How do point charges in a conductor move and stop?

In summary: You have Semi-Classical E&M, which has some advantages, but it's still limited. You have Quantum E&M, which is the best of all worlds, but it's still quantum.In summary, classical E&M is limited, semi-classical E&M has some advantages, but they are still limited, and quantum E&M is the best of all worlds but it's still quantum.
  • #71
feynman1 said:
how?
Have you tried to understand this by reading a book? I don't understand what you mean by "bounce off". Do you mean they move from the surface towards the interior? Any movement is due simply to the repulsion by other elements ##dq##.
 
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  • #72
Mister T said:
Have you tried to understand this by reading a book? I don't understand what you mean by "bounce off". Do you mean they move from the surface towards the interior? Any movement is due simply to the repulsion by other elements ##dq##.
You seemed to be saying that charges are repelled and get away from each other. But that doesn't show how they move when approaching a conductor wall, whether they stay on the wall or bounce back from the wall...
 
  • #73
feynman1 said:
You seemed to be saying that charges are repelled and get away from each other. But that doesn't show how they move when approaching a conductor wall, whether they stay on the wall or bounce back from the wall...
I’m not sure why you seem determined on an inadequate model in order to increase your feeling an understanding of this topic. Why not look for a more up to date approach which can handle more situations reliably?
That would, of course, involve a lot of hard graft.
 
  • #74
feynman1 said:
But that doesn't show how they move when approaching a conductor wall, whether they stay on the wall or bounce back from the wall...
What is a "bounce"? Isn't it just a repulsion?
 
  • #75
Mister T said:
What is a "bounce"? Isn't it just a repulsion?
I don't know. Just guessing. Repelled by what?
 
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  • #76
In quantum physics there is no such thing as a solid boundary or a solid wall.
 
  • #77
feynman1 said:
I don't know. Just guessing. Repelled by what?
Your guess should include the knowledge that the actual position of an electron when it's in the bound state (i.e. in a metal) is not defined. There is no 'mechanical' language that can describe what you want. That's why we use QM.
This thread is not going anywhere because there is no satisfactory answer in your terms. Learn a bit of QM and the problem will become clear.
 
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  • #78
feynman1 said:
I don't know. Just guessing. Repelled by what?
My goodness! Each differential element of charge ##dq## is repelled by every other element of charge.

Instead of guessing, crack a book.

Or at least examine your own thinking processes. What led you to "guess" bouncing off the surface? Unless you are willing to examine why you made that guess you might as well be asking why they don't bounce off the moon.
 
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  • #79
Mister T said:
Have you tried to understand this by reading a book?
He is a faculty member looking for PhD students. So he read the books.

That of course leads to the next question - why he wants to consider a model that is neither classical (continuous charge) nor quantum mechanical, and why he thinks this model will produce anything but nonsense.

How many times have we said "Drude model"? Water...duck...back...
 
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  • #80
Vanadium 50 said:
He is a faculty member looking for PhD students. So he read the books.

That of course leads to the next question - why he wants to consider a model that is neither classical (continuous charge) nor quantum mechanical, and why he thinks this model will produce anything but nonsense.

How many times have we said "Drude model"? Water...duck...back...
Can we consider electron-ion interaction in Drude model? What potential is appropriate?
 
  • #81
feynman1 said:
Can we consider electron-ion interaction in Drude model? What potential is appropriate?
Have you ever studied solid state physics? Or at least browsed through an introductory textbook like Kittel? It's really hard to guess your background from your questions.
 
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  • #82
I have read a related article last month.

VirginiaTech210915
https://vtx.vt.edu/articles/2021/09/science-electrons_interactions_heremans_lab.html
When electrons flow through a conductor — such as the copper wires in our phone chargers or the silicon chips in the circuit boards of our laptops — they collide with material impurities and with each other in a tiny atomic frenzy. Their interaction with impurities is well known.
Yet, while understanding how electrons interact with each other is fundamental to understanding the physics, measuring the strength of these interactions has proven to be a tricky challenge for physicists.
A team led by Virginia Tech researchers has discovered that by creating a specific set of conditions, they could quantify electron-electron interactions more precisely than ever. Their findings expand upon existing physics theories and can be applied to improving electronic devices and quantum computers. They recently published their findings in the journal Nature Communications.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-25327-7
 
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  • #83
feynman1 said:
Let's speak in the classical context (non quantum). We assume that point charges move in a conductor following Newtonian mechanics. How do point charges move along the boundary of the conductor and how do they stop (equilibrium) in the end?
Another approach from the other end is superconducting current in a ring. Non stop. Genuine QM effect.
 

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