Tutorial 3

Matter waves, The Uncertainty Principle and Schrodinger Equation

Conceptual Questions

1. What difficulties does the uncertainty principle cause in

trying to pick up an electron with a pair of forceps?
(Krane, Question 4, pg. 110)

ANS
When the electron is picked up by the forceps, the position
of the electron is ``localised’ (or fixed), i.e. x = 0.
Uncertainty principle will then render the momentum to be
highly uncertainty. In effect, a large p means the
electron is ``shaking’’ furiously against the forceps’ tips
that tries to hold the electron ``tightly’’.

2. Is it possible for vphase to be greater than c? Can vgroup be

greater than c? (Krane, Question 12, pg. 111)

ANS
Is it possible for vphase to be greater than c but not so for
vgroup. This is because the group velocity is postulated to be
associated with the physical particle. Since a physical
particle (with mass) can never move greater than the speed
of light (according to SR), so is vgroup.

3. Why is it important for a wave function to be

normalised? Is an unrenomalised wave function a
solution to the Schrodinger equation? (Krane, Question
2, pg. 143)

ANS
Due to the probabilistic interpretation of the wave
function, the particle must be found within the region in
which it exists. Statistically speaking, this means that the
probability to find the particle in the region where it
exists must be 1. Hence, the square of the wave function,
which is interpreted as the probably density to find the
particle at an intervals in space, integrated over all space
must be one in accordance with this interpretation. Should
the wave function is not normalised, that would lead to the
consequence that the probability to find the particle
associated with the wave function in the integrated region
where the particle is suppose to be in is not one, which
violates the probabilistic interpretation of the wave
function.

A wave function that is not normalised is also a solution to

the Schrodinger equation. However, in order for the wave
 function to be interpreted in accordance to the
probabilistic interpretation (so that the wave function
could has a physical meaning) it must be normalised.

4. How would the solution to the infinite potential well be

different if the width of the well is extended from L to L +
x0, where x0 is a nonzero value of x? How would the energies
be different?
(Krane, Question 7, pg. 143)

ANS
The form of the solutions to the wave functions inside the
well remains the same. They still exist as stationary states
described by the same sinusoidal functions, except that in
the expressions of the observables, such as the quantised
energies and the expectation values, the parameter L be
replaced by L + x0. For the quantised energies, they will be
modified as per
n 2 2  2 n 2 2  2
En   2 .
2mL2 2 m L  x0 

5. The infinite quantum well, with width L, as defined in the

lecture notes is located between x = 0 and x = L. If we
define the infinite quantum well to be located between x =
-L/2 to x = +L/2 instead (the width remains the same, L),
find the solution to the time-independent Schrodinger
equation. Would you expect the normalised constant to the
wave function and the energies be different than that
discussed in the notes? Explain. (Brehm and Mullin, pg. 234
- 237)

ANS
By applying the boundary conditions that the solution must
vanish at both ends, i.e.  ( x   L / 2)   ( x  L / 2)  0 , the
solution takes the form
 2 nx
 cos (odd n)
 L L L L
 n ( x)   for   x
 2 nx 2 2
sin (even n)

 L L
This question is tantamount to re-analyse the same physical
system in a shifted coordinates, x  x – L/2. The
normalisation and energies shall remain unchanged under the
shift of coordinate system x  x – L/2. Both of these
quantities depends only on the width of the well but not on
the coordinate system used.
Problems

1. Find the de Broglie wave lengths of (a) a 46-g ball with a

velocity of 30 m/s, and (b) an electron with a velocity of
107 m/s (Beiser, pg. 92)

ANS
A relativistic calculation is needed unless pc for the
proton is much smaller than the proton rest mass of Eo =
0.938 GeV.

So we have to first compare the energy of the de Broglie

wave to Eo:
hc 1242eV  nm
E = pc =   1.24 GeV, c.f. Eo = 0.938 GeV. Since
 10 6 nm
the energy of the de Broglie wave is larger than the rest
mass of the proton, we have to use the relativistic kinetic
energy instead of the classical K = p2/2m expression.

The total energy of the proton is

E  E02   pc  = (0.938 GeV ) 2  1.24 GeV  =1.555 GeV.
2 2

The corresponding kinetic energy is

KE = E - Eo = (1.555 - 0.938) GeV = 0.617 GeV = 617 MeV

2. The de Broglie Wavelength (Cutnell, pg. 897)

An electron and a proton have the same kinetic energy and
are moving at non-relativistic speeds. Determine the ratio
of the de Broglie wavelength of the electron to that of the
proton.

ANS
Using the de Broglie wavelength relation p = h/ and the
fact that the magnitude of the momentum is related to the
kinetic energy by p = (2mK)1/2, we have

h/p = h/(2mK)1/2
Applying this result to the electron and the proton gives

e/p = (2mpK)1/2/(2meK)1/2
= (mp/me)1/2 = (1.67  10 27 kg/9.11  10 31 kg)1/2 = 42.8

As expected, the wavelength for the electron is greater than

that for the proton.

3. Find the kinetic energy of a proton whose de Broglie

 wavelength is 1.000 fm = 1.00010-15 m, which is roughly the
proton diameter (Beiser, pg. 92)

ANS
(a) Since v << c, we can let m = mo. Hence

 = h/mv = 6.6310-34 Js/(0.046 kg)(30 m/s)

= 4.810-34 m

The wavelength of the golf ball is so small compared with

its dimensions that we would not expect to find any wave
aspects in its behaviour.

(b) Again v << c, so with m = mo = 9.110-31 kg, we have

 = h/mv = 6.6310-34 Js/(9.110-31 kg)(107 m/s)

= 7.310-11 m

The dimensions of atoms are comparable with this figure -

the radius of the hydrogen atom, for instance, is 5.310-11 m.
It is therefore not surprising that the wave character of
moving electrons is the key to understanding atomic
structure and behaviour.

4. An electron is in a box 0.10 nm across, which is the order

of atomic dimensions. Find its permitted energies. (Beiser,
pg. 106)

ANS
Here m = 9.110-31 kg and L = 110-10 m, so that the permitted
electron energies are
n 2 2  2
En   6.0  10 18 n 2 J = 38n2 eV.
2mL2
The minimal energy the electron can have is 38 eV,
corresponding to n = 1. The sequence of energy levels
continues with E 2 = 152 eV, E3 = 342 eV, E 4 = 608 eV and
so on. If such a box existed, the quantisation of a
trapped electron’s energy would be a prominent feature
of the system. (And indeed energy quantisation is
prominent in the case of an atomic electron.)

5. A 10-g marble is in a box 10 cm across. Find its permitted

energies.

ANS
 With m = 1.010-2 kg and L = 1.010-1 m,
n 2 2  2
En  2
 5.5  10 64 n 2 J
2mL
The minimum energy the marble can have is 5.510-64 J,
corresponding to n = 1. A marble with this kinetic energy
has a speed of only 3.310-31 m/s and therefore cannot be
experimentally distinguished from a stationary marble. A
reasonable speed a marble might have is, say, 1/3 m/s -
which corresponds to the energy level of quantum number n =
1030! The permissible energy levels are so very close
together, then, that there is no way to determine whether
the marble can take on only those energies predicted by
n 2 2  2 or any energy whatever. Hence in the domain of
En 
2mL2
everyday experience, quantum effects are imperceptible,
which accounts for the success of Newtonian mechanics in
this domain.

6. A hydrogen atom is 5.310-11 m in radius. Use the uncertainty

principle to estimate the minimum energy an electron can
have in this atom. (Beiser, pg 114)

ANS
Here we find that with x = 5.310-11 m.


p  = 9.910-25 Ns.
2
An electron whose momentum is of this order of magnitude
behaves like a classical particle, an its kinetic energy is
K = p2/2m  (9.910-25 Ns)2/29.110-31 kg = 5.410-19 J
which is 3.4 eV. The kinetic energy of an electron in the
lowest energy level of a hydrogen atom actually 13.6 eV.

7. A measurement established the position of a proton with an

accruracy of  1.00  10 11 m. Find the uncertainty in the
proton’s position 1.00 s later. Assume v << c. (Beiser, pg.
111)

ANS
Let us call the uncertainty in the proton’s position x0 at
the time t = 0. The uncertainty in its momentum at this time
is therefore

p  . Since v << c, the momentum uncertainty is
2 x 0
p  ( mv)  m0 v and the uncertainty in the proton’s
p 
velocity is v   . The distance x of the proton
m0 2m0 x0
covers in the time t cannot be known more accurately than
 t
x  tv  . Hence x is inversely proportional to
2m0 x0
x0 : the more we know about the proton’s position at t
= 0 the les we know about its later position at t. The
value of x at t = 1.00 s is
(1.054  10 34 Js )(1.00 s )
x   3.15  10 3 m
2(1.672  10 27 kg )(1.00  10 11 m)

This is 3.15 km! What has happened is that the original wave
group has spread out to a much wider one because the phase
velocities of the component wave vary with wave number and a
large range of wave numbers must have been present to
produce the narrow original wave

8. Broadening of spectral lines due to uncertainty principle:

An excited atom gives up it excess energy by emitting a
photon of characteristic frequency. The average period that
elapses between the excitation of an atom and the time is
radiates is 1.010-8 s. Find the inherent uncertainty in the
frequency of the photon. (Beiser, pg. 115)

ANS
The photon energy is uncertain by the amount

 1.054  10 34 Js
E   8
 5.3  10 27 J
2 t 2(1.0  10 s )
The corresponding uncertainty in the frequency of light is
E
   8 10 6 Hz.
h
This is the irreducible limit to the accuracy with which we
can determine the frequency of the radiation emitted by an
atom. As a result, the radiation from a group of excited
atoms does not appear with the precise frequency . For a

photon whose frequency is, say, 5.0  1014 Hz,  1.6  10 8 .

In practice, other phenomena such as the doppler effect
contribute more ian this to the broadening of spectral
lines.

9. If we assume that in the ground of the hydrogen the position

of the electron along the Bohr orbit is not known and not
knowable, then the uncertainty in the position is about
 x  2r0  10 10 m, (a) What is the magnitude of the momentum
of the electron at the ground state? (b) What is the
corresponding quantum uncertainty in the momentum? (Ohanian,
pg. 152)

ANS
(a) Angular momentum, |L|  |p|r = n  . Hence, in the
ground state, |p| =  /r0 = 2.1 10 24 Ns

 
(b) p x    5.3 10 25 Ns.
2x 2(2r0 )

10. Show that   A exp kx  t  is solution to the time-

independent Schrodinger equation.

ANS
Taking the partial derivative of  wrp to x,
2
   ik  A exp kx  t  =  k 2 .
2
(1)
x 2

The total energy of the particle is

 2k 2
E = K + U = p2/2m + U = + U
2m
2 m( E  U ) .
 k2 
2
2 2m( E  U ) 
Hence, Eq. (1) becomes    . This shows
x 2
2
that   A exp kx  t  is the solution to the Schrodinger
equation.

11. Consider a quantum particle trapped in an infinite well with

width a. Assuming that the particle is in the ground state,
calculate the expectation values of its position <x> and
<x2>. Obtain the uncertainty in its position, x, given by
standard statistical definition, x = <x2> - <x>2. (Brehm
and Mullin, pg.265)

ANS
The solution of the ground state wave function for a
2 x
particle in an infinite box is  n ( x)  sin .
a a
 
2
a
x 2a
x  x dx 
a 0
x sin 2 dx  2  y sin 2 ydy

a  0
 
y 2 y sin 2 y cos 2 y 2
0    
2
y sin ydy
4 4 8 0
4

a
 x  . Likewise,
2
 
2
a
x 2a 2
x2  x 2 dx   x 2 sin 2 dx  3 y
2
sin 2 ydy

a0 a  0

 

y 2 sin 2 ydy  x  x cos 2 x  (1  2 x ) sin 2 x

3 2
3 

0
6 4 8 0

6

4


1 1 
 x2  x  dx  a 2  
2

2 
  3 2 
2 1 1  a2 2 1 1 
x = <x2> - <x>2 = a     =a   2 
 3 22  4  12 2 