Introduction

Have you ever wondered how scientists produce their explanations about light, energy, and matter on a molecular level? How can those same scientists measure something they cannot even see? After all, the molecular level is hardly visible to the naked eye. Think of the smallest particles we know about, such as atoms, protons, neutrons, and electrons. These are the building blocks of all living things and are the smallest parts of matter and energy. When studying them, mathematics is the key to really understanding how these small parts of the world work together on a larger scale.

When using these mathematical equations, scientists find the constants within the physical laws on the molecular level and plug these constants into their equations to better understand how these physical laws act on matter and energy. Understanding how matter and energy behave allows for other real-life applications to come into play.

Mastering Quantum Physics

In Quantum Physics, the quantum describes the various discrete or distinct units of energy and matter that are predicted by or observed on a microscopic level. This field of study began as scientists gained the technological tools to measure the world even more precisely, particularly the world that is not visible to the naked eye. The beginning of quantum physics, as a field of study, has been attributed to a paper written by Max Planck on the topic of blackbody radiation. Development within the field was done by various scientists, including Albert Einstein, Max Planck, Werner Heisenberg, Erwin Schrodinger, Niels Bohr and others. Let’s meet Max Planck and see how his work opened up Quantum Physics to the scientific community.

As technology improves, these same scientists may eventually be able to create the experiments that allow them to find the answers to the questions still out there. The drive of many scientists is finally able to fill in the holes of man’s collective knowledge of the universe and how it all started, but what keeps the universe intact and still moving at the right speed. For many of these researchers, the answer can be found in the tiny world of Quantum Physics.

In 1874, Max Planck, a scientist who had conducted experiments in the diffusion of hydrogen through the heated medium of platinum before turning to theoretical physics, turned his attention to the ultraviolet catastrophe. This problem was based on the Raymond-Jeans formula, which was used to measure thermal radiation. This radiation is an electromagnetic radiation that objects produce based entirely on the object’s temperature. However, the Raymond-Jeans formula was not successful at actually predicting the results of various experiments. By 1900, this formula was causing trouble for classical physics questioning the basic concepts of thermodynamics and electromagnetics, which were part of the equation. Planck reasoned the formula projected low-wavelength radiancy (otherwise known as high frequency) was significantly higher than it should be. Thus, he proposed that if one could limit the high-frequency oscillations in atoms, the corresponding radiance of high-frequency waves would also be condensed, which would allow for consistent experimental results. This is the first example, although not the last, of scientists in Quantum Physics working to create mathematical equations that would explain what they saw in the natural world and through their experiments.

Planck suggested that atoms themselves can absorb or discharge energy only in specific bundles called quanta. If the energy and radiation frequency are proportional, then at higher frequencies the energy would likewise become larger. It is not possible for a standing wave to produce energy bigger than kT. Thus, the standing wave’s high-frequency radiancy is capped. By creating a cap, the problem of the ultraviolet catastrophe is resolved. While Planck may not have believed quanta was a true physical requirement, but it was a mathematical artifact that helped equations to fit the reality they were measuring.

His work provided a fundamental concept for physics that energy exists in distinct packets that cannot be broken down any further. For example, Einstein used this concept to explain photoelectric effect in 1905, thus helping to establish the concept of the photon. However, Planck assumed that the Copenhagen interpretation was flawed and eventually, a better theory would replace his concept without the troublesome aspects of quantum theory. Instead, his work and reputation helped to cement the controversial theory of relativity as proposed by Albert Einstein. These interpretations and theories are represented as such, because while there are many different explanations of how particles and other aspects of Quantum Physics work, it can be hard to prove which explanation is the correct.







So what makes Quantum Physics so special within the broader scope of Physics itself? To answer that, it’s important to remember that Quantum Physics uses math to explain how energy and matter behave. In other sciences, the observation of an experiment or a phenomenon does not influence the processes taking place. With Quantum Physics, observation does influence the processes, because the equations are developed to explain what was observed. As the next few theories display, it’s the scientists’ observations that guide the overall development and the adjustments of the mathematical equations that are the brains of Quantum Physics.

One such issue was quantum indeterminacy, where a particle or an atom can be in two different states, at least until it is measured. At that point, its physical reality is determined by the act of measurement. Therefore, any particle or atom remains in a superposition within two quantum states until the time of measurement, when they collapse into one state.

As a result, the observation is what solidifies the physical state one way or another, but without that observation, the physical world merely exists in a realm of possibilities. Schrodinger explained this best with his cat in the box. Now within this box is a cat and a vial of poison gas that could kill the cat. Attaching the vial to a Geiger counter and the counter to a radioactive atom completes the players in this analogy. Now the atom itself will decay, registering radiation and break the vial, thus killing the cat, or the atom won’t decay, and the vial will remain unbroken. Because we can’t observe the cat and the poison within the box, Schrodinger said this illustrated a particle in two states because the cat was both dead and alive. Until the box was opened and then the physical state would be defined by the observation.

While many scientists have different interpretations of the thought experiment, the biggest issue appears to be a matter of scale. Simply put, quantum mechanics deals with microscopic particles, not the macroscopic scale of animals and vials. Another objection is that the act of measurement has been done many times before the cat even entered the box, making it nearly impossible to isolate the cat or any of the other parts of the experiment. As a result, they believe that opening the box is irrelevant because the cat is already either dead or alive, but not both.

Conclusion

Quantum Physics is built on observations of the behavior of matter and energy. But it also involves taking those observations and creating mathematical equations to explain them. This is a science where observation is critical. While constants have been agreed upon, with the invention of better and more precise measuring tools, Quantum Physics continues to refine its theories.

Exploration of the molecular level of the world takes some degree of faith, because most of these theories are still just that, with evidence for or against it just another experiment away. Scientists in the field often have disagreements about how and if their equations are properly mapping what they are observing. Einstein disagreed with many scientists of his time, and his theories have continued to be put to the test.

As with any science, experimentation and hypothesis continue to rule the day. Quantum Physics grows as a scientific field of study because each new generation of scientists is willing to go one step further in their study of the molecular world. These attempts to define our Earth and Universe only add to our collective store of knowledge.

It’s important to remember that the mathematical equations involved in Quantum Physics are complex and based on agreed upon constants. So scientists are also testing those constants within their experiments. In Quantum Physics, nothing is absolute, but everything is open to a better interpretation and understanding.

Throughout these, we have looked at several experiments and theories that make up the field of quantum physics. These theories and experiments have become part of the foundation of quantum mechanics, and over time, scientists and physicists have continued to use these ideas to refine their understanding of how the universe works on a microscopic level.

This information has assisted in the understanding of how stars are born, what matter and force do when they interact with each other on a particle level and also in larger masses.

Learning about protons, electrons and the radiation used to measure them and their movement has become part of our collective understanding of radiation itself and even how energy is created and stored. There are still so many things that quantum mechanics can’t explain. For instance, how particles and waves can both be part of the movement of light, as they have described in wave-particle duality. Truly being able to define the contradictions inherent in these theories is the ongoing work of physicists and scientists.