What are the implications of light having both wave and particle properties?

[SimonA]

We understand something about energy in that its both a wave and a particle. We also know that time and space are connected in a deep way, and that time is not as smooth as it seems.

So the time that we (and our tools) experience as sensory beings, should surely be both wave and particle like. And if time was particulate in some way (as the evidence would suggest), then its particles would have a minimum 'size', like the Plank 'size'. Given that hypothesis, there would have to be a limit on maximum velocity, given the nature of time. Let's be colloquial and call it "the speed of light".

What we do know about light is that it has a direct nature for something with such a wavy character. If it was purely particulate, human vision of physical objects would compromised. So we know that the photons that hit our eyes (or our detectors) have traveled what can only be a straight path. But we know from Youngs experiment (et al) that light dissipates like a wave that could end up connecting to the first detector it comes across.

I suspect that if we really look at it, we live in a dimensional pit where we think that forwards,backwards, up, down etc, represents some kind of totality. If there really is a limit on velocity in this lower 'superdimension', as there seems to be, how long will it take us to also understand that just as zero point energy is an escarpment we live on, there are other escarpments and tiers we know very little about at present ?

 

[SimonA]

Consider this hypothesis. Gravity does indeed "leak". "Dark matter" is matter ... but in what physicists mistakenly call another dimension, as if dimensionality is about physical extension.

What is the real difference between the strong and weak nuclear forces ?

 

[Naty1]

As you note, time,space,distance are likely discrete with Planck like minimums...yet no one really knows for sure if like light, Planck length would be relativistically viewed as a minimum constant or shrink via lorentz contraction.

So we know that the photons that hit our eyes (or our detectors) have traveled what can only be a straight path

not so; general relativity and experiments prove light is curved by spacetime in gravitational potential...that's what the Einstein stress energy tensor computes...half the curve is classical (Newtonian) due to mass, half is due to spacetime curvature. It only appears as straight line via local free falling frame of reference when spacetime curvature approaches flat spacetime...small distance observations...

yes, light has a wave particle duality as explained by quantum theory...but it's dual manifestations as via double slit experiments hints at underlying complexity.

"..what physicists mistakenly call another dimension, as if dimensionality is about physical extension..."

via string theories, it appears to be so...