Electron Probability of being at an location

  • Context: Graduate 
  • Thread starter Thread starter twest123
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Electron Probability
Join the discussion
Ask a follow-up here, or get your own question answered by working scientists, mathematicians and engineers — people, not an autocomplete.
Real named experts · corrections over time · the nuance an AI answer skips
2 replies · 2K views
twest123
Messages
1
Reaction score
0
Okay, Basically I was wondering is if there is a equation that can be used to tell what the probability of a electron being at that location is per unit of volume (P/Δx^3) from elementary constants and Energy only if possible also having never used the equation before I would like if you would explain how to use it.
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Well, the first thing is that you need to define the "setting". That is, the shape of the potential function in which the particle is being measured, and also the energy of the particle itself. Then you can set up the differential equation (Schrödinger's equation) and look for solutions to that equation. But then, once you find the wave equation (the solution to the Schrödinger equation), your works still not done; you then have to apply the position operator to the wave function (in QM, observables are operations on the wave function) and that will give you your "expected value" for the position of the particle.

I've only solved 1D particle wells, myself. But it's enough to see things like tunneling and get a feel for the different outcomes.

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/quantum/pbox.html