SOLUTION TO ASSIGNMENT 1 – GROUP A

Compton Effect

1. Explain why Compton Effect is not experimentally observed for visible light rays?

Compton shift is given by . Since minimum value of is -1

when , the maximum Compton shift is 0.048 . For visible light (say, ),
the Compton shift is only about 0.001% of the initial wavelength which cannot be detected.

2. X- Rays of wavelength are Compton scattered and the scattered beam is

observed at an angle of relative to the incident beam. Determine (a) the wavelength of
the scatted X rays (b) the energy of the scattered X ray photons (c) the kinetic energy of the
scattered electrons.

Compton shift is given by , where is the wavelength

of the incident X ray photons and is the wavelength of the scatted X ray photons.

(a) Wavelength of the scatted X rays: .

m.

(b) the energy of the scattered X ray photons: .

J= keV.

(c) the kinetic energy of the scattered electrons:

where is the energy of the incident X ray photon,

J= keV and is the energy of the scattered X ray photons.

Therefore, keV

de Broglie Waves

3. Why is the wave nature of matter not more apparent to our daily observation?

The dimension and speed of the object determine the matter wave associated with that
object. In daily life we deal with object of hundreds of grams and with speed not exceeding
the a few kilometres per hour. de Broglie wavelength is and numerator is of the
order of . Therefore, the de Broglie wavelength of the objects we deal with is very
small when compared with the dimension of the objects. Hence, the wave nature of matter
is not very apparent to our daily observation.
4. Determine the wavelength associated with an electron having kinetic energy equal to
. (Hint: Use relativistic equation for total energy and mass)

Since the K.E of the electron is comparable with its rest mass energy (0.512 MeV) we
should use relativistic equation. Thus = 0.512 MeV + 1 MeV = 1.512
MeV. Therefore kg. Using , is found to be
2 ms-1. Therefore wavelength associated with the electron is .

Uncertainty Principle

5. Consider a freely moving particle which is confined in a one dimensional infinite potential
well of width . Using uncertainty principle estimate the least energy of the particle.
According to uncertainty principle,
The maximum possible error in its position cannot exceed the size of the box : .
Therefore, the minimum uncertainty in momentum is .
Actual momentum of the particle cannot be less than the error in the momentum,

6. Compare the following two cases and hence provide proper interpretation. (i) An
electron has a speed of , accurate to . With what fundamental accuracy
we can locate the position of the electron? (ii) A bullet of mass , has a speed of
, accurate to . With what fundamental accuracy we can locate the
position of the bullet?

Case (i)

Momentum of the electron kg.m/sec. The

uncertainty in momentum is given to be 0.01% of this value. Therefore,
kg.m/sec. The minimum uncertainty in position is
cm.

Case (ii)

Momentum of the bullet kg.m/sec. The uncertainty in

momentum is given to be 0.01% of this value. Therefore,
kg.m/sec. The minimum uncertainty in position is m.

In the case of the electron, uncertainty in position is about 2.4 cm and hence it can be found
anywhere within in 2.4 cm. The uncertainty in the position of a bullet is far beyond the
possibility of measurement. We can therefore assert that for heavy objects like bullets the
uncertainty principle sets no limit whatever on our measuring procedures.
Particle in a 1D box

7. Obtain the expression for the energy as well as Eigen function relating to a particle that is
confined in a one-dimensional box of finite width. Sketch the wave function and probability
density for each level, starting from to .

This is nothing but the particle in a one dimensional box problem. To draw the wave
function and probability density for each level Refer Concepts of Modern physics by Arthur
Beiser.

8. A particle is moving in a one dimensional box of width . Calculate the probability of

finding the particle within an interval of at the centre of the box, when the particle is in
state of least energy.

Ground state wavefunction is . Probability density is .

At the centre of box, , probability . Therefore, the probability of finding the

particle within an interval of at the centre of the box is .

Tunnelling Effect

9. An alpha article is trapped in a nucleus whose radius is . What is the

probability that an alpha particle will escape from the nucleus if its energy is ?. The
potential barrier at the surface of the nucleus is
Use the expression of approximate transmission probability where
. Here is the mass of the alpha particle (which is four times the
mass of proton), is the potential barrier and is the energy of the particle. Note that
represents the diameter of the nucleus which is By carrying out the numeric
steps, we shall find that 0.058.

NOTE: If you have used, the expression: , then 0.232.

10. An electron and a proton with the same energy approach a potential barrier whose
height is greater than . Do they have same probability of getting through? If not, which
has the greater probability?

The approximate transmission probability is given by where

. Here is the mass of the particle, is the potential barrier and is the
energy of the particle. Since mass of a proton is 1836 times the mass of an electron, the
value of is higher for proton than that of an electron. Since
transmission probability is a negative exponential function, electron has greater probability
of getting through the barrier.

Scanning Tunnelling Microscope

11. With a neat sketch explain the principle and working of STM.

General description on the principle of quantum tunnelling with diagram and schematic
diagram to explain the working of STM and two modes of operations is expected.