and the concept of potential barrier, and the principle of conservation of energy. Also must understand differential equations (the Schrödinger equation is used at the introductory level) and also understand very well the concept of the quantum mechanical wave function that appears in Schrödinger equation.

The potential barrier means that in order for something to cross the barrier and due to the conservation of energy, must have energy (kinetic+potential) greater or equal to the energy level of the potential barrier. But it turns out that this is only if you treat the problem classically.

However using quantum mechanics and the Schrödinger equation one can show that a particle can cross (to be more accurate, and having in mind the probabilistic interpretation of the quantum mechanical wave function, that the probability to find a particle with lower energy than the energy level of the barrier, at the other side of the barrier, is not zero as we would expect classically but it is positive (however small but positive)) the barrier having energy lower than that of the potential barrier and without violating conservation of energy.

 

[Nugatory]

At undergraduate level.

The thread level tag has been corrected accordingly.