Wave-Particle Duality : A Case Study

J.M.H. Peters

Tabish Qureshi

The complementary wave and particle character of quantum objects (or quantons) was pointed out by Niels Bohr. This wave-particle duality, in the context of the two-slit experiment, is here described not just as two extreme cases of wave and particle characteristics, but in terms of quantitative measures of these characteristics, known to follow a duality relation. A very simple and intuitive derivation of a closely related duality relation is presented, which should be understandable to the introductory student.

Marius Borneas

F. Selleri

René Friedrich

How can interfering light waves transport particle characteristics? Up to now it was supposed that wave-particle duality was a quantum mechanical phenomenon which was not accessible to any classical explanation. The present article is disproving this assumption, by showing o n e single case which is entirely subject to a classical explanation: Photons in vacuum. The suggested classical explanation of wave-particle duality is simple, and it is deriving directly from special relativity: The particle characteristics are transported directly from A to B, without any intermediate of spacetime, because the interval is zero. The observed wave is a sort of placeholder in our spacetime.