24: Quantum Weirdness
- Page ID
- 416106
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In this chapter, we will delve deeper into the strangeness of quantum mechanics. In particular, we will explore quantum phenomena that don’t have a classical counterpart, starting from perhaps the most simple but also one of the most revealing: the double-slit experiment.
- 24.1: The Double-slit Experiment
- The double-slit experiment is considered by many the seminal experiment in quantum mechanics. The reason why we see it only at this advanced point is that its interpretation is not as straightforward as it might seem from a superficial analysis.
- 24.2: Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle
- Let’s now revisit the simple case of a free particle.
- 24.3: Tunneling
- Tunneling is a phenomenon where a particle may cross a barrier even if it does not have sufficient kinetic energy to overcome the potential of the barrier itself. In this situation, the particle is said to “tunnel through” the barrier following a purely quantum mechanical phenomenon (figure 25.3.1).