What is Quantum: Definition and 999 Discussions

In physics, a quantum (plural quanta) is the minimum amount of any physical entity (physical property) involved in an interaction. The fundamental notion that a physical property can be "quantized" is referred to as "the hypothesis of quantization". This means that the magnitude of the physical property can take on only discrete values consisting of integer multiples of one quantum.
For example, a photon is a single quantum of light (or of any other form of electromagnetic radiation). Similarly, the energy of an electron bound within an atom is quantized and can exist only in certain discrete values. (Atoms and matter in general are stable because electrons can exist only at discrete energy levels within an atom.) Quantization is one of the foundations of the much broader physics of quantum mechanics. Quantization of energy and its influence on how energy and matter interact (quantum electrodynamics) is part of the fundamental framework for understanding and describing nature.

View More On Wikipedia.org
  1. B

    Gaussian wave pack problem

    hi, I'm solving this statement, We split into parts Can some expert in Quantum say that my working is professional? Kind wishes to you
  2. B

    Particle in one dimension wave function from Quantum Mechanics

    Hi, I try and solve this problem I have solved the problem in different parts But me not sure how to plot the graph. Maybe someone knows? Merci
  3. D

    B Need documents to help me understand quantum computing please

    How did you find PF?: Good Need documents to help me understand quantum computing!
  4. Q

    I Experiment with quantum dot

    A quantum dot is placed in a line between two optic fibers The dot can emit a photon in every direction which is unknown. If the fibers are combined at a beamsplitter would there be interference if the photon is not observed outside the fibers? Do you know if somebody made such experiment...
  5. PeterDonis

    A A possible quantum field theory of tachyons?

    I have come across the following paper (arxiv preprint link, it looks like it is published in Phys Rev D) that claims to have found a consistent quantum field theory of tachyons, overcoming three issues which have been said in previous literature to make such a theory impossible...
  6. CHANDANKUMAR S

    Quantum information science

    I am currently a research scholar specializing in open quantum systems.
  7. P

    A Hard-Core Boson Model in K space

    Hello, I am interested in the following model: $$ H = \sum_{<i,j>} -t (c_i c_j^{\dagger} + \text{H.C.}) + U (n_i n_j) + \sum_{<<i,j>>} -t' (c_i c_j^{\dagger} + \text{H.C.}) + U' (n_i n_j) $$ where \( <i,j> \) indicates nearest neighbors, and \( <<i,j>> \) indicates next-nearest neighbors...
  8. gentzen

    I Can I take the transactional interpretation seriously?

    My first "active" encounter with the transactional interpretation happened when I tried to react to Ruth Kastner's criticism of consistent histories. My next encounter happened when I was fighting with reciprocity occuring for crystal effects in electron scattering, and hoped for help from time...
  9. Darmstadtium

    Admissions Direct Entry to PhD Program -- Advice Please

    I am a second-year combined honour in physics and math with prerequisites for 4th-year math courses. I am hoping for a direct entry (if possible) into a top US PhD physics program in quantum with a current unofficial cGPA of 3.9/4 (88%). Since I am in Canada, we only have percentage grades that...
  10. Grinkle

    B What does it mean for a glass bead to be in a quantum state?

    https://www.guardianmag.us/2023/02/scientists-levitate-glass-nanosphere.html "the nanosphere was suspended in its lowest quantum mechanical state, one of extremely limited motion where quantum behavior can start to happen." To my reading, the glass bead was cooled down and then suspended with...
  11. M

    QM time independent perturbation theory

    The lowest two energy level corrections (l=0, s_{z}=-1/2 and l=0, s_{z}=1/2) are easy to work out since the eigenvalues are not degenerate and the unperturbed energy levels also happen to be eigenstates of H'. However I have three degenerate energy levels for the third eigenvalue of the form...
  12. keyzan

    Probability of the outcomes of ##J^2## and ##J_{z}##?

    Hi guys, I have a problem with point 2 of this exercise: The electron of a hydrogen atom is initially found in the state: having considered the quantum numbers n,l,m and epsilon related to the operators H, L^2, Lz and Sz. I am asked: determine the possible outcomes of a measurement of J^2...
  13. L

    Quantum Mechanics - Time dependent solution - x's and t's not mixed up

    Next, we assume a solution in this form: Which simplifies (according to my notes) to this: In the middle equation, we have factorised out the F(t). My question is why is it wavefunction(x,t) rather than wavefunction(x). I first thought it was a mistake in the notes, but it uses the same...
  14. Jim Kata

    A Why is matter-free gravity not ultraviolet finite?

    In reading Weinberg volume 1 I learned gravity is not renormalizable by Dyson power counting. This means that it has an infinite number of free parameters, and such theories lose their predictive power at energies of the common mass scale. This being said, T Hooft and Veltman showed miraculously...
  15. PhysicsEnjoyer31415

    B What is a Gravitational wave?

    Many more questions....please enlighten me on this topic. thank you!
  16. B

    I Quantum Eraser Experiment at home

    I was tryingt to find away to build a setup for conducting the quantum erase experiment, demonstrating the observer effect. It seemed impossible without expensive equipment for sending single photont and detecting single photons, then however I bumbed into this guide from scientific american...
  17. D

    B Dark Energy: Are We All Missing The Obvious?

    Well, I am not making any exciting claims or anything, just asking a question that I cannot stop asking myself. WE all know the Quantum theory on spontaneous generation of particles in a vacuum etc and many have asked is this linked to dark energy somehow. I like to try Einstein type Thought...
  18. L

    Normalising the wavefunction - two answers

    Hi, when normalising the wavefunction I get two answers. Is this correct? My notes only has 1/sqrt(L) = A.
  19. adf89812

    Shielding or principal quantum number predicts Covalent or Ionic?

    TL;DR Summary: Why is HgCl2 more covalent than CaCl2 via shielding? Hg^2+ in HgCl_2 has more shells of p-orbitals and s-orbitals than Ca^2+ in CaCl2 - Do those extra p and s shells of Hg^2 in HgCl2 shield the two chlorines in HgCl2 from the effect of Hg^2+'s nucleus attraction, or leave the...
  20. SWIRF

    I Breaking the Light Speed Barrier?

    If we have a pair of super-asymmetrical entwined particles, and move them a light year away so that they retain their quantum entanglement, and we set a clockwise spin as 0 and a counter-clockwise spin as 1. Would it be possible to transmit binary data faster than the speed of light? If we hold...
  21. Elaren

    Quantum Better advanced Quantum Mechanics book than Sakurai?

    Sakurai's Modern Quantum Mechanics is 1/2 of a very good graduate textbook. Unfortunately Sakurai passed away midway through writing it, and it is very obvious exactly where it swapped from their writing to just using their notes. The back half of the book, while by no means bad, is notably less...
  22. A. Neumaier

    A Teaching ideal quantum measurement, from dynamics to interpretation

    A.E. Allahverdyan, R. Balian, and T.M. Nieuwenhuizen, Teaching ideal quantum measurement, from dynamics to interpretation, Comptes Rendus Physique 25 (2024), 251--287. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/380862732
  23. K

    I Are gravitons necessary?

    If gravity is not a force, but rather curvature of spacetime, are gravitons necessary to couple with gravitational field?
  24. S

    Can quantum mechanics be combined with game theory?

    I suppose, anybody here knows about the Elitzur–Vaidman bomb tester and the counterfactual definiteness: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elitzur–Vaidman_bomb_tester https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counterfactual_definiteness I have a question: can this experiment be performed at the level of...
  25. S

    I Color charge is not scalar -- do their components have dimensions?

    Color charge is not scalar. Still, do their components have dimensions (in metrological terms)?
  26. K

    Quantum Well Centred at the Origin Doubled in Size at time t=0. Symmetry seems to render the question incorrect

    Firstly I have found the eigenstates for both the original well and the new well as the following $$\psi_{n,\frac{L}{2}} = \begin{cases} \sqrt{\frac{2}{L}} \cos{\frac{n \pi x}{L}} \; \; \; \; \; n \text{ odd} \\ \sqrt{\frac{2}{L}} \sin{\frac{n \pi x}{L}} \; \; \; \; \; n \text{ even}...
  27. N

    A X measurement modeled in non-separable Hilbert space

    Am reading a book (Ballentine, "Quantum Mechanics: A modern development) which I have found very helpful. Am now puzzled by section 3.4, where the position operator satisfies Q|x> = x |x> (I have simplified from 3 dims to 1 dim). Here, x is any real number. There are, thus, uncountably many...
  28. H

    I Is quantum interference an instantaneous consequence of superposition ?

    A physicist (I'm not a physicist by profession, as you'll have gathered) told me, without being more specific, that interference is not an 'interaction' in the strict sense of the word, in other words in the physical sense of the term. I can only guess at what is meant by this (but perhaps...
  29. billtodd

    A Quantum Groups as a Generalization of String Theory

    Every once in a while I use my ancient trick of searching something in google with keywords, and found the above article. I don't think there's a free copy of it, because it's from 1989. I guess I need to read the pink book on foundations of Q-Groups by Majid. You know who also has written a...
  30. Justina

    Enthusiast of Quantum mechanics

    Hi everyone I'm Justina. I'm excited in joining physics forums and I'm high school student who is interested in Quantum mechanics a lot .I used to spend lot of time on knowing Quantum mechanics and i learnt few little things. And this is my first time, joining an online community hope I will...
  31. Q

    "Retired" but still active

    I am a long-retired physics lecturer, with the bulk of my lecturing focused on quantum and relativity. I am still active in research. I have completely lost contact with the challenge of explaining this stuff to students, and was curious to see how these challenges are met on this forum, not...
  32. Penny57

    Show that energy E always exists such that junction conditions have a solution

    I know this wavefunction should behave as a symmetric cosine function (possibly as Cos( (k∗x)/(hbar) ?). I also know for a bound state, the wavefunction must decay exponentially outside the well. Additionally, r = (-β+ik)/(β−ik) . However, aside from that, I do not know how to get this question...
  33. S

    I Does entanglement always conserve something?

    IIUC, entanglement sometimes plays a role in conserving come quantity like momentum or spin: the quantities measured for two particles must be correlated in order to get a certain total value. But is this always the case? For example, what, if anything, is conserved in the Hong-Ou-Mandel...
  34. M

    B Can objects in nature store light information on the quantum level?

    In the 1934 novel by John Taine, Before the Dawn, scientists are able to retrieve images of the past by accessing the light absorbed by stones throughout history. While this is fictional, 1934 was really before the dawn of quantum physics. In the far future, could we retrieve images from light...
  35. K

    I Two recent tests of loop quantum gravity theory

    2 recent gains on loop quantum gravity theory arXiv:2403.18606 (gr-qc) [Submitted on 27 Mar 2024] Test the Loop Quantum Gravity Theory via the Lensing Effect Lai Zhao, Meirong Tang, Zhaoyi Xu https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2403.18606 and [Submitted on 7 Dec 2023 (v1), last revised 28 Dec...
  36. billtodd

    I If there ever will be a theory of Quantum Gravity which is testable...

    shouldn't it be a sort of partially GR and partially QM? I mean in a sort of superposition of both theories such that in the specific limit becomes GR and another limit QM, and in the between both regions it's something entirely else, not QM and not GR. Is this possible? I haven't yet done the...
  37. M

    Can Bell's Inequality Be Proven Using Protons, Neutrons, or Other Particles?

    Hello I am MOHD HANZALA I worked on bell's inequality where we measure spin of electron along different basis leading to the bell's inequality . My question is that can we prove bell's inequality through proton or neutron or other particle??
  38. Leandro Bolonini

    I How Do Quantum Fluctuations Shape Cosmic Structures?

    How do quantum fluctuations affect the formation and evolution of structures in the universe on large scales?
  39. flyusx

    What To Project Upon When Doing QM Measurements?

    I have read that if one measures the Hamiltonian and receives a value of h2, then the quantum state will be in ##|h2\rangle##. Finding the probability of a1 is done by projecting ##|a1\rangle## upon ##|h2\rangle## divided by ##\langle h2|h2\rangle##. In other words: $$\frac{|\langle...
  40. S

    I Artificially discretized quantum states - is it a thing?

    Here we have four electron detectors (e.g. electron multipliers) forming positively charged detection regions, with a negative back plate. Mathematically, is it valid to describe this as a measurement with four eigenstates, considering that there are only four possible detection outcomes...
  41. K

    A How Are Rotations on the Bloch Sphere Implemented in Practice?

    Hello! I am curious about how different rotations on the Bloch sphere are done in practice. For example, assuming we start in the lower energy state of the z-axis (call it |0>), a resonant rotation on the Bloch sphere by ##\pi/2## around the x-axis will take you to ##\frac{|0>-i|1>}{\sqrt{2}}##...
  42. lambdadandbda

    Can You Set Energy Conditions in Zwienbach Exercise 6.2?

    I can write $$\psi(x,t_0) =\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}(e^{\frac{-iE_1}{\hbar}t_0}\psi_1(x) +e^{\frac{-iE_2}{\hbar}t_0}\psi_2(x))$$ for the second coefficient to be -1 i need ## -1=e^{-i\pi}=e^{\frac{-iE_2}{\hbar}t_0} ## so ##t_0=\frac{\pi\hbar}{E_2}## and the above equation becomes $$\psi(x,t_0)...
  43. HighPhy

    I "Wave-particle duality" and double-slit experiment

    Sorry to open a new thread. There are plenty of threads on PF dealing with the issue of "wave-particle duality". Although not unanimously, many agree that the concept of "wave-particle duality" is outdated. Electrons, photons and all of the underlying entities are neither waves nor particles...
  44. Marioweee

    Creating Schrödinger cat states with trapped ions

    I have already solved question number 1 by applying the schrödinger equation obtaining that $$\ket{\psi_2}(t) = \cos(\Omega t)\ket{g} - i \sin (\Omega t)\ket{s}$$ and therefore in ##t=\frac{\pi}{4\Omega}## $$\ket{\psi_2}(t) = \dfrac{1}{\sqrt{2}}(\ket{g} - i \ket{s})$$ I have some doubts...
  45. T

    I Double Check Normalization Condition

    Consider the state ##\ket{\Psi} = \sum_{1 \leq n_{1} \leq n_{2} \leq N} a(n_{1},n_{2})\ket{n_{1},n_{2}}## and suppose $$|a(n_{1},n_{2})| \propto \cosh[(x-1/2)N\ln N]$$ where ##0<x=(n_{1}-n_{2})/N<1##. The claim is that all ##a(n_{1},n_{2})## with ##n_{2}-n_{1} > 1## go to ##0## as...
  46. Hennessy

    Help Calculating probability between 2 limits for the ground state

    TL;DR Summary: Looking for help on a Intro to QM Problem Hi All, THIS IS A GRADED PIECE OF WORK AT MY UNIVERSITY PLEASE DO NOT JUST GIVE ME THE ANSWER , I have made this post to see if what i've calculated seems reasonable, it sounds unlikely as 0.4 - 0.5L is in the middle of the well. The...
  47. jedishrfu

    A Gravity Measured with Milligram masses

    https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adk2949
  48. jedishrfu

    News Google $5M XPRIZE for best uses for Quantum Computers

    Google is looking for practical problems/algorithms that can be solved on quantum computers: https://www.xprize.org/prizes/qc-apps
Back
Top