The formidable problem with double-slit experiments is: if electrons and photons exhibit wave properties (seen as interference patterns), then what is waving? What is the medium for transmission of ‘electron waves’? Such a medium has been disproved experimentally, in the case of the photon, and not even conceivable for the electron. Erwin Schrodinger was on the right track with his view of the electron as a ‘smeared’ object, rather than as a point particle. Then how is a wave possible without a medium? How can a wave property and a particle property co-exist in a single physical entity (wave- particle duality)? Nature uses a simple and subtle trick : the average electron mass density at a given region of space is directly proportional to the root mean square (RMS) intensity of oscillation (velocity) of the electron (the electron wave) in that region. The instantaneous mass density of the electron at a given point is directly proportional to the instantaneous magnitude of vibrational velocity of the electron at that point. The average photon energy density in a given region of space is directly proportional to the root mean square of rate of change of the electric and magnetic fields in that region. The instantaneous energy density of the photon at a given point of space and time is directly proportional to the magnitude of rate of change of the electric and magnetic fields at that point. The rate of change of electric and magnetic fields in turn depends on the frequency, amplitude and phase of the wave. The electron mass and photon energy will always be concentrated at regions of high wave amplitude. This means that the electron and the photon are dragged by their respective waves. The new theory provides a hint on the mystery behind Planck’s relation: E=h.f. Higher frequency photons have higher energy than lower frequency photons just because higher frequency photons also have higher amplitudes of electric and magnetic field oscillations. If we assume that ordinary waves also have the same fundamental properties as electron waves, then we may be able to explain the lack of backward propagation in Huygens’ principle. We may be able to explain why the bouncing oil droplet in the Couder-Fort oil bath experiment starts to go in the direction of the wave propagation.
The formidable problem with double-slit experiments is: if electrons and photons exhibit wave properties (seen as interference patterns), then what is waving? What is the medium for transmission of ‘electron waves’? Such a medium has been disproved experimentally, in the case of the photon, and not even conceivable for the electron. Erwin Schrodinger was on the right track with his view of the electron as a ‘smeared’ object, rather than as a point particle. Then how is a wave possible without a medium? How can a wave property and a particle property co-exist in a single physical entity (wave- particle duality)? Nature uses a simple and subtle trick : the average electron mass density at a given region of space is directly proportional to the root mean square (RMS) intensity of oscillation (velocity) of the electron (the electron wave) in that region. The instantaneous mass density of the electron at a given point is directly proportional to the instantaneous magnitude of vibrational velocity of the electron at that point. The average photon energy density in a given region of space is directly proportional to the root mean square of rate of change of the electric and magnetic fields in that region. The instantaneous energy density of the photon at a given point of space and time is directly proportional to the magnitude of rate of change of the electric and magnetic fields at that point. The rate of change of electric and magnetic fields in turn depends on the frequency, amplitude and phase of the wave. The electron mass and photon energy will always be concentrated at regions of high wave amplitude. This means that the electron and the photon are dragged by their respective waves. The new theory provides a hint on the mystery behind Planck’s relation: E=h.f. Higher frequency photons have higher energy than lower frequency photons just because higher frequency photons also have higher amplitudes of electric and magnetic field oscillations. If we assume that ordinary waves also have the same fundamental properties as electron waves, then we may be able to explain the lack of backward propagation in Huygens’ principle. We may be able to explain why the bouncing oil droplet in the Couder-Fort oil bath experiment starts to go in the direction of the wave propagation.
The puzzles of quantum mechanics are: 1. What is the medium for the photon and for the electron wave? i.e. what is waving? 2. How can a particle have an interference pattern 3. Observer effect. 4. Entanglement. In Quantum Erasure and Double-Slit experiments, how does the emitter know to direct the photon two both slits or only to one slit? And how does the detector know where to detect the photons to form an interference pattern and not a bell-shaped (Gaussian) pattern or vice versa? This paper proposes that the hint in the mystery of light waves without a medium (ether) is contained in the Planck’s relation itself: E = hf. It is shown that Planck’s relation itself hints on the mystery of light waves without medium, and is a consequence or manifestation of non-existence of a medium for light propagation. The subtle law of nature that has eluded physicists so far is that the photon energy density ( amplitude of electric and magnetic fields) at a given point in the spatial dimensions of the photon is directly related to the rate of change of the electric and magnetic fields at that point. The higher the frequency of the photon, the higher the rate of change of the fields at every point for that photon, compared to a photon of lower frequency. The higher the rate of change of the fields at a given point, the higher the amplitude of oscillation of the electric and magnetic fields at that point. It follows that the higher the frequency of the photon and the higher the amplitude of the electric and magnetic fields, which results in high intensity of vibration of the photon, the more localized it will be. A high frequency photon will spread less in space than a lower frequency photon of equal envelope amplitude because, if the high frequency photon spreads out, there would be high rates of change over a wider region of space, and the total energy would be greater than the finite photon energy. The photon energy will always be concentrated at regions of high rate of change of electric and magnetic fields. This theory explains how electric and magnetic fields can be their own ‘medium’ , 'dragging' of the electromagnetic energy by the wave, hence eliminating the need for any medium. Since the electromagnetic wave (the photon) is a traveling disturbance of electric and magnetic fields, the rate of change of the fields at a point in space will create the intensity (amplitude) of the fields at that point. Likewise, the electron wave is a travelling disturbance of the electron mass density wave on the electron ‘sea’. The higher the frequency of mass density variation of the electron at a given point of space, the higher the mass density of the electron at that point. This will make the electron ( the electron ‘sea’) its own medium of propagation. i.e. the electron ‘sea’ is the medium of propagation for the electron wave. This means that the electron wave 'drags' the electron with itself. The other theory proposed in this paper is the predetermination of interference fringes in double-slit experiments and predetermination of which slit the photon takes in which-way or quantum erasure experiments. We propose a fundamental law of nature that an electron, an atom or any source of electromagnetic waves will always emit a weak, continuous electromagnetic energy even when not excited, which implies that electrons and atoms are always in continuous, fundamental, weak vibrations (accelerations). Therefore, in double-slit experiments and in quantum erasure or which-way experiments, the atom (electron) of the light source is always emitting weak, continuous electromagnetic waves, even before the atom is excited. Therefore, even before the atom/the electron of the light source starts emitting a photon, a weak electromagnetic (light) wave exists as an entity, extending all the way from the light source (the atom) to the slits and to the detecting screen. This ‘precursor’ wave serves as the 'highway' for the propagation of the main photon energy packet, both of which are coherent and exist as an entity. When the atom is excited, it will just emit a photon that is coherent with the weak wave it had already been emitting continuously. Therefore, even before the atom is excited, a weak wave interference pattern already exists on the screen. The photon emitted after excitation simply follows the path already created by the weak ‘precursor’ wave and will land on the screen according to the predetermined interference pattern, collapsing to the point of detection at the instant of detection. The path to be taken by the photon is predetermined in which-way or quantum erasure experiments. The same theory explains quantum entanglement: the polarization of two entangled photons is predetermined even before the excitation of the atoms emitting the photons.
The puzzles of quantum mechanics are: 1. what is the medium for the photon and for the electron wave? i.e. what is waving? 2. particle interference pattern 3. observer effect. 4. entanglement. In Quantum Erasure and Double-Slit experiments, how does the emitter know to direct the photon two both slits or only to one slit? And how does the detector know where to detect the photons to form an interference pattern and not a bell-shaped (Gaussian) pattern or vice versa? This paper proposes a few, closely related, simple and subtle laws of nature governing quantum phenomena. Some of the findings in this paper are: 1. A photon is emitted in two steps: the creation of photon path and the emission of the photon 2. Although (almost) all of the energy of the photon is localized in space, the photon extends to infinity. An extremely small energy of the photon, which we call the 'precursor wave' in this paper, extends to infinity. The instant the photon is emitted, its precursor wave creates a path to infinity; it appears instantaneously in all its path to infinity, with infinitely small energy density. The precursor wave serves as the 'highway' for the propagation of the main energy packet. However, to conserve the principle of causality, we assume that the tip of the photon propagates at a speed billions times the speed of light. Thus, there are two speeds associated with the photon: the speed we know as c and the speed at which the photon length increases. 2. A photon will be emitted only towards an absorber. A photon is emitted by the interaction of the emitter and a detector. It is obvious that a photon will not be emitted if there is no emitter. Nor will a photon be emitted if there is no detector . Once a photon is emitted, however, it exists objectively, autonomously. The photon is emitted only after its path is determined by the interaction of the emitter and the absorber, at the instant of emission. 3. The photon energy will be concentrated where there is higher wave amplitude, i.e higher intensity of oscillation of electric and magnetic fields. This results in 'dragging' of the electromagnetic energy by the wave, hence eliminating the need for any medium. It is also proposed that single photon interference is a quantum phenomenon whereas two photon interference is a classical phenomenon. Similar laws hold for the electron. The 'medium' for the electron wave is the electron (the electron mass density field) itself. Where there is higher intensity of electron wave/oscillation, there will be higher electron mass density. This means that the electron wave 'drags' the electron with itself. Therefore, no exotic 'medium' is required for the photon and for the electron wave.
Abstract One of the greatest mysteries that has puzzled and seemingly hoodwinked our very understanding of nature is the single electron double slit experiment – one that Feynman termed the central mystery of quantum mechanics. At the heart of this mystery is how can an electron that is a physical particle exhibit a wave-like property? We’ve proposed a non-counterintuitive way to explain this phenomenon called the randomly-jumping electron hypothesis, in which the electron randomly “jumps” in discrete succession to specific points only and not others which is what causes the electron to indeed be a classical particle only but is able to produce a wave-like interference pattern. To provide supporting evidence for our hypothesis, we’ve developed a computer program to simulate the single electron double slit experiment by treating the electron as a classical particle while still exhibiting wave-like fringes in agreement with real-world observed data of the single electron double slit experiment performed. Our interpretation does not set out to “solve” the mystery of why an electron can produce a wave-like interference pattern once and for all, however our hypothesis is a monism ontological interpretation that does address some of the crucial debates that have remained unsolved for 100 years since the formulation of quantum mechanics.
We model the Photon as a space lattice oscillation, in a plane perpendicular to its line of propagation. This propagation is at the light velocity c. This plane is vertical or horizontal or rotating clockwise or anticlockwise. This oscillation occupies a finite space volume of a defined shape, structure and size. Papers [1] and [2] model electromagnetism as the geometrodynamics of space; we show that the elastic space lattice oscillating displacement vector is the oscillating electric field, pointing in the opposite direction. For simplicity we ignore the magnetic field. We also show that our photons and ground state photons-the photoms, condense when they are in phase and disperse when in anti-phase. This feature explains the double slit experiment, both for an ensemble of photons (classical EM wave) and single photons. It dispels the need for attributing a dualistic nature to single photons that arrive at the screen one at a time.
The particle-interference-experiments, with the photons and electrons have clearly shown that they are always detected as localized ‘particles’; and the density of their detections exhibit a pattern similar to the interference of waves. This experimental-observation is alternatively interpreted here, different from the current, ‘probabilistic interpretation’. The ‘particle’ is first mathematically characterized as an ‘impulse function’ in space; and then Fourier-transformed into the wave-number-domain, as a wide band of constituent-waves as shown in the fig. 1&2. The ‘particle’ is an ‘event’ of constructive-superimposition of a wide band of ‘pre-quantum-waves’. This ‘event’ occurs in space at regular distances; and at regular instances in time. In the particle-interference-experiments, they are the wide band of ‘pre-quantum-waves which interfere physically. This physical interference of the pre-quantum-waves determines the position and time of emergence of the ‘impulse in space’ detectable as the ‘particle’. In the real-world-situation, the ‘pre-quantum-waves of a wide bandwidth arrive from all the directions, so the amplitude and phase of every constituent wave keep changing; so the place of constructive superimposition of all the spectral-components, keep varying unpredictably; and only the ‘probability’ of detection in a given volume is possible in practice. Thus, form the theoretical view-point, there are only the pre-quantum-waves; and ‘particle’ is a specific situation of constructive-superimposition of all the spectral-components of pre-quantum-waves; so there is no wave-particle-duality. The ‘probabilistic-interpretation’ is only a ‘practical-limitation’, detector being able to detect only the ‘particle’, and not the spectrum of constituent waves.
The evolution of light theories began with Isaac Newton's corpuscular model, which explained reflection and refraction but could not account for diffraction and interference. In contrast, Christiaan Huygens proposed a wave theory, explaining light's behavior through an ether-based medium, supported by his principle that each point in a wavefront acts as a secondary source. This idea was experimentally supported in the early nineteenth century when Thomas Young's double-slit experiment revealed an interference pattern, affirming light's wave nature. Later, James Clerk Maxwell unified electricity and magnetism, establishing light as an electromagnetic wave and extending the electromagnetic spectrum beyond visible light. In the twentieth century, Einstein's photoelectric effect introduced the concept of wave-particle duality, demonstrating that light behaves as discrete photons. Soon after, Louis de Broglie extended the idea of wave-particle duality to matter, a prediction confirmed in 1927 when Clinton Davisson and Lester Germer observed electron diffraction from a crystal and, independently, G.P. Thomson demonstrated electron diffraction through thin films, both proving that electrons also exhibit wave-like properties. This concept was dramatically visualized by Claus Jonsson's 1961 electron double-slit experiment. Recently, the ALICE collaboration observed quantum interference patterns at the femtometer scale in ultra-relativistic nuclear collisions, pushing quantum interference studies to new frontiers.