Unit 1 Wave-Particle Duality

UNIT 1
WAVE-PARTICLE
DUALITY
Structure

1.1 Introduction 1.4 Wave-Particle Duality

Expected Learning Outcomes 1.5 Matter Waves
1.2 The De Broglie Hypothesis 1.6 Summary
Electron Waves in an Atom 1.7 Terminal Questions
1.3 The Davisson-Germer Experiment 1.8 Solutions and Answers

1.1 INTRODUCTION
In your undergraduate physics courses you have studied the important
experiments and theories that led to the birth of quantum physics. To explain
black body radiation, Planck postulated that the oscillators in the walls of a
black body cavity have discrete energy levels and emit electromagnetic
radiation of frequency  in units of energy equal to h, where h is Planck’s “it is on this concept of
constant. In his explanation of the photoelectric effect, Einstein proposed that the duality of waves and
all radiant energy is made up of discrete bundles or quanta of energy, each corpuscles in Nature,
having an energy h. The Compton scattering experiment gave further proof of expressed in a more or
the particle nature of light. It became clear that under different experimental less abstract form, that
the whole recent
conditions, light could behave either as a wave or as a particle, and
development of
possessed a sort of inherent “duality”. Bohr’s atomic model, in which the theoretical physics has
states of an electron in an atom were quantized, was successful in explaining been founded and that
atomic spectra. all future development of
this science will
In spite of its many successes, the (old) quantum theory was felt to be
apparently have to be
inadequate in some respects. For example, while the theory of atomic spectra, founded”
correctly explained the atomic transitions leading to the spectral lines of the De Broglie,
hydrogen atom, it could not explain the relative intensity of these lines. In the Nobel Lecture (1929)
early 1920s, theoretical physicists developed a more systematic quantum
theory, which came to known as “quantum mechanics”. You will learn in this
block that there are two main approaches to the mathematical formulation of
quantum mechanics. One of these mathematical formulations was built on the
foundations of the de Broglie hypothesis.
In 1923, Louis de Broglie proposed, as part of his doctoral dissertation, that
the “dual” or “wave-particle” nature of radiation is actually a
characteristic of all matter. This is known as the de Broglie hypothesis,
which we discuss in Sec. 1.2. We also introduce the concept of “matter
wave”. In Sec. 1.3, we discuss the Davisson-Germer experiment that first 9
Block 1 Introduction to Quantum Mechanics
confirmed the existence of matter waves. In Sec. 1.4, we explain the concept
of wave-particle duality, which is one of the fundamental principles of
quantum mechanics. In Sec. 1.5, we describe the characteristics of matter
waves and relate those to the motion of a particle. You will learn about an
interesting consequence of representing a particle by a wave packet. We find
that the position and momentum of the particle cannot be measured to any
desired accuracy at the same time (simultaneously). This is known as
Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle about which you will study in the next
unit.
Expected Learning Outcomes
After studying this unit, you should be able to:
 state the de Broglie hypothesis and explain the concept of wave-particle
duality;
 calculate the de Broglie wavelength of a particle in motion;
 explain the concepts of matter wave and wave packet; and

Louis Victor de Broglie  derive the relation between the group velocity and the particle velocity.
(1892-1987) belonged
to an aristocratic 1.2 THE DE BROGLIE HYPOTHESIS
French family and he
In 1923, in a series of notes presented to the Academy of Sciences, Paris a
had a rather unusual
scientific career. His young graduate student, Louis de Broglie, postulated that just as
elder brother Maurice electromagnetic radiation has the characteristics of both waves and particles,
de Broglie was an all forms of matter should also have both particle and wave properties.
outstanding This is known as the de Broglie Hypothesis. In de Broglie’s own words:
experimental physicist
but Louis started out as “…for both matter and radiations, light in particular, it is necessary to introduce
a student of medieval the corpuscle concept and the wave concept at the same time. In other words
history at the Sorbonne the existence of corpuscles accompanied by waves has to be assumed in all
in France. He shifted to cases.” Louis de Broglie, Nobel Lecture, 1929
the study of physics
only after a stint of six His justification for this postulate rested on the argument that nature loves
years in the French symmetry and so the two entities that make up the physical world, matter and
Army during World War electromagnetic radiation, must be symmetrical. If radiation has the
I, in the field radio- characteristics of waves and particles, a particle (of matter) too must have the
communications unit.
characteristics of both particles and waves.
His interest then shifted
to electromagnetic He further developed this idea of “the wave nature of matter” in his doctoral
waves and the thesis, which was presented on November 25, 1924. Just as photons are
philosophical physics associated with every electromagnetic wave, he suggested that every material
problems of the time.
particle must be associated with a wave, which is called a matter wave. He
His hypothesis of wave
particle duality was a presented the following expression for the wavelength  of the matter wave
watershed for the associated with a free particle having linear momentum p:
development of h
quantum mechanics.  (1.1)
De Broglie was p
awarded the Nobel
This wavelength  is called the de Broglie wavelength of the particle. Note
Prize in Physics in
1929 for the discovery
from Eq. (1.1) that the wavelength of the wave associated with a particle of
of the wave nature of matter in motion is inversely proportional to the particle's momentum,
the electron. and the constant of proportionality is just the Planck constant.
10
Unit 1 Wave-Particle Duality
Eq. (1.1) is a complete statement of the wave-particle duality.
A particle with linear momentum p can exhibit wave-like properties and the
wavelength of the associated matter waves is h/p. The converse is also true.
So, an electromagnetic wave of wavelength  has particle-like properties and
the linear momentum associated with the particle is h/ .
The total energy of the particle is related to the frequency of the wave
associated with it by the relation:
E
 (1.2)
h
Do you note that Eq. (1.1) is also the the expression for the linear momentum
of the photon, and Eq. (1.2) also gives the energy of the photon. So, in Eqs.
(1.1 and 1.2), you can see that the wave aspects (defined by the wavelength
and frequency) and particle aspects (defined by its energy and linear
momentum) for a material particle are related in exactly the same way as
they are for photons and electromagnetic radiation. This is what de Broglie “Since corpuscles and
waves cannot be
had set out to do (read the margin remark).
independent because,
Although we refer to the wave associated with a moving particle as a matter according to Bohr’s
wave, you must understand that matter waves are NOT particles of matter expression, they
oscillating in space. De Broglie himself did not say anything about the physical constitute two
complementary forces of
nature of this matter wave. We will discuss wave-particle duality and matter
reality, it must be
waves in detail in Secs. 1.4 and 1.5, respectively. possible to establish a
This novel idea of matter waves did not receive much attention in the scientific certain parallelism
community, mainly because there was no experimental evidence to support between the motion of a
corpuscle and the
them. However, when Einstein received a copy of Louis de Broglie’s doctoral
propagation of the
thesis, he recognized at once the importance of the revolutionary ideas put associated wave.”
forth in it. He recommended the thesis to Erwin Schrödinger, who then went
 Louis de Broglie (1929)
on to expand the idea of the wave associated with a moving particle. He
in his Nobel Lecture
deduced a complete theory with the celebrated Schrödinger equation to
In 1926, the Austrian
explain the behaviour of these waves.
physicist Erwin
To understand why experimental proof for the existence of matter waves took Schrödinger published
so long in coming, you should work through Examples 1.1 and 1.2. four papers in which the
wave nature of particles
Example 1.1 was treated explicitly
with wave equations.
Calculate the de Broglie wavelength for a cricket ball travelling at a speed of The physical
50 ms1 given that its mass is 150g. interpretation of the
wave function was given
Solution : We use Eq. (1.1) to determine the de Broglie wavelength for the by Max Born in the same
cricket ball. year.

With m  150g  0.15 kg and v  50 ms1, we get

h h 6.626  10 34 Js
 0.88  10 34 m
  

p mv 0.150 kg  50.0 ms1 
Note that the wavelength of the cricket ball of Example 1.1 is  10 34 m . Now
recall how you observe the wave nature of light  you carry out experiments
11
on interference and diffraction of light keeping slit sizes of the order of the
Block 1 Introduction to Quantum Mechanics
wavelengths (e.g., thin wire). Now if you wanted to observe the “wave-like”
properties of the ball in Example 1.1, you would need a slit of the order of
10 34 m for it to exhibit either interference or diffraction. This is smaller than
the size of any known object (smaller even than atomic sizes). So, is it
possible to have slits of such widths? At present, this seems rather out of
question. This is why we do not observe the wave nature of the cricket ball
experimentally or around us. This is true of all macroscopic objects.
But does this mean that macroscopic objects do not have wave-like
properties? No. It only means that a macroscopic object does have a wave
associated with it, but the wavelength is so small that it cannot be
measured. So, we describe macroscopic objects as particles in all
situations. Therefore, we continue to study the motion of macroscopic objects
using the laws of classical mechanics.
REMEMBER: The de Broglie hypothesis does not change the classical
description developed by Newton for the motion of macroscopic objects. You
may like to know: Why, then, do we even talk about the wave nature of
matter? When does it become important in actual observations and
experiments?
To understand that, let us calculate the de Broglie wavelength of a really tiny
particle like an electron. Let us work out another example.
Example 1.2
Calculate the de Broglie wavelength of an electron accelerated from rest
through a potential difference of 100 V.
Solution : We use the expressions of kinetic energy in terms of the potential
and linear momentum along with Eq. (1.1).
The kinetic energy, K, of the electron is equal to the work done in accelerating
the electron through a potential difference V  100 V. So, we write
1
K mev 2  eV (i)
2
where me is the mass of the electron and v, its speed.

 mev 2  2e V  mev  2mee V (ii)

Therefore, the linear momentum of the electron is

p  mev  2meeV (iii)
Substituting for p from Eq. (iii) in Eq. (1.1), we get the expression for the de
Broglie wavelength of the electron as:
h h
  (iv)
p 2me eV
Substituting the values of h, e, me and V in Eq. (iv) we get:
6.626  10 34 Js

  
2  9.109  10 31 kg 1.6  10 19 C  100 V 
 1.227  10 10 m  1.23 Å

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Unit 1 Wave-Particle Duality
Did you note that that the de Broglie wavelength of the electron in
Example 1.2 is much smaller than that of the cricket ball (Example 1.1)? In
fact, the wavelength of the electron in this case (~ 1.2  10 10 m) lies in the
range of the wavelengths for X-rays (10 8 m to 10 12 m). The electron
wavelength is also of the order of the typical spacing between atoms in a
crystal. In that case, the electron waves should undergo diffraction by a crystal
just like X-rays! In fact, this is how the existence of matter waves was first
confirmed, in electron diffractions experiments which you will read about in
Sec. 1.3.

In general, when a particle of mass m carrying a charge q is accelerated from

rest through a potential difference V, its de Broglie wavelength is given by the
relation:

h
 (1.3)
2mqV

We can calculate the de Broglie wavelength of a particle of mass m, if we

p2
know its kinetic energy (K). Since we know that K  , we can write
2m
p  2mK , and the de Broglie wavelength of the particle is:

h
 (1.4)
2mK

Let us revise the de Broglie hypothesis before you study further.

De Broglie hypothesis states that

Just as electromagnetic radiation has the characteristics of both waves and
particles, all forms of matter should also have both particle and wave
properties.
The wavelength of the matter wave associated with a particle having linear
momentum p is:
h
 (1.1)
p
The frequency of the matter wave is:
E
 (1.2)
h
where E is the energy of the particle.
The de Broglie wavelength of a particle of mass m carrying charge q, and
accelerated from rest through a potential difference V, is given by:
h
 (1.3)
2mqV
The de Broglie wavelength of a particle of mass m having kinetic energy K is
given by:
h
 (1.4)
2mK
13
Block 1 Introduction to Quantum Mechanics
You may now like to solve a few problems.

SAQ 1
a) Calculate the de Broglie wavelength of i) a proton and ii) an alpha particle,
each having kinetic energy 4.0 keV. The mass of an alpha particle is
6.644  10 27 kg .

b) The average kinetic energy of a molecule of an ideal gas at a temperature T

3
is kBT . Using this relation, calculate the average de Broglie wavelength of
2
a gas of oxygen molecules at room temperature (300 K). Take the mass of
the oxygen molecule to be 5.31 10 26 kg.

Before you learn about the experimental proof of the existence of matter
L waves, we would like to present a simple application of Eq. (1.1). De Broglie
applied the idea of matter wave to the motion of electrons in atoms and was
able to provide an explanation for Bohr’s quantization rules for the stability of
(a)
atomic orbits. Let us see how.
1.2.1 Electron Waves in an Atom
1  L / 2 Being a lover of music, De Broglie decided to look upon the atom as a musical
(b) instrument. You have learnt about musical notes in your undergraduate
courses. You know that a musical instrument can have only a particular basic
tone and related overtones. For example, when a guitar string is plucked, the
vibrations of the string set up standing waves. But only those standing waves
are allowed which have nodes at both ends. Because of this, only particular
2  L
wavelengths are allowed (see Fig. 1.1).
(c)
De Broglie then suggested that the electron is moving in an orbit inside the
atom, accompanied by its matter wave or electron wave. He stipulated that
for the stability of the orbit, the length of the orbit should be such that only an
 3  3L / 2 integer number of wavelengths of the electron waves fit into it.
(d) So, for the first atomic orbital which has radius r1 , we should have 2r1   (

Fig. 1.1: Standing is the de Broglie wavelength of the electron wave in the orbital). For the
waves on a guitar second atomic orbital, which has radius r2 , we should have 2r2  , and so
string of length L with on. In general, we can write that in an allowed atomic orbital which has
nodes(N) and radius rn , the following condition must be satisfied:
antinodes(A) marked.
2rn  n, for n  1, 2, 3.... (1.5)

So only certain discrete values of rn are possible (see Fig. 1.2). Assuming that
the wavelength of the electron wave is [Eq. (1.1)]:
h h
  (1.6)
p mev

we can write, from Eq. (1.5),

 h 
2rn  n  n  (1.7)
 mev 
14
Unit 1 Wave-Particle Duality

n 3

n 2

Fig. 1.2: De Broglie waves in atomic orbitals.

Rearranging the terms of Eq. (1.7), we get back the familiar angular
momentum quantization condition for the stationary orbits of the electron in the
atom of Bohr’s atomic model:

 h 
mevrn  n   n (1.8)
 2 

So, now we have a physical interpretation of the angular momentum

quantization condition, as a condition for having standing waves of electrons in
the atomic orbit. Let us now discuss the electron diffraction experiment that
gave us the first proof of the existence of the matter waves proposed by de
Broglie. G. Davisson and
L. H Germer worked at
1.3 THE DAVISSON-GERMER EXPERIMENT the Bell Telephone
Laboratories in the
The Davisson-Germer experiment led to the first experimental confirmation of
United States of
the existence of matter waves and a measurement of the electron wavelength. America. In the year
In Fig. 1.3 you can see a schematic diagram of the experimental set up. 1925, they designed
and built a vacuum
Diffracted apparatus to study the
Detector energies of electrons
electron
beam scattered by a metal
Electron
surface. They were quite
gun 
Nickel Target unaware of the work of
Anode de Broglie and his idea of
an electron wave. That
Filament
this experiment
Incident electron
eventually led to a
beam
confirmation of the
existence of matter
waves, was happy
Fig. 1.3: The experimental setup for the electron diffraction experiment.
chance at its best!
A well-collimated beam of electrons, produced by an electron gun was allowed Davisson and G. P
Thomson received the
to be incident on a poly crystalline nickel sample normal to its surface. In an
Nobel Prize in Physics
electron gun, thermal electrons emitted by a heated filament are accelerated in 1936 for their
through a potential difference V. The kinetic energy K (and the velocity v) of experimental discovery
the electrons can be adjusted by adjusting the potential difference V since of the diffraction of
electrons by crystals.
1
K mev 2  eV 15
2
Block 1 Introduction to Quantum Mechanics
The entire apparatus was enclosed in an evacuated chamber to prevent the
collision of electrons with air molecules. Electrons are scattered in different
directions from the Nickel surface. The intensity of the scattered electrons
could be measured as a function of the scattering angle  by a sensitive
detector. Initially a smooth variation of the intensity of the beam with  was
observed (as is seen for V = 40 V and V = 68 V in Fig. 1.4)

For a fixed energy, the intensity was found to decrease with . In course of
their experiment an oxide coating got deposited on the nickel sample due to
an accidental break in their vacuum system. To remove the oxide layer,
Davisson and Germer heated the nickel sample in a hydrogen atmosphere.

When they continued the scattering experiments with this reduced sample, the
results were very different. A distinct variation of intensity with scattering angle
was observed (see second to sixth figures in Fig. 1.4). Based on their original
work, for electrons with kinetic energy of 54 eV, a maximum was observed in
the scattered intensity at  = 50 (Nobel Lecture, 1936). When the kinetic
energy of the electrons was appreciably higher or lower that 54 eV, as you can
see in Fig 1.4, the maximum was found to disappear!

40 V 44 V 48 V 54 V 60 V 64 V 68 V

Fig. 1.4: Experimental results at different accelerating voltages.

It turned out that heating the polycrystalline nickel sample had led to formation
of large regions of single crystals. The regular extended arrays of atoms in the
single crystal regions then behave like a diffraction grating, and electron
diffraction takes place from the interference of electron waves, in the same
way that X-ray diffraction takes place in a crystal.

Recognizing the importance of this discovery, Davisson and Germer

thoroughly investigated electron scattering from large single crystals. They
were able to prove in 1927, that electrons indeed undergo diffraction and the
h
electron wavelength is   . This value of the electron wavelength was
mev
calculated from the experiments by applying the conditions of constructive
interference.

It agrees with the value of the electron wavelength e calculated from the de
h
Broglie relation (Eq. 1.7):  e 
2meeV

They experimented with different orientations of the target and different kinetic
energies of the electron and were able to able to confirm the relation between
the electron wavelength and linear momentum in each (nineteen) of these.
16
Unit 1 Wave-Particle Duality
Within a few months of this experiment, British physicist G.P. Thomson also
observed electron diffraction by passing a beam of high energy electrons
In an electron
through a very thin film. The wave properties of neutral atoms and molecules
microscope, a beam of
were demonstrated by Eastermann, Frisch and Stern, by observing the high energy electrons
diffraction of hydrogen and helium through a lithium fluoride crystal. from an electron gun is
focused into a thin
In recent times, diffraction studies have been carried for molecules as large as coherent beam using a
fullerene molecule (C60); and even a molecule comprising over one hundred condenser lens. This
atoms, C48H26F24N8O8, which you may have thought was too large to exhibit beam is used to study
wave nature! Experiments on wave particle duality are carried out with even the specimen and a two
larger molecules. So, it is quite possible that some day you would see at what dimensional shadow
pattern is created on a
size of an object there is a transition from the world of everyday physics where
screen, depending on
classical laws hold into the quantum realm. the varying degrees of
transmission through
The Davisson- Germer experiment shows us that electrons behave like waves.
the sample. The TEM
The experiment also shows that we can actually control the wavelength by remains an
adjusting the potential difference through which the electrons are accelerated. indispensable tool for
material
Since the electron wavelength is so much less than that of visible light, it was characterization to this
thought than an “electron microscope” would have a much higher resolution date and while over the
than an ordinary microscope. The first such transmission electron microscope years there has been a
(TEM) was built in 1931 by Max Knoll and Ernst Ruska (read the margin huge improvement in
remark). You may like to attempt an SAQ before studying further. the performance of a
TEM, the working
You may now like to solve a few problems. principle remains the
same.

SAQ 2 Ernst Ruska received

the Nobel Prize in
The neutron diffraction experiment was carried out for the first time in 1945.
Physics in 1986 for the
Calculate the linear momentum and energy of a neutron which would have a design of the first
wavelength of the order of a typical atomic spacing ~ 2.0 Å. electron microscope.

1.4 WAVE-PARTICLE DUALITY

So far in this unit, we have talked a lot about the wave nature of matter. We
have seen that when a beam of electrons (and indeed many other particles,
albeit very small ones) passes through a crystal or a thin metal film, we get a
diffraction pattern. But you have also studied in physics courses so far that the
electron is a tiny negatively charged particle. When these negatively charged
particles flow in a circuit they create an electric current. So, it is clear that
depending on the experiment being carried out, the electron could behave
either as a particle or as a wave.

What about electromagnetic radiation? The wave nature of light has been
known for a very long time. Yet, you know that light shows its particle nature
in its interactions with matter, in photoelectric effect and in Compton effect.

In fact, there is enough evidence to show that light behaves both as a particle
and a wave, and so do electrons, sub atomic particles, atoms and molecules.
It would seem that this “wave-particle” duality is, therefore a universal
phenomenon. However, the effects of wave-particle duality are appreciable
only in the microscopic world! In the everyday world of our experiences, the 17
Block 1 Introduction to Quantum Mechanics
classical laws hold. This is because Planck’s constant h is a tiny number
though finite. Note from Eq. (1.1) that Planck’s constant establishes the
relation between the particle and wave aspects of a wave and between the
wave and particle aspects of a material particle (Eq. 1.1).
Wave-particle duality
ascribes two seemingly So, wave-particle duality is a basic tenet of quantum theory even though it is
contradictory traits to a one of the most intriguing and mind- boggling ideas of modern physics.
single object.
In fact the idea of “wave-particle duality” was called "one real mystery of
quantum mechanics" by the famous physicist Richard Feynman. You may
wonder: How does it actually happen? Does a particle actually change its
nature depending on the experiment being carried out on it  behaving like a
particle at times and like a wave at other times? Or is it always
simultaneously a particle and a wave  just that we see wave-like properties
in some experiments and its particle-like properties in others? Can we show
that something can actually behave simultaneously like a particle and a wave,
and clinch this debate? The standard interpretation of quantum mechanics
(arrived at in1925 in Copenhagen, capital of Denmark) says that we can never
observe both the wave and particle aspects of a quantum system
simultaneously. This is the idea of complementarity that we will discuss in
Unit 2.

However, after decades of speculation on this subject, in 2012, a team of

physicists from the University of Bristol (in the United Kingdom) were able to
design an experiment in which the particle and wave behaviour of light could
be investigated at the same time. They were able to show that the photon
behaves simultaneously as a particle and a wave (as reported in Science 02
Nov 2012: Vol. 338, Issue 6107, pp. 634-637, DOI: 10.1126/science.122671).

A particle is localized in space, a wave is not. So, in the world of microscopic

particles where wave-particle duality is significant, we can no longer work with
the classical description of the particle. Instead we need a description of the
particle which is consistent with the de Broglie hypothesis. So far we have
been talking only about the wavelength and frequency of the matter wave
associated with a particle. We can call this microscopic particle a quantum
particle because quantum effects are significant. What more can we say about
this matter wave?

Clearly if the motion of a quantum particle is governed by the propagation of

the matter wave associated with it, it is necessary to establish a relation
between the properties of the wave and the particle it describes. Let us now
discuss the matter wave in detail.

1.5 MATTER WAVES

You have learnt that the de Broglie wavelength of a particle having linear
h
momentum p is   . So, if the motion of a quantum particle is governed by
p
the propagation of the matter wave associated with it, we must know how the
matter wave propagates and what kind of a wave it is.
18
Unit 1 Wave-Particle Duality
You have studied about mechanical waves and electromagnetic waves in
Block 1 of BPHCT-137. You know that every wave is described by two things:
i) a function of spatial coordinates (x,y,z) and time, the “wave function, and
ii) a differential equation in spatial and time coordinates, the “wave
equation”, which tells us how the wave function evolves in space and time.
So let us start by introducing a wave function ( x, y , z, t ) to represent the
matter wave.
The classical one-dimensional wave equation is:
d 2y 1 d 2y
 (1.9)
dt 2 v 2 dx 2
And it defines a travelling wave given by:
y  A sin(kx  t ) (1.10)

where A is the amplitude of the wave. The angular frequency  and the wave
number k are related to the wavelength  and the frequency  of the wave by
the relations:
2
  2 and k (1.11)

The velocity “v” of the wave, also called its phase velocity, is v p  .

Now consider a particle that has linear momentum p and total energy E, and is
moving along the x-direction. Let us assume that the matter wave associated
with the particle is given by:
x 
( x, t )  A sin( kx  t )  A sin 2  t  (1.12)
 
where  is the de Broglie wavelength and  and  in Eq. (1.12) are defined by
the Eqs. (1.1 and 1.2), respectively (see Fig. 1.5).
(x,t)

Fig. 1.5: The matter wave as a sine wave of fixed wavelength.

If the net force being exerted on the particle is zero (i.e., it is a free particle),
then the momentum of the particle does not change with time and so the de
Broglie wavelength  is a constant.
Using the de Broglie relation [Eq. (1.1)] in Eq. (1.12), we can relate the wave
number k for the matter wave to the momentum p of the particle:
2 h  h 
  p   k or p  k (1.13)
k p  2 
19
Block 1 Introduction to Quantum Mechanics
Extending Eq. (1.13) to the three-dimensional space, we can write the relation

between the momentum vector p and the wave vector k for a matter wave
as:
 
p  k (1.14)

The wave vector, as you know, gives the direction of propagation of a wave.
So, the momentum (and hence the velocity) of the particle is always
parallel to the direction of the propagation of the matter wave associated
with it!

Using the relation between the angular frequency  and the frequency ,
  2 in Eq. (1.2) we get the total energy of the particle as:

 
E  h   h     (1.15)
 2 

p2
Further, for a classical free particle we know that E  . So, using
2m
Eqs. (1.13) and (1.15), we can write:

p 2 k 2 k 2
E       (1.16)
2m 2m 2m

This gives us the relation between the angular frequency and wave number of
the matter wave. A relation between the angular frequency  and the wave
number k is called a dispersion relation. Notice that   k 2 for a matter
wave, whereas   k for the light wave

The phase velocity of a wave is:


vp  (1.17)
k

From the dispersion relation for the matter wave [Eq. (1.16)], we can write the
phase velocity of the matter wave as:

 k p
vp    (1.18)
k 2m 2m

So, you have learnt that if you represent the matter wave associated with a
particle of mass m moving with a momentum p (  mv ) as a travelling sine
wave given by Eq. (1.12), the phase velocity of this matter wave is one-half of
the classical velocity (v) of the particle.

There is another aspect to be considered when you associate the moving

particle with a wave of the kind shown in Fig. 1.5. Notice that the wave is
spread out uniformly in space. Now ask yourself this question: Where is the
particle? Can you locate it in a particular position? Obviously, you cannot!

It can be anywhere in the region in which the wave propagates. So although

the particle has a definite momentum, it appears that the particle does not
have a definite location in space. So can it really represent a particle? This
20 also has implications about which we will study in detail in Unit 2.
Unit 1 Wave-Particle Duality
If a matter wave has to represent a particle, it should be spatially associated
with the particle in such a way that the amplitude of the wave is non-zero
only in the neighbourhood of the particle. So, the matter wave should not
look like the wave in Fig 1.5. Rather it should look like the pulse that is
generated when you flip one end of a long string, as shown in Fig 1.6. Unlike a
wave, pulses or wave groups as they are called, have both a starting point
and an ending point, and are therefore localized over a region of space.
A wave group is formed by the superposition of waves of different
wavelengths (frequencies). The amplitudes and phases of these waves are Fig. 1.6: A wave pulse.
such that when they are superposed, there is a net amplitude over a very
small region; outside that region, the net amplitude is zero.
Consider a simple situation in which two waves with slightly different
wavelengths are superimposed. The nature of the resultant wave is quite
different from either of the individual waves.
Consider the following two waves:
1( x, t )  A sin(kx  t ); 2 ( x, t )  A sin(k  k )x  (  )t 
(1.19)
The resultant wave (shown in Fig. 1.7) is:   1  2

 k     
or ( x, t )  2 A cos  x   t  sin( kx  t ) (1.20)
 2   2 

1(x,t)
x (a)

2(x,t)

x (b)

(x,t)

x (c)

Fig. 1.7: Superposition of two waves of the same amplitude but slightly different
frequencies: a)  1( x, t ); b)  2 ( x, t ); c) ( x, t )  1( x, t )   2 ( x, t ). 

You can see that the resultant wave  has a broad envelope equal to
 k     
2Acos x   t  (shown by the dashed line in Fig. 1.7c) which
 2   2  
modulates the sine wave sin( kx  t ). This is still not really a pulse, but an
infinite wave.
To construct a pulse, you have to superimpose a very large number of waves
having a continuous distribution of wavelengths distributed about a central
wavelength . Such a pulse is called a “wave-packet” and is shown in Fig 1.8.
21
Block 1 Introduction to Quantum Mechanics
Although the wave packet shown in Fig. 1.8 is a wave, it is localized in space.
It has finite amplitude over a region (x), and is actually zero everywhere else.
Clearly, it exhibits both the particle and wave aspects. This is why we
represent a microscopic particle not by wave but by a wave packet.



x

Fig. 1.8: The superposition of a group of waves with a spread of wavelength 

about a central wavelength , leads to the formation of a wave packet,
which has a finite size x.

The central wavelength of the wave packet is the de Broglie wavelength

of the particle.

A wave packet is a group of waves with slightly different wavelengths

and frequencies interfering with one another in such a manner that
the amplitude of the group (i.e., the envelope) is non-zero only in the
neighbourhood of the particle.

How do we determine the velocity of this wave packet? After all, it is supposed
to describe a particle moving with a certain velocity!
We have talked about the phase velocity of a wave, earlier in this section.
Phase velocity is the velocity of a wave of a single wavelength.
But a wave packet consists of waves of different wavelengths, each
wavelength corresponding to a different momentum. From Eq. (1.18), you
know that the velocity of each of these waves will be different.
The envelope of a wave group (the dashed line in Fig. 1.7) moves with a
d
different velocity, which is called the group velocity: v g  .
dk
Using Eq. (1.16) for the dispersion relation for a matter wave, we can write
down the group velocity of the matter wave as:

d d  k 2  k p
vg      v (1.21)
dk dk  2m  m m

22
Unit 1 Wave-Particle Duality
So the group velocity of the wave packet is just the velocity of the
particle (Fig 1.9).
v

vg  v

Fig. 1.9: The matter wave for a particle of mass m is a wave packet.

A particle is represented by a group of waves called a wave packet.

The group velocity of the wave packet is equal to the velocity of the
particle.

So far, you have studied that a particle cannot be represented by a single

wave, but rather a group of waves is required to represent it. From Eq. (1.1),
we can write

 p
 (1.22)
 p

and   0  p  0

The difference  is finite because we cannot use a single wave to describe a

spatially localized particle. Eq. (1.21) tells us that if  is finite, p is also
finite.

This suggests that there is a fundamental limit to the accuracy with which
we can measure a particle’s position and linear momentum at the same
time. In the next unit, we will discuss this idea.

Let us now summarise what you have learnt in this unit.

1.6 SUMMARY
 The de Broglie hypothesis states that just as electromagnetic
radiation has the characteristics of both waves and particles, all forms
of matter should also have both particle and wave properties. The
wavelength of the matter wave associated with a particle which has a
linear momentum p is:

h

p

E
The frequency of the matter wave is: 
h 23
Block 1 Introduction to Quantum Mechanics
where E is the energy of the particle.

The de Broglie wavelength of a particle of mass m carrying charge q,

and accelerated from rest through a potential difference V, is given by:

h

2mqV

The de Broglie wavelength of a particle of mass m having kinetic

energy K is given by:

h

2mK

The Davisson-Germer experiment was the first experimental

confirmation of the de Broglie hypothesis and the existence of matter
waves.

 Wave-particle duality ascribes two seemingly contradictory traits of

the particle and the wave to a single entity. So, electromagnetic
radiation and microscopic particles like the electrons, sub atomic
particles, atoms and molecules behave both as a particle and a
wave. This is a universal phenomenon. However, the effects of wave-
particle duality are appreciable only in the microscopic world.

 Matter waves are associated with microscopic particles for which

wave-particle duality is significant. The motion of a quantum particle is
governed by the propagation of the matter wave associated with it. The
matter wave associated with a particle is not a single wave but a wave
packet. Thus, a particle is represented by a group of waves called a
wave packet, which is a group of waves with slightly different
wavelengths and frequencies interfering with one another in such a
manner that the amplitude of the group (the envelope) is non-zero only
in the neighbourhood of the particle.

The group velocity of the wave packet is equal to the velocity of the
particle.

1.7 TERMINAL QUESTIONS

1. Calculate the de Broglie wavelength of (i) a 10 eV electron, and (ii) a
1.0MeV neutron.

2. An increase of 150 eV in the energy of an electron reduces its de Broglie

wavelength to half of its earlier value. Calculate the initial de Broglie
wavelength.

3. What is the potential through which a proton must be accelerated so that

its de Broglie wavelength is 2.0 Å?

4. Determine the de Broglie wavelength of an electron in the first Bohr orbit.

5. An electron has a de Broglie wavelength equal to that of a photon of red

light having wavelength 620 nm. (i) Calculate the energy of the electron.
24
Unit 1 Wave-Particle Duality
(ii) What would its de Broglie wavelength be if the energy of the electron
were equal to the energy of this photon?

6. Calculate the average de Broglie wavelength for a gas of fullerene (C60)

molecules heated to a temperature of 900 K. The mass of a fullerene
molecule is approximately 720 amu (1amu  1.66 10 27 kg).

7. In an electron microscope, electrons are accelerated through a voltage of

200 keV. Calculate the electron’s de Broglie wavelength (assume that the
electron is non-relativistic).

8. A thermal neutron with a speed v corresponding to the average thermal

3
energy k BT at temperature T  300 K is incident on a crystal. Will a
2
diffraction pattern be observed? Explain.

9. A photon and an electron each have energy of 6.0  103 eV . What are
their wavelengths? Which of these would you use to probe atomic
structures?

10. Calculate the de Broglie wavelength of a 87Rb (Rubidium) atom that has
been laser cooled to 120 µK (the mass of a Rubidium atom
is 1.419  10 25 kg ).

1.8 SOLUTIONS AND ANSWERS

Self-Assessment Questions
1. a) We use Eq. (1.4) for calculating  with 1eV  1.6  10 19 J

K  4.0 keV  4.0  103 eV  6.4  10 16 J (see the margin remark). 1keV  10 3 eV

27  1.6  10 16 J

i) Substituting m  mp  1.673  10 kg, we get:

6.626  10 34 Js
  4.5  10 13 m
 
2  1.673  10  27 kg  6.4  10 16 J 
ii) Substituting m  m  6.664  10 27 kg , we get:

6.626  10 34 Js
  2.3  10 13 m

2  6.664  10  27

kg  6.4  10 16
J 
b) We use Eq. (1.4) with m  5.312  10 26 kg and :

K
3
2
3
 
k BT   1.380  10  23 JK 1  300 K  6.21  10 21 J
2

6.626  10 34 Js
   2.6  10 11 m

2  5.31  10  26
 
kg  6.21  10  21
J 
2. The de Broglie wavelength of the neutron is 2.0 Å. So,   2  10 10 m .
From Eq. (1.1), we get the linear momentum p as:

h 6.626  10 34 Js
p   3.313  10 24 kg ms 1
 10 25
2  10 m
Block 1 Introduction to Quantum Mechanics
p2
The energy of this neutron would be E  where
2mn
mn  1.675  10 27 kg .

3.313  10 kg ms 
 24 1 2
 3.276  10 21 J  2.0  10 2 eV
2  1.675  10 kg
E
 27

Terminal Questions
1. We use Eq. (1.4) for calculating 
i) Substituting m  me  9.109  10 31 kg and K  10 eV  1.6  10 18 J
we get:

6.626  10 34 Js

 
2  9.109  10  31 kg  1.6  10 18 J 
 3.9  10 10 m  3.9 Å
ii) Substituting m  mn  1.675  10 27 kg and
K  1.0 MeV  1.6  10 13 J :
6.626  10 34 Js
  2.9  10 14 m

2  1.675  10  27

kg  1.6  10 13
J 
2. Let the initial de Broglie wavelength of the electron be  1 corresponding to
an energy K1 . From Eq. (1.4) we can write:
h
1  (i)
2me K1
When the energy is increased to K 2  K1  150 eV the de Broglie
wavelength of the electron is  2  1 2 , so we have
h  h
2   1 (ii)
2me K 2 2 2me K1  150 eV 

Dividing Eq. (i) by Eq. (ii) we get:

K1  150 eV   2  K  50 eV (iii)
1
K1
Substituting for K1 in Eq. (i) we get:

6.626  10 34 Js
  1.7  10 10 m  1.7 Å

2  9.109  10  31

kg  50  1.6  10 19
J 
3. From Eq. (1.3), we write the relation between the de Broglie wavelength ,
of a charged particle of mass m and charge q and the potential V through
which it is accelerated as:
h2
V  (i)
2mq2

Substituting m  mp  1.673  10 27 kg,   2.0  10 10 m and

q  1.6  10 19 C in Eq. (i), we get
26
Unit 1 Wave-Particle Duality

V 
6.626  10  34 Js2
2  1.673  10  27 kg  1.6  10 19 C   2.0  10 10 m 
2

 2.0  10 2 V
4. We use Eq. (1.4) for calculating .
Substituting m  me  9.109  10 31 kg and the energy of the electron in
the first Bohr orbit, which is K  13.6 eV  2.18  10 18 J, we get:

6.626  10 34 Js

 
2  9.109  10  31 kg  2.18  10 18 J 
 3.33  10 10 m  3.33 Å
5. i) Using Eq. (1.1), we can write the kinetic energy of the electron as:

p2 h2
K  (i)
2me 22m
e

Using   620 nm  620  10 9 m  6.2  10 7 m in Eq. (i), the kinetic

energy of the electron is:

K
6.626  10 Js  34 2

2  6.20  10 m  9.109  10 
7 2  31
kg

 6.27  10 25 J

iii) The energy of a photon which has a wavelength   6.2  10 7 m is

hc 6.626  10 34 Js 3  108 ms 1

E   3.2  10 19 J
 7
6.2  10 m
The de Broglie wavelength of the electron, if its energy is equal to the
energy of a photon of wavelength   6.2  10 7 m, can be calculated
using Eq. (1.4) with K  3.2  10 19 J :

6.626  10 34 Js

 
2  9.109  10 31 kg  3.2  10 19 J 
 8.7  10 10 m  8.7 Å
6. The mass of the fullerene (C60) molecule is:
mF  720 amu  720  1.66  10 27 kg  1.20  10 24 kg

The kinetic energy of the C60 molecule at 900 K is:

K
3
2
3
 
k BT   1.38  10  23 JK 1  900 K   1.863  10 20 J
2
Using Eq. (1.4) with K  1.863  10 20 J and m  mF we get,

6.626  10 34 Js

 
2  1.204  10  24 kg  1.863  10  20 J 
 3.13  10 12 m  3.13 pm 27
Block 1 Introduction to Quantum Mechanics
7. We use Eq. (1.4) with m  me , q  e and V  200 keV  2.0  10 5 V :

6.626  10 34 Js

 
2  9.109  10 31 kg  1.6  10 19 C  2.0  105 V  
 2.75  10 12 m  2.75 pm

8. The kinetic energy corresponding to 300 K is (calculated in SAQ1b):

3
K k B 300 K   6.21 10  21 J (i)
2
The de Broglie wavelength for a neutron with this energy K can be
calculated from Eq. (1.4) with m  mn :

h 6.626  10 34 Js
 
2mn K  
2  1.675  10  27 kg  6.21  10  21 J 
 1.45  10 10 m  1.45 Å
Neutron diffraction will take place because the de Broglie wavelength of
the neutron  lattice spacings in the crystal.

9. The energy E  6.0  103 eV  6.0  1.6  10 19  103 J  9.6  10 16 J
The wavelength of the photon is:
hc 6.626  10 34 Js   3  10 8 ms 1 
  
E 9.6  10 16 J

 2.1 10 10 m  2.1 Å

To calculate the de Broglie of an electron with this energy E we use
Eq. (1.4) with K = E,

h 6.626  10 34 Js
e  
2meE   
2  9.109  10  31 kg  9.6  10 16 J 
 1.584  10 11 m  0.16 Å
So, electrons can be used to prove atomic structures, because  e is of the
order of atomic sizes.
10. The kinetic energy K at a temperature of T  120 μK  120  10 6 K is

K
3
2
3
  
k BT   1.38  10 23 JK 1  120  10 6 K
2

 2.484  10 27 J
Using m  1.419  10 25 kg and the value of K in Eq. (1.4), we get:

6.626  10 34 Js

  
2  1.419  10 25 kg  2.484  10 27 J 
 2.5  10 8 m  25 nm

28