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Interview on Quantum Mechanics
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The Finding of Quantum Mechanics
Werner Heisenberg extended his time at Bohr’s Institute of Theoretical Physics at the University of Copenhagen. While he was here he was fixing the problems of spectrum intensities of the electron. His position was based on observable quantities. His assistant, Pascual Jordan realized that Heisenberg’s formalism was lacking in non-commutative multiplication, and they could combine matrix algebra. Combing Born, Heisenberg, and Jordan they established the foundation. -
Uncertainty Principle
He articulated that momentum and position of a particle could not be measured at the same time. Heisenberg conclusion said it was impossible because it required exact knowledge on position and momentum conditions. The probabilistic formulations in in the atomic theory but it was not out of the knowledge of not knowing but from the relationship between the variables. -
Nobel Prize
Heisenberg took a job in Leipzig. He embedded himself on his research to create a quantum field theory. They united quantum mechanics with relativity theory to understand the interaction of particles and fields. He continued to work on the theory of the atomic nucleus following the discovery of the neutron. He continued to develop a model of proton and neutron interaction which later became the strong force. He won the 1932 Noble Prize for Physics. -
World Was II
Heisenberg was drafted into working for the Army Weapons Bureau after the German invasion of Poland. He was working on nuclear energy. Himself and his research group were unsuccessful in creating a reactor or an atomic bomb. The controversy says he was incompetent or he delayed or sabotaged the effort. -
Citations
The Nobel Prize in Physics 1932. NobelPrize.org. (n.d.). https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/1932/heisenberg/biographical/. Physics Today. (n.d.). https://physicstoday.scitation.org/.