My Explanation for the Observed Wave-Particle-Duality of Light
Hasmukh K. Tank
This letter proposes an explanation for the century-old puzzle of the wave-particle-duality of light, which thousands of physicists, including Einstein, Plank, Feynman …, have been trying to resolve. Since a ‘particle ’ is localized in space, it is mathematically characterized here as an impulse-function in space. Then it is argued that if this ‘particle’ has anything to do with waves then we can know it by taking Fourier-transform of the impulse-function in space. When Fourier-transformed into wave-number-domain; we find that a ‘particle ’ should contain a wide ‘set ’ of waves, and not just a single frequency. Then we show that in the experiments performed so far [1] the red lasers had significantly wide line-width, means the sources have been producing a wide set of waves, and not just a pure single frequency. Similarly, in the single-particle interference-experiments incandescent filament-lamps were used with green filters inserted to isolate single photons; but it is obvious that at the frequencies of light very narrow-band-filters are not yet technically feasible, so the green filters used allowed significantly wide band of waves. So in the experiments performed so far we got ‘particles ’ localized in space. And in the double-slit-interference-experiments this wide band of waves passed from both the slits, interfered like waves, and whenever and wherever they got coherently added, a ‘particle ’ called ‘photon ’ got detected. Atoms emit short-duration pulses of radiation, so their Fourier transform contains a wide band of frequencies. And at the time of detection, an atom needs only a small piece of continuous ‘wave’, of a suitable duration, amplitude and frequency, for ejection of an electron. So it is concluded here that: emission and detection of light is in the form of ‘photons’; whereas its propagation in space is in the form of a wide band of ‘waves’. 2
•Feb 1, 2014•0 citations