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Journal of Modern Physics

Relativistic Derivations of de Broglie and Planck-Einstein Equations

Fabrizio Logiurato

Published Jan 1, 2014• 10 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Special Relativity sets tight constraints on the form of the possible relations between the four-momentum of a particle and the wave four-vector. In fact, we demonstrate that there is just one way, according to Special Relativity, to relate the energy and the momentum of a corpuscle with the characteristics of a plane wave, frequency and wave vector, if the momentum has to flow in the same direction of the wave propagation: the laws must be of direct proportionality like de Broglie and Planck-Einstein equations.

DOI
10.4236/jmp.2014.51001

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Special Relativity sets tight constraints on the form of the possible relations between the four-momentum of a particle and the wave four-vector. In fact, we demonstrate that there is just one way, according to Special Relativity, to relate the energy and the momentum of a corpuscle with the characteristics of a plane wave, frequency and wave vector, if the momentum has to flow in the same direction of the wave propagation: the laws must be of direct proportionality like de Broglie and Planck-Einstein equations.
Abstract According to Planck and Einstein the energy and frequency of light are related by E = ђw. De Broglie observed that to be consistent with the theory of relativity the momentum p of a wave should be ђk where k is the wave vector of magnitude 2π /wavelength, perpendicular to the wave front. (This is because the special theory of relativity combines E and p and also ω and k into four-dimensional vectors, and linear relations between particular components force the same relations for all other components as well. This is explained in more detail in Section 17.1, which is independent of the rest of the book.)
This paper provides an examination of the de Broglie relation, tracing its historical development from the quantum hypotheses proposed by Planck and Einstein to its covariant relativistic derivation. The discussion begins by situating de Broglie's seminal insight within the early framework of quantum theory. We then reconstruct his original heuristic derivation. The primary focus of this work, however, is the derivation of the de Broglie relation directly from the principles of special relativity, employing the four-momentum formalism. A comparative analysis between the heuristic and relativistic approaches underscores the universality and conceptual coherence of the latter. The paper concludes by highlighting the significance of relativistic mechanics in establishing a consistent foundation for wave-particle duality, further reinforcing this through a quantum field theoretical perspective.
In this paper we prove, by expressing the energy as a function of the wave propagation speed, it is highlighted the existence of an equivalent mass of the wave, as well as of an Einstein type relations between the energy and this mass. Also, we establish a relation between angular frequency and energy similar to that of the Planck relation. For the propagating wave, there is a de Broglie type relationship between the linear momentum and the action variable (the angular momentum), i.e. the wave linear momentum is proportional to the wave number, the proportionality coefficient being the action.
Whatever was going to replace classical physics in the description of radiation and atomic phenomena had to confront the difficult task of somehow reconciling the wave-like and particle-like aspects of light in a single structure. An important clue would come from Einstein’s E=mc2. We tend to want to associate mass (and linear momentum) with material particles. But the Planck–Einstein relation E=hν connects energy with frequency, a determinedly wave-like property. So, here are two very simple yet fundamental equations connecting energy to mass and energy to frequency. Can they be combined? Louis de Broglie thought so, and in 1923 he generalized the discovery made by Einstein in 1905 by extending it to all material particles, and most notably to electrons. The de Broglie relation λ=h/p can be derived quite straightforwardly by comparing the Lorentz transformations for energy and momentum with those for a system of plane waves.
The physics of special relativity is applied to a wave-packet model of a particle without the usual de Broglie-like assumption of Planck's rule, E = hv. The velocity of the particle is equated to the group-velocity of the wave-packet to associate the particle with its wave-packet. With such an identification it is demonstrated using special relativity that the momentum four-vector, P = [p, E/c2] of the particle is parallel and proportional to a central wave-number four-vector, K0 = [k0. ω0/c2], of the particle's wave-packet. The constant of proportionality, relating these two four-vectors, has the dimension of action and by diffraction experiments it has the value h/2π where h is Planck's constant. This refinement of the de Broglie wave-like nature of a particle suggests that special relativity underlies quantum physics more deeply than heretofore believed. The above quantum rules are used to find the wave-packet function in the one-dimensional case of a non-relativistic free particle and a particle in a conservative force field of potential V (x). This wave-packet function is shown to satisfy an integral time-evolution equation which relates the wave function at time t0 to the function at a slightly later time t. The resulting integral equation is equivalent to the propagator equation or path-integral hypothesised by Feynman. This fact also demonstrates, using the method of Feynman, that the wave-packet function satisfies Schrödinger's partial differential equation. The wave-packet function of a particle in a force field is directly shown to satisfy a linear integral equation which relates the wave-packet at one instant of time to its values at all later times. The kernel or propagator of this integral equation is also equivalent to Feynman's path integral. A computation demonstrates that the position of a moving particle in a simple quadratic potential well does not become more uncertain with the passage of time. This contrasts with the behaviour of a moving free particle which as a function of time becomes more and more difficult to accurately locate.