Double-Slit Experiment With Various Energy Particles

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the double-slit experiment as described by James Binney, specifically focusing on the implications of firing electrons with varying energies from an electron gun. Binney explains that each electron is fired at a well-defined energy, which influences its wavelength. The inquiry posed is whether varying the energy of each electron would yield results analogous to those observed when using light with a range of wavelengths, such as "white" light. The conclusion drawn is that different electron energies, and consequently different wavelengths, would indeed affect the interference pattern produced in the experiment.

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  • Familiarity with the double-slit experiment
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  • Basic concepts of wavelength and energy in physics
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-7DsLR5wtk&list=PLE7AE1B2E44908250&index=7

At 1:57, James Binney describes the two-slit experiment with an electron gun. He mentions the electron gun fires electrons at one well-defined tuned energy.

My question is if we fire each electron one by one to the slits and screen, would we get the same result if each time the electron's energy was different to the previous electron fired from the gun?
 
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Electrons with different energies have different wavelengths. Therefore the result of a double-slit experiment using electrons with a range of wavelengths would be similar to one using light with a range of wavelengths, e.g. "white" light.
 

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