Physical Foundations of Quantum Electronics by David Klyshko

Maria V. Chekhova, S. P. Kulik

Olival Freire

ABSTRACT In the early 1950s the American physicist David Bohm (1917-1992) produced a new interpretation of quantum mechanics and had to flee from McCarthyism. Rejected at Princeton, he moved to São Paulo. This article focuses on the reception of his early papers on the causal interpretation, his Brazilian exile, and the culture of physics surrounding the foundations of quantum mechanics. It weighs the strength of the Copenhagen interpretation, discusses the presentation of the foundations of quantum mechanics in the training of physicists, describes the results Bohm and his collaborators achieved. It also compares the reception of Bohm's ideas with that of Hugh Everett's interpretation. The cultural context of physics had a more significant influence on the reception of Bohm's ideas than the McCarthyist climate.

Paul L. Kelley, Benjamin Lax, Peter E. Tannenwald

Peter Holland

This book presents the first, comprehensive exposition of the interpretation of quantum mechanics pioneered by Louis de Broglie and David Bohm. The purpose is to explain how quantum processes may be visualized without ambiguity or confusion, in terms of a simple physical model. Developing the theme that a material system, such as an electron, is a particle guided by a surrounding quantum wave, an examination of the classic phenomena of quantum theory is presented to show how the spacetime orbits of an ensemble of particles can reproduce the statistical quantum predictions. The mathematical and conceptual aspects of this theory are developed carefully from first principles. The book thus provides a comprehensive overview of an approach which brings clarity to a subject notorious for its conceptual difficulties. It will, therefore, appeal to all physicists with an interest in the foundations of their subject.

Brian S. Wherrett

H. A. Lorentz

The Fifth Solvay Conference on Physics, held from October 24 to 29, 1927, stands as one of the most renowned gatherings in the history of physics. The conference, which brought together the world’s most distinguished physicists, focused on the cutting-edge topics of electrons and photons, delving into the profound implications of the newly developed quantum theory. Among the leading contributors were Erwin Rudolf Josef Alexander Schrödinger, who had developed wave mechanics and the renowned Schrödinger equation, and Werner Karl Heisenberg, who introduced matrix mechanics. Their groundbreaking work laid the foundation for much of the conference's discussions. Among the illustrious attendees were Albert Einstein (1879–1955) and Niels Henrik David Bohr (1885–1962), who were central figures in the debates that would shape the future of physics. Their exchanges on the nature of quantum mechanics became legendary while the discussions at this conference marked a pivotal moment in the development of modern science.