mizpah12 said:Hi!
I’m new here and enjoying it very much.
In the double slit experiment; what causes the fired electron to change from being in a wave configuration, back to a particle configuration when it strikes the target?
Mizpah
Schrodinger's Dog said:I think my brain has started leaking out of my ears. The quantum world, we don't really understand it but we'll be damned if we'll admit it
The double slit experiment is a classic physics experiment that aims to demonstrate the wave-particle duality of light. It shows that light can behave as both a wave and a particle, depending on how it is observed.
In this experiment, a beam of light is directed towards a barrier with two narrow slits. The light passing through the slits diffracts and creates an interference pattern on a screen placed behind the barrier. This pattern shows the wave-like behavior of light.
The target, also known as the screen, is placed behind the barrier with the two slits. It captures the interference pattern created by the diffracted light and allows us to observe the wave-like behavior of light.
The interference pattern created by the diffracted light in the double slit experiment is only possible if light behaves as a wave. However, when the experiment is observed more closely, the light behaves like a particle and forms distinct bands on the target. This supports the theory that light has both wave and particle properties.
The double slit experiment has helped scientists understand the fundamental nature of light and has led to advancements in fields such as optics, quantum mechanics, and information technology. It has also been used to study the behavior of other particles, such as electrons, and has contributed to the development of technologies such as electron microscopes and diffraction gratings.