Quantum in Ed

Quantum mechanics (QM; also known
as quantum physics or quantum theory),

including quantum field theory, is a fundamental
branch of physics concerned with processes
involving, for example, atoms and photons.
Systems such as these which obey quantum
mechanics can be in a quantum superposition of
different states, unlike in classical physics.
Quantum mechanics gradually arose from Max
Planck's solution in 1900 to the black-body
radiation problem (reported 1859) and Albert
Einstein's 1905 paper which offered a quantumbased theory to explain the photoelectric
effect (reported 1887). Early quantum theory was
profoundly reconceived in the mid-1920s.
The reconceived theory is formulated in
various specially developed mathematical
formalisms. In one of them, a mathematical
function, the wave function, provides information
about the probability amplitude of position,
momentum, and other physical properties of a
particle.
Important applications of quantum
theory[1] include superconducting magnets, lightemitting diodes, and the laser,
the transistor and semiconductors such as

the microprocessor, medical and research
imaging such as magnetic resonance
imaging and electron microscopy, and
explanations for many biological and physical
phenomena.[not verified in body]
Contents
[hide]
1History
2Mathematical formulations
3Mathematically equivalent formulations of
quantum mechanics
4Interactions with other scientific theories
o 4.1Quantum mechanics and classical physics
o 4.2Copenhagen interpretation of quantum
versus classical kinematics
o 4.3General relativity and quantum mechanics
o 4.4Attempts at a unified field theory
5Philosophical implications
6Applications
o 6.1Electronics
o 6.2Cryptography
o 6.3Quantum computing
o 6.4Macroscale quantum effects
o 6.5Quantum theory
7Examples
o 7.1Free particle
o 7.2Step potential
o 7.3Rectangular potential barrier
o 7.4Particle in a box
o 7.5Finite potential well
o 7.6Harmonic oscillator
8See also
9Notes
10References
11Further reading
12External links
History[edit]
Modern physics
Manifold
Dynamics: Schrdinger and KleinGordon equations
Founders[show]
Concepts[show]
Branches[show]
Scientists[show]
v
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Main article: History of quantum mechanics

Scientific inquiry into the wave nature of light
began in the 17th and 18th centuries,
when scientists such as Robert
Hooke, Christiaan Huygens and Leonhard
Euler proposed a wave theory of light based on
experimental observations.[2] In 1803, Thomas
Young, an English polymath, performed the
famous double-slit experiment that he later
described in a paper titled On the nature of light
and colours. This experiment played a major role
in the general acceptance of the wave theory of
light.
In 1838, Michael Faraday discovered cathode
rays. These studies were followed by the 1859
statement of the black-body radiation problem
by Gustav Kirchhoff, the 1877 suggestion
by Ludwig Boltzmann that the energy states of a
physical system can be discrete, and the 1900
quantum hypothesis of Max Planck.[3] Planck's
hypothesis that energy is radiated and absorbed
in discrete "quanta" (or energy packets) precisely

matched the observed patterns of black-body
radiation.
In 1896, Wilhelm Wien empirically determined a
distribution law of black-body radiation,[4] known
as Wien's law in his honor. Ludwig Boltzmann
independently arrived at this result by
considerations of Maxwell's equations. However,
it was valid only at high frequencies and
underestimated the radiance at low frequencies.
Later, Planck corrected this model using
Boltzmann's statistical interpretation of
thermodynamics and proposed what is now
called Planck's law, which led to the
development of quantum mechanics.
Following Max Planck's solution in 1900 to the
black-body radiation problem (reported
1859), Albert Einstein offered a quantum-based
theory to explain the photoelectric effect (1905,
reported 1887). Around 1900-1910, the atomic
theory and the corpuscular theory of light[5] first
came to be widely accepted as scientific fact;
these latter theories can be viewed as quantum
theories of matter and electromagnetic radiation,
respectively.
Among the first to study quantum phenomena in

nature were Arthur Compton, C. V. Raman,
and Pieter Zeeman, each of whom has a
quantum effect named after him. Robert
Andrews Millikan studied the photoelectric
effect experimentally, and Albert Einstein
developed a theory for it. At the same
time, Ernest Rutherford experimentally
discovered the nuclear model of the atom, for
which Niels Bohr developed his theory of the
atomic structure, which was later confirmed by
the experiments of Henry Moseley. In
1913, Peter Debye extended Niels Bohr's theory
of atomic structure, introducing elliptical orbits, a
concept also introduced by Arnold
Sommerfeld.[6] This phase is known as old
quantum theory.
According to Planck, each energy element (E) is
proportional to its frequency ():
Max Planck is considered the father of the

quantum theory.
where h is Planck's constant.

Planck cautiously insisted that this was simply
an aspect of the processes of absorption and
emission of radiation and had nothing to do
with the physical reality of the radiation
itself.[7] In fact, he considered his quantum
hypothesis a mathematical trick to get the right
answer rather than a sizable
discovery.[8] However, in 1905 Albert
Einstein interpreted Planck's quantum
hypothesis realistically and used it to explain
the photoelectric effect, in which shining light
on certain materials can eject electrons from
the material. He won the 1921 Nobel Prize in
Physics for this work.
Einstein further developed this idea to show

that an electromagnetic wave such as light
could also be described as a particle (later
called the photon), with a discrete quantum of
energy that was dependent on its frequency.[9]
The 1927 Solvay Conference in Brussels.
The foundations of quantum mechanics were

established during the first half of the 20th
century by Max Planck, Niels Bohr, Werner
Heisenberg, Louis de Broglie, Arthur
Compton, Albert Einstein, Erwin
Schrdinger, Max Born, John von
Neumann, Paul Dirac, Enrico Fermi, Wolfgang
Pauli, Max von Laue, Freeman Dyson, David
Hilbert, Wilhelm Wien, Satyendra Nath
Bose, Arnold Sommerfeld, and others.
The Copenhagen interpretation of Niels
Bohr became widely accepted.
In the mid-1920s, developments in quantum

mechanics led to its becoming the standard
formulation for atomic physics. In the summer
of 1925, Bohr and Heisenberg published
results that closed the old quantum theory. Out
of deference to their particle-like behavior in
certain processes and measurements, light
quanta came to be called photons (1926).
From Einstein's simple postulation was born a
flurry of debating, theorizing, and testing. Thus,
the entire field of quantum physics emerged,
leading to its wider acceptance at the
Fifth Solvay Conference in 1927.[citation needed]
It was found that subatomic particles and
electromagnetic waves are neither simply
particle nor wave but have certain properties of
each. This originated the concept of wave
particle duality.[citation needed]

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Quantum in Ed

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Quantum mechanics (QM; also known

as quantum physics or quantum theory),

the transistor and semiconductors such as

Main article: History of quantum mechanics

in discrete "quanta" (or energy packets) precisely

Among the first to study quantum phenomena in

Max Planck is considered the father of the

where h is Planck's constant.

Einstein further developed this idea to show

The 1927 Solvay Conference in Brussels.

The foundations of quantum mechanics were

In the mid-1920s, developments in quantum

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