Waves And Particles In Light And Matter

From September 24 through 30, 1992 the Workshop on "Waves and Parti cles in Light and Matter" was held in the Italian city of Trani in celebration of the centenary of Louis de Broglie's birth. As is well known, the relationship between quantum theory and ob jective reality was one of the main threads running through the researches of this French physicist. It was therefore in a fitting tribute to him on his 90th birthday that ten years ago an international conference on the same subject was convened in Perugia. On that occasion, physicists from all over the world interested in the problematics of wave-particle duality engaged in thoughtful debates (the proceedings of which were subsequently published) on recent theoretical and experimental developments in our understanding of the foundations of quantum mechanics. This time around, about 120 scientists, coming from 5 continents, in the warm and pleasant atmosphere of Trani's Colonna Conference Center focussed their discussions on recent results concerned with the EPR para dox, matter-interferometry, reality of de Broglie's waves, photon detection, macroscopic quantum coherence, alternative theories to usual quantum mechanics, special relativity, state reduction, and other related topics. The workshop was organized in plenary sessions, round tables, and poster sessions, and the present volume collects most-but not all-of the presented papers. A number of acknowledgements are due. We thank, first of all, the contributors, without whose constant dedication this volume could not have been published.

'Particle or Wave' explains the origins and development of modern physical concepts about matter and the controversies surrounding them.

University Physics is a three-volume collection that meets the scope and sequence requirements for two- and three-semester calculus-based physics courses. Volume 1 covers mechanics, sound, oscillations, and waves. Volume 2 covers thermodynamics, electricity and magnetism, and Volume 3 covers optics and modern physics. This textbook emphasizes connections between between theory and application, making physics concepts interesting and accessible to students while maintaining the mathematical rigor inherent in the subject. Frequent, strong examples focus on how to approach a problem, how to work with the equations, and how to check and generalize the result. The text and images in this textbook are grayscale.

Focusing on the unresolved debate between Newton and Huygens from 300 years ago, The Nature of Light: What is a Photon? discusses the reality behind enigmatic photons. It explores the fundamental issues pertaining to light that still exist today. Gathering contributions from globally recognized specialists in electrodynamics and quantum optics, the book begins by clearly presenting the mainstream view of the nature of light and photons. It then provides a new and challenging scientific epistemology that explains how to overcome the prevailing paradoxes and confusions arising from the accepted definition of a photon as a monochromatic Fourier mode of the vacuum. The book concludes with an array of experiments that demonstrate the innovative thinking needed to examine the wave-particle duality of photons. Looking at photons from both mainstream and out-of-box viewpoints, this volume is sure to inspire the next generation of quantum optics scientists and engineers to go beyond the Copenhagen interpretation and formulate new conceptual ideas about light–matter interactions and substantiate them through inventive applications.

An astrophysicist presents an in-depth yet accessible tour of the universe for lay readers, while conveying the excitement of astronomy. How is a galaxy billions of lightyears away connected to us? Is our home nothing more than a tiny speck of blue in an ocean of night? In this exciting tour of a universe far larger than we can imagine, cosmologist Paul M. Sutter emphasizes how amazing it is that we are part of such a huge, complex, and mysterious place. Through metaphors and uncomplicated language, Sutter breathes life into the science of astrophysics, unveiling how particles, forces, and fields interplay to create the greatest of cosmic dramas. Touched with the author's characteristic breezy, conversational style--which has made him a breakout hit on venues such as The Weather Channel, the Science Channel, and his own popular Ask a Spaceman! podcast--he conveys the fun and wonder of delving deeply into the physical processes of the natural universe. He weaves together the past and future histories of our universe with grounded descriptions of essential modern-day physics as well as speculations based on the latest research in cosmology. Topics include our place in the Milky Way galaxy; the cosmic web--a vast web-like pattern in which galaxies are arranged; the origins of our universe in the big bang; the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy; how science has dramatically changed our relationship to the cosmos; conjectures about the future of reality as we know it; and more. For anyone who has ever stared at the starry night sky and wondered how we humans on Earth fit into the big picture, this book is an essential roadmap.

Matter and Light is a groundbreaking book on modern physics written by Louis de Broglie, the Nobel Prize-winning physicist who first proposed the theory of wave-particle duality. In this book, de Broglie presents a new interpretation of quantum mechanics based on the principle of least action, which has revolutionized the understanding of the physical world. This edition also includes a new introduction by physicist David Bohm and is a must-read for anyone interested in the philosophy and implications of modern physics. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Particle or Wave is the first popular-level book to explain the origins and development of modern physical concepts about matter and the controversies surrounding them. The dichotomy between particle and wave reflects a dispute--whether the universe's most elementary building blocks are discrete or continuous in nature--originating in antiquity when philosophers first speculated about the makeup of the physical world. Charis Anastopoulos examines two of the earliest known theories about matter--the atomic theory, which attributed all physical phenomena to atoms and their motion in the void, and the theory of the elements, which described matter as consisting of the substances earth, air, fire, and water. He then leads readers up through the ages to the very frontiers of modern physics to reveal how these seemingly contradictory ideas still lie at the heart of today's continuing debates. Anastopoulos explores the revolutionary contributions of thinkers like Nicolas Copernicus, Isaac Newton, and Albert Einstein. He shows how Einstein's ideas about relativity unify opposing concepts by identifying matter with energy, and how quantum mechanics goes even further by postulating the coexistence of the particle and the wave descriptions. Anastopoulos surveys the latest advances in physics on the fundamental structure of matter, including the theories of quantum fields and elementary particles, and new cutting-edge ideas about the unification of all forces. This book reveals how the apparent contradictions of particle and wave reflect very different ways of understanding the physical world, and how they are pushing modern science to the threshold of new discoveries.

Photoelectric effect - Light waves and photons - Einstein's photo- electric equation - laws of photo - electric emission - particle natureof energy - photoelectric equation - work function - photo cells andtheir application.Matter waves - wave mechanical concept of the atom - wavenature of particles - De-Broglie relation - De-Broglie wave length ofan electron - electron microscope.Concept of space, mass, time - Frame of references. Specialtheory of relativity - Relativity of length, time and mass with velocity- (E = mc2).The true nature of light is difficult to assess. Experiments showed thatlight exhibited wavelike properties of diffraction and interference. On theother hand, photoelectric effect indicates that light has the aspects of aparticle photon, with both energy and momentum. Thus light exhibits awave-particle duality.The wave-particle duality was extended to particles as matter waves byLouis de Broglie. His theoretical study on the nature of particles andwaves led to the invention of a new mechanics of particles calledquantum mechanics.