Quantum Theory: a 2009 Miniterm

Quantum Theory

Miniterm winter-spring 2009

the quantum questions you want answers to!

day 7: odds & ends, student presentations; Einstein's objections to QM, the Bell inequality
9 am - 9:30 am	Quantum Dots (Tong Tong)
9:30 am - 10:30 am	odds & ends Einstein's objections to QM Bell's inequality
10:30 am - 11:15 am	Teleportation (Jonathan & Jason)			Stern-Gerlach (electron spin) applet
	final evaluaiton
noon - 3 pm	Miniterm Sharing

day 6: other potential energy situations, tunneling, Einstein's objections to QM, student presentations
homework for today	The 4th R
9 - 10 am	finishing up the particle in the infinite box: the uncertainty principle: evaluating <x²>, <p²>, <x>, Dx, Dp connection to macroscopic physics: evaluating \|y\|² and E_n as n -->
10 am - 11 am	quantum states of other potential energy functions: what's different from the particle-in-the-infinite-box solution? energy level diagram, wave-function shape, ...			Quantum Bound States applet
11 am - noon	is quantum theory consistent? complete? Einstein's objections & Bohr's responses
1 pm - 2 pm	Quantum Computing (William & Jinge)
2 pm - 3 pm	Bose-Einstein Condensate (Alex & Akhil)
3 pm - 4 pm	tunneling, barrier and well penetration: alpha decay & fusion			Fourier: Making Waves applet Quantum Tunneling and Wave Packets applet

day 5: we solve the Schroedinger equation
homework for today	start with the Rutherford scattering formula, replace the electric variables by gravitational variables, and evaluate numerically the angle of scattering (in seconds of arc, ") for a light ray just grazing the surface of the sun
homework for today	learn about polarization of light (from your physics book, or one you borrow from someone on your hall)
homework for today	particle-wave complementarity MP 3.6 (page 94) the correspondence principle MP 4.4 (page 139) what's waving in an electron MP 5.6 (page 177) wave-particle duality MP 5.7 (page 179)
9 am - 10 am	"deriving" the Schroedinger equation; momentum and energy "operators"
10 am - noon	solving the Schroedinger equation: the particle in the inifnite box quantization, average values, most probable values, uncertainties, the transition to classical physics
1 pm - 2 pm			lab experiment: investigating polarization
2 pm - 3pm	the Schroedinger equation: other solutions for other force situations
3 pm - 4 pm	work on presentations

day 4: particles behaving like waves the Heisenburg Uncertainty Principle origins of the Schroedinger equation
homework for today	the Feynman article: Quantum Behavior know the 7(?) different experiments & what each one teaches us
homework for today	The Pilot Waves of deBroglie MP 5.2 The Davisson-Germer Experiment MP3 up through p. 158
9 am - 10 am	particle or wave behavior: what decides? how can electrons show interference? they don't have + and - parts!! or do they? more thought experiments with electrons
10 am - 11 am	how to localize (particle-ize ?) a wave: the Heisenburg Uncertainty Principle
11 am - noon	origins of the Schroedinger equation
1 pm - 2 pm			electron diffraction experiment : we measure the separation of the crystal planes in a graphite crystal (bonus! we see electron "interference")	electron diffraction (Davisson-Germer experiment) applet
	how to reconcile wave-particle duality: complementarity
2:30 - 4 pm ??	time to work on presentation

day 3 (monday): evidence for quanitzation I will give you a couple of hours of "class time" to work on your presentation, so bring relevant stuff (books and articles)
homework for today	the blue handout : Rutherford scattering: the discovery of the nucleus won Rutherford a Nobel Prize in Chemistry! follow closely section 4.2 of the blue handout (essentially pages 122 up through equation 4.6 on page 126)
homework for today	MP section 4.3 (it's a long section): follow closely the derivation of Bohr's model & its (correct!) prediction of the hydrogen spectrum
bring computers to class for applet work and spectrum collection install logger pro version 3.61 from Moodle
10 am - 11 am	the Rutherford scattering experiment: how the nucleus was found			Rutherford scattering applet
11 am - noon	Bohr's model & its (correct!) prediction of the hydrogen spectrum			hydrogen spectrum applet
1 pm - 2 pm			in the spectra lab, you can measure/determine: the temperature of the sun; the temperature of light bulbs; the composition of fluorescent lights; an energy level diagram for helium; dark lines in the sspectrum of the sun
2 hours for working on presentations	Willilam & Jinge: Quantum Computation Jason & Jonathan: Quantum Teleportation Alex & Akhil: Bose-Einstein Condensate TongTong: Quantum Dots

day 2: the behavior of particles
homework for today	the ultraviolet catastrophe, the blackbody law, & Planck's "act of desperation"	the blackbody-law predictions before Planck: pp. 77-78 the blackbody-law predictions after planck: pp. 79-80 + textbook website what did Planck change to get the theory to match experimental data?		play with the blackbody spectrum applet can you deduce Wien's law and the law of Stefan/Boltzmann?
homework for today	picking a topic for your 45-minute presentation:	quantum computing quantum teleportation quantum cryptography the Bose-Einstein condensate ????
9 am - 9:45 am	Planck and the blackbody law	tying up loose ends: a) what Planck added to classical physics b) measuring the temperature of the sun c) measuring the temperature of a light bulb		blackbody spectrum applet
9:45 - 10:15 am	what does it mean to be a particle?	properties of "particle-ness" a crash course in special relativity (from chapters MP chapters 1 and 2)
10:15 am -	light is a particle: the evidence starts piling up	general relativity: light is affected by gravity MP3.7		Rutherford scattering
	light is a particle: the evidence continues to pile up	the evidence of x-rays: Bragg scattering Compton effect MP 3.5
- noon	light is a particle: the evidence continues to pile up	making predictions for the photoelectric experiment: wave vs. particle MP3.4		photoelectric effect applet
1 pm - 2 pm			we do the photoelectric experiment
2 pm - 4 pm				photoelectric effect applet

day 1: the behavior of light
before 9 am		read 100 Years of Quantum Mysteries
9 - 9:15 am	decisions, decisions, decisions....
9:15 am - 10:15 am	the behavior of light: is it a wave or a particle?	readings from your Physics book in 1900, physicists knew a lot about light.... each of you will pick the 8 most important "behaviors" or "interactions with matter" that light displays.... be able to describe each in words or with pictures.... was each of these phenomena able to be successfully described by the wave model of light? by the particle model of light?
10:15 am - 11:30 am	demos of light behavior	reflection, refraction, & dispersion doppler effect, inverse-square law; emission & absorption (light has energy) diffraction (sound vs. light; FM vs AM radio signals) interference (the two-slit experiment) with red and green laser light
11:30 am - noon		measurement of the wavelength of light	measuring the wavelength of light.... we repeat Thomas Young's experiment with equipment definitely not available to TY	interference: the double-slit experiment applet

1 pm - 1:45 pm		measurement of the wavelength of light, continued		blackbody spectrum applet
2 pm - 3pm	the wave model of light what does it mean to behave like a wave? what's waving in a light wave?	demonstrations of diffraction: 1) a slit made with your fingers 2) a diffraction grating on the overhead a mathematical model of a traveling wave: E = E_max sin (kx - wt)		radio waves and electromagnetic fields applet
2:45 pm - 3:45 pm	the quantum era begins: 1900	Maxwell's wave equation and the unification of electricity and magnetism MP 3.1 the ultraviolet catastrophe, the blackbody law, & Planck's "act of desperation" MP 3.2 - 3.3
3:45 pm - 4 pm	summing up	evaluation of the first day		cones and color vision applet
homework for Friday		the blackbody-law predictions before Planck: pp. 78-79 the blackbody-law predictions after planck: pp. 80-81 website: what did Planck change to get the theory to match experimental data		play with the blackbody spectrum applet can you deduce Wien's law and the law of Stefan/Boltzmann
homework for ???		picking a topic for your presentation: quantum computing quantum teleportation quantum cryptography the Bose-Einstein condensate ????