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European Journal of Physics

On the presentation of wave phenomena of electrons with the Young–Feynman experiment

Gioṙgio Matteucci

Published Mar 23, 2011• 6 citations
Publisher

Abstract

The Young-Feynman two-hole interferometer is widely used to present the electron wave-particle duality and in particular the buildup of interference fringes with single electrons. The teaching approach consists of two steps: i) electrons come through only one hole but diffraction effects are disregarded; ii) electrons come through both holes and interference fringes are described. Therefore, a student might believe that wave phenomena are not revealable in case i) but they arise only by the combined effect of electrons from the two holes. To avoid misunderstanding regarding the distribution of electrons passing through one hole, Fresnel and Fraunhofer diffraction patterns are discussed. In particular, an original experiment, realized with a standard electron microscope and a sample with round holes is presented to introduce the wave nature of electrons. The experimental results clearly show that a careful discussion of electron diffraction phenomena from one hole provides students with the evidence that the interference experiment from both holes is not strictly required to show the superposition of electron waves.

DOI
10.1088/0143-0807/32/3/009

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The Young-Feynman two-hole interferometer is widely used to present the electron wave-particle duality and in particular the buildup of interference fringes with single electrons. The teaching approach consists of two steps: i) electrons come through only one hole but diffraction effects are disregarded; ii) electrons come through both holes and interference fringes are described. Therefore, a student might believe that wave phenomena are not revealable in case i) but they arise only by the combined effect of electrons from the two holes. To avoid misunderstanding regarding the distribution of electrons passing through one hole, Fresnel and Fraunhofer diffraction patterns are discussed. In particular, an original experiment, realized with a standard electron microscope and a sample with round holes is presented to introduce the wave nature of electrons. The experimental results clearly show that a careful discussion of electron diffraction phenomena from one hole provides students with the evidence that the interference experiment from both holes is not strictly required to show the superposition of electron waves.
The two-slit interference experiment is usually adopted to discuss the superposition principle applied to radiation and to show the peculiar wave behaviour of material particles. Diffraction and interference of electrons have been demonstrated using, as interferometry devices, a hole, a slit, double hole, two-slits, an electrostatic biprism etc. A number of books, short movies and lectures on the web try to popularize the mysterious behaviour of electrons on the basis of Feynman thought experiment which consists of a Young two-hole interferometer equipped with a detector to reveal single electrons. A short review is reported regarding, i) the pioneering attempts carried out to demonstrate that interference patterns could be obtained with single electrons through an interferometer and, ii) recent experiments, which can be considered as the realization of the thought electron interference experiments adopted by Einstein-Bohr and subsequently by Feynman to discuss key features of quantum physics.
A primary electron beam of a transmission electron microscope is scattered into secondary beams by the planes of atoms of a single crystal. These secondary beams are focused to form a diffraction pattern on the final screen. This experiment is similar to the Thompson one which, independently by Davisson and Germer, demonstrated the de Broglie hypothesis of the existence of electron waves. Without changing the experimental apparatus, it is possible to realize an interference experiment with electrons coming from two spatially separated sources in analogy with the optical Young set-up. Both experiments are clear evidence of the electron wave-like behaviour. By varying the conditions of illumination, changes of the fringe visibility which reveal the spatial coherence properties of the electron beam, are displayed.
An experiment analogous to that devised by Grimaldi and subsequently repeated by Young to study the nature of light has been realized with electrons. Following the Grimaldi and Young line of thought, an original approach is presented to introduce undergraduate physics students to the wave behaviour of electrons. An electron microscope equipped with a low coherent source of electrons and a thin platinum wire, acting as an opaque obstacle, is used to reproduce the experimental conditions adopted by Grimaldi and Young with light. Electron interference fringes produced in the geometrical shadow of the obstacle are interpreted by assuming that electrons behave like a sound or a light wave. This hypothesis is confirmed by the modelling of the experimental electron interference patterns.
The key features of quantum mechanics are vividly illustrated by the Young-Feynman two-slit thought experiment, whose second part discusses the recording of an electron distribution with one of the two slits partially or totally closed by an aperture. Here, we realize the original Feynman proposal in a modern electron microscope equipped with a high brightness gun and two biprisms, with one of the biprisms used as a mask. By exciting the microscope lenses to conjugate the biprism plane with the slit plane, observations are carried out in the Fraunhofer plane with nearly ideal control of the covering of one of the slits. A second, new experiment is also presented, in which interference phenomena due to partial overlap of the slits are observed in the image plane. This condition is obtained by inserting the second biprism between the two slits and the first biprism and by biasing it in order to overlap their images.
Abstract The Young's double slit experiment and the electron double slit experiment are generally considered to prove the wave nature of light and electrons. The most obvious sign of the double-slit experiment is that there are bright and dark stripes on the screen. However, people have not carefully studied the causes of the light and dark stripes. Here, we demonstrates that the light and dark fringe in Young's double-slit experiment is not actually the diffraction and interference pattern of light wave, and tries to reveal the real reason for its formation. We have studied the scattering phenomenon of particle flow after passing through the gap, and found that the scattering type and scattering degree of freedom of particle flow are determined by the physical parameters of particles and the gap, and the uniform scattering of particle flow can form a "yes" and "no" discrete distribution pattern on the receiving screen. Based on the "diffraction like" and "interference like" mechanism of particle flow, this paper explains the electron diffraction and interference experiment, as well as the Young's double-slit interference experiment and the diffraction of light through circular holes and plates. This paper negates the wave-particle duality and the de Broglie material wave hypothesis, fundamentally shaking the foundation of modern quantum mechanics, and has great scientific significance.
Abstract Young’s double-slit experiment played a crucial role in establishing the wave nature of light. In this chapter, the shocking result that incident electrons yield a similar interference pattern as that formed by light waves is described. It is shown that the only way the experimental results could be explained is via a wavefunction description of electrons. It is also shown that the interference fringes disappear if the which-path information becomes available. This is the essence of wave–particle duality. The first of the Einstein–Bohr debates on wave–particle duality and Bohr’s principle of complementarity in the double-slit experiment are also discussed. The counterintuitive notions of delayed choice and quantum eraser effects showing how the availability or erasure of information generated in the future can affect how the data in the present can be interpreted are presented. Quantum interference is responsible for novel phenomena like interaction-free measurement and counterfactual communication.