The Quantum Mechanics

A light approach to a
complex scientific theme

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 The Quantum Mechanics

A short flashback
In 1900, German physicist Max Planck introduced the idea that energy is
quantized, in order to derive a formula for the observed frequency dependency of
the energy emitted by a black body.
In 1905, Albert Einstein introduced his “March quantum paper”. He used the
term : When a light ray is spreading from a point, the energy is not distributed
continiously over ever-increasing spaces, but consists of a finite number of
energy quanta, that are localized in points in space, move without dividing, and
can be absorbed or generated only as a whole.

This statement has been called the most revolutionary sentence written by a
physicist of the twentieth century. (3)

Werner Heisenberg formulated his uncertainty principle in 1927, Paul Dirac

started unifying quantum mechanics with special relativity, and Erwin
Schrødinger invented wave mechanics. Other scientists took part in the further
developing , such as R.P. Feynman, F. Dyson, J. Swinger during the 1940’s. (4)

Max Planck Albert Einstein Werner Heisenberg

P aul Dirac
Erwin Schrõdinger Richard Feldman

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Why quantum mechanics ?

Quantum mechanics is essential to understand the behaviour of systems at atomic length

scale and smaller. For example, if classical mechanics governed the working of an atom,
electrons would rapidly travel toward and collide with the nucleus, making stable atoms
impossible. However, in the natural world electrons remain in an uncertain, non-
deterministic “smeared”, wave particle wave function, in an orbital path around or
through the nucleus, defying classical electromagnetism. (3)

Classical physics is an imperfect theory, but is only so when dealing with very small ,
atomic size field, where the quantum mechanics is used, or on the very fast, near the
speed of light, where the relativity takes over. For everyday things, which are much
larger than atoms and much slower than the speed of light, classical physics does an
excellent job. Plus, it is much easier to use than either quantum mechanics or relativity,
which require an extensive amount of mathematics. (5)

Heisenbergs uncertainty.

At the atomic scale of quantum mechanics, measurements become a very delicate

process. Let’s say you want to find out where an electron is and where it is going. How
would you do it? Get a super high powered magnifier and look for it? The very act of
looking depends upon light, which is made of photons, and these photons could have
enough momentum that they hit the electron, and they would change its course!

Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle completely flies in face of classical physics ! After all,
the very foundation of science is the ability to measure things accurately, and now
quantum mechanics is saying that it’s impossible to get those measurements exact !
But Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle is a fact of nature, impossible to get around it.

Ever heard about Schrõdinger’s equation ?

Every quantum particle is
characterized by a wave function. In
1925 Erwin Schrödinger developed
the differential equation which
describes the evolution of those
wave functions. By using
Schrödinger's equation scientists can
find the wave function which solves a
particular problem in quantum
mechanics. Unfortunately, it is
usually impossible to find an exact
solution to the equation, so certain
assumptions are used in order to
obtain an approximate answer for
the particular problem. (5)Take a loock at the equation, indeed some complicated for
me, perhaps also for you ? Yes, let us forget the equation !

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Entanglement, what does it mean ?

Schrødinger expressed the term “entanglement” to describe this peculiar connection

between quantum systems in 1935 like this:

When two systems,of which we know the states by their respective representatives,
enter into temporary physical interaction due to known forces between them, and when
after a time of mutual influence the system separate again, then they can no longer be
described in the same way as before. By the interaction the two representatives in their
quantum state have been entangled. (1)

Quantum entanglement is an area of science that will one day dominate the way we look
at information, the way we communicate secretly, and the way computors do their thing.
Problem is, it’s really bloody confusing ! Quantum computer chips will allow our mobile
phones and PC’s to keep getting tinier and tinier, something that our current technology
can’t do for very much longer Once we get there, there won’t be any stopping quantum
technology, and in no time it will be everywhere. (2)

What about the superposition ?

If you flip a coin in a darkened room, the result of the coin being flipped is
mathematically just as likely to be heads or tails. While the light is off, the coin is in a
superposition – whereby it is both heads and tails at once, because you can’t see which it
is. If you turn on the light, you “collapse” the superposition, and force the coins to be
either heads or tails. Measuring something destroys the superposition, forcing it into
being in just one classical state.

At the moment, computers use a binary code, 1’s and 0’s – called the “computers
language”. The reason it uses only two letters is that in classical computor, there is no
advantage to having more letters, you can store more information, but takes it a heap
longer to process, giving no real advantage in the Wash up. Quantum computors,
however, can use more than two letters. which gives them an advantage. (6)

Spin of a particle

In 1922 Otto Stern and Walther Gerlach performed an experiment whose results could
not be explained by classical physics. Their experiment indicated that atomic particles
posses an intrinsic angular moment, or spin, and that this spin is quantized (can only
have certain discrete values) Spin is a completely quantum mechanical property of a
particle and cannot be explained in any by classical physics.

It is important to realize that the spin of an atomic particle is not a measure of how it is
spinning. In fact, it is impossible to tell whether something as small as an electron is
spinning at all. The word “spin” is just a convenient way of talking about the intrisic
angual moment of a particle¨. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) uses the fact that
under certain conditions the spin of hydrogen nuclei can be “flipped from one state to
another”.By measuring the location of these flips a picture can be formed of where the
hydrogen atoms, mainly as part of water, are in the body.

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 Walther Gerlach Otto Stern

Features of quantum mechanics asset

for future computing

Dr. Peter Zoller at the SC 2001 Conference in Austria following claim :

By 2017, the storage of a single bit will reach the size of a single atom. At a fundamental
level, nature obeys the laws of the quantum theory: In computing, this will lead to the
births of new algorithms for new complexity classes.

In any case, the strange features of quantum mechanics such as interference,

superposition and entanglement also hold in store much promise for future applications
in computing, as Dr.Zoller pointed out. A quantum bit, referred to as qubit can be 1.0 ,or
a superposition of zero and one. This superposition amounts to strange combinations.
However, the potential quantum memory through paralellism is enormous. There are
300 elementary particle, involving a space of 2 to factor 300 atoms in the universe. You
can use this memory space in the form of algoritms for quantum parallel processing , but
you cannot apply it inthe naive form because the read out process alters everything, dr.
Zoller explained.
The applications of quantum computing are factoring. database search, simulation,
distributed quantum computation etc. Schrõdinger found it ridiculous to experiment
with single particles, but now the idea of bits written on 1 atom is no longer ridicolous.
Dr. Zoller concluded that there is no obvious best candidate, but there should be possible
a merging of ideas and different fields. (7)

Skien, 25.mars 2010

Kjell W. Tveten

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References :

(1) Quantum Entanglement and Information (2006)

http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/qt-entangle/

(2) Quantum Entanglement

http://www.abc.net.au/science/features/quantum/
(3) History of quantum mechanics.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_quantum_mechanics

(4) Scientists Picture Gallery

http://th.physik.uni-frankfurt.de/~jr/physlist.html

(5) Intro to Quantum Mechanics

http://verden.abcsok.no/index.html?q=Intro%20to%20Quantum%20Mechanics%2C
%20Todd&cs=latin1

(6) Quantum Entaglement

http://www.abc.net.au/science/features/quantum/

(7) Paradoxical features of quantum mechanics asset for future quantum

computing
http://www.hoise.com/primeur/01/articles/live/LV-PL-06-01-7.html