Classical physics fails where quantum physics prevails. This common understanding applies to quantum phenomena that are acknowledged to be beyond the reach of classical physics. Here, we make an attempt at weakening this solid belief that classical physics is unfit to explain the quantum world. The trial run is the quantization of the free radiation field that will be addressed by following a strategy that is free from operators or quantum-mechanical concepts
Classical physics fails where quantum physics prevails. This common understanding applies to quantum phenomena that are acknowledged to be beyond the reach of classical physics. Here, we make an attempt at weakening this solid belief that classical physics is unfit to explain the quantum world. The trial run is the quantization of the free radiation field that will be addressed by following a strategy that is free from operators or quantum-mechanical concepts
Newtonian mechanics is the foundation of Classical Physics. Newton’s mechanics, Thermodynamics, Wave theory of Optics and Maxwell’s electromagnetic theory belong to regime of Classical Physics and can be used to explain a wide range of phenomena in the Universe at macroscopic scale. These theories fail spectacularly when applied to phenomenain the atomic and nuclear regime, for example, proton-atom scattering or the flow of electrons in a semiconductor. Quantum mechanics is the most successful scientific theory that has ever been created and it has completely changed our view of the world. The failure of Classical Physics was highlighted by black body radiation and photoelectric effect. Max Planck and Albert Einstein provided explanations of both phenomena based on quantum hypothesis and are thus considered founders of Quantum Physics. The origin of quantum mechanics goes back to the mid-1920s.It was formulated first as matrix mechanics by Werner Heisenberg, Max Born and Pascual Jordan; then as wave mechanics by Louis de Broglie and Erwin Schrödinger; and later on asquantum statistics of subatomic particles by Fermi-Dirac and Bose-Einstein. Combining relativistic mechanics with quantum mechanics, Dirac formulated his relativistic quantum mechanics during 1930s. Uncertainty Principle is thecornerstone of Quantum Physics. The role of randomness in microscopic physical processes shatters the myth that the universe is deterministic. Quantum world is unpredictable in the classical sense and demolishes the idea of an objective universe. The Copenhagen interpretation remains the quantum mechanical formalism that is currently most widely accepted amongst physicists.Quantum theories support cosmic spirit pervading the cosmos and inter – relationship of individuals in the world society. Quantum philosophy is holistic and is going to revolutionize our world-view.
Quantum mechanical uncertainty After reviewing the main characteristics of the classical description of light, let us discuss those aspects of the quantization of the electromagnetic field which are of relevance for the analysis of the phenomena we are interested in. It seems a reasonable place to start to make clear the fundamental difference between the classical and the quantum mechanical description of nature; we will come across this difference many times when discussing experiments, and it will often give us a headache. We have to deal with the physical meaning of what is called uncertainty. The starting point of the classical description is the conviction that natural processes have a “factual” character. This means that physical variables such as the position or momentum of a particle have, in each single case, a well defined (in general, time dependent) value. However, it will not always be possible to measure all the appropriate variables (for instance, the instantaneous electric field strength of a radiation field); furthermore under normal circumstances we are able to measure only with a finite precision. Hence the basic credo of classical physics should be given in the following form: we are justified in imagining a world with variables possessing well defined values which are not known precisely (or not known at all). In doing this we are not forming any conclusions that contradict our everyday experiences. This is the fundamental concept of classical statistics: we are satisfied with the use of probability distributions for the variables we are interested in, not from fundamental but purely practical reasons.
Quantum mechanics (or simply quantum physics) is the branch of physics that applies to particles and systems of particles, such as atoms and molecules. In that realm the laws of classical mechanics and classical electromagnetism break down, and only quantum mechanics provides the concepts and computational methods that explain observed phenomena. Quantum mechanics uses specially developed tools, such as wave functions, that contain all of the relevant information about particles and systems. is approach is needed to understand the true nature of electromagnetic radiation and how that radiation interacts with matter. e mathematics used in quantum mechanics is highly specialized and often complex. In this chapter we’ll address some of the key questions that require quantum mechanics without presenting the full mathematical formalism. e important questions we’ll address all deal with observable physical phenomena. We’ll discuss how quantum mechanics is used to answer these questions but will omit the advanced mathematical details.
The author attempts to answer the questions there are in the title of this paper. These questions are questions that scientists and philosophers have been asking themselves for many decades since Quantum Mechanics was formulated to explain the phenomena of the atomic and subatomic world. First of all a short but complete historical review of the transition between Classical Mechanics and Quantum Mechanics there is. It is preceded by some of the methodological premises that fit a certain vision of science. Then the author examines the issues and debates that have occurred on aspects of quantum mechanics such as realism, non-locality and probabilism (in contrast to determinism of Classic Mechanics). In doing this author llustrates the foundations of the various interpretations of quantum mechanics which, in an attempt to resolve these problems, have been given. The absurdities, and conflicts with the common sense, of quantum mechanics are shown to be largely apparent. In doing this, we examine the analogies of classical physics, as well as those of everyday life. Recent experimental results are taken into consideration. It is concluded that Quantum Mechanics presents elements of rupture more with Classical Physics than with the everyday experience.
Classical mechanics, which gives a fairly accurate description of large systems (e.g., solar system) as also of mechanical systems in our every day life, however, breaks down when applied to small (microscopic) systems such as molecules, atoms and nuclei. For example, (1) classical mechanics cannot even explain why the atoms are stable at all. A classical atom with electrons moving in circular or elliptic orbits around the nucleus would continuously radiate energy in the form of electromagnetic radiation because an accelerated charge does radiate energy. As a result the radius of the orbit would become smaller and smaller, resulting in instability of the atom. On the other hand, the atoms are found to be remarkably stable in practice. (2) Another fact of observation that classical mechanics fails to explain is wave particle duality in radiation as well as in material particles. It is well known that light exhibits the phenomena of interference, diffraction and polarization which can be easily understood on the basis of wave aspect of radiation. But light also exhibits the phenomena of photo-electric effect, Compton effect and Raman effect which can only be understood in terms of corpuscular or quantum aspect of radiation. The dual behavior of light, or radiation cannot be consistently understood on the basis of classical concepts alone or explained away by saying that light behaves as wave or particle depending on the kind of experiment we do with it (complementarity). Moreover, a beam of material particles, like electrons and neutrons, demonstrates wave-like properties (e.g., diffraction). A brief outline of phenomena that require quantum mechanics for their understanding follows.
The current physical view of the Universe (the Metaphysics of Physics) is one that just does not make sense and is counter-intuitive to our Experience. It begins with the Quantization of Energy Hypothesis used by Planck to derive his blackbody radiation formula and by Einstein to explain the photoelectric effect, which later evolved into Quantum Mechanics. By examining these conceptual foundations of Modern Physics we are able to show that the same experimental facts that lead to Quantum Physics can be differently explained without using energy quanta, continuously and not discretely. We are able to derive Planck's Law without using quanta and explain the photoelectric effect without needing photons. We summarize in this paper results presented in a series of papers that show with mathematical reasoning and rigor how this is possible. The main purpose of this endeavor is to create a view of the Universe that 'makes sense', that agrees with our Experience and provides physical meaning to our Understanding of it.