this post was submitted on 18 Oct 2023
1416 points (97.5% liked)

Science Memes

16214 readers
2635 users here now

Welcome to c/science_memes @ Mander.xyz!

A place for majestic STEMLORD peacocking, as well as memes about the realities of working in a lab.

Rules

  1. Don't throw mud. Behave like an intellectual and remember the human.
  2. Keep it rooted (on topic).
  3. No spam.
  4. Infographics welcome, get schooled.

This is a science community. We use the Dawkins definition of meme.

Research Committee

Other Mander Communities

Science and Research

Biology and Life Sciences

Physical Sciences

Humanities and Social Sciences

Practical and Applied Sciences

Memes

Miscellaneous

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
Sal@mander.xyz
fossilesque@mander.xyz
SciBot@mander.xyz
fossilesque@lemmy.dbzer0.com
1416
Double-slit (lemmy.ml)
submitted 2 years ago by coja@lemmy.ml to c/science_memes@mander.xyz
111 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] Nougat@kbin.social 28 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (2 children)

The double slit experiment demonstrates the wave-particle duality of light.

You shoot photons at a barrier that has two slits in it. The pattern on the backstop appears as in the top right panel: an interference pattern, because light is behaving as a wave.

Next, you set up a detector at the slits, so that you can determine which slit each photon passed through, one photon at a time. Now the pattern on the backstop appears as the lower right panel, not an interference pattern, because each photon is acting as a particle.

Not looking: wave. Looking: particle.

[–] Neato@kbin.social 20 points 2 years ago (2 children)

Exactly. The issue is that you can't detect photons without interacting with them. So it isn't observation like so many people think. It's that if you interact with subatomic particles you change their state.

[–] ALostInquirer@lemm.ee 2 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (2 children)

The issue is that you can’t detect photons without interacting with them.

Can't...So far, right? Like there hasn't been a method developed to somehow detect indirectly without interaction? I don't know enough about this to know how one might go about that, but I imagine those that know more might love to given whatever knowledge may be gained.

[–] Neato@kbin.social 12 points 2 years ago (1 children)

No. Can't. The only interaction sensors have is with particles. Photons usually. All things give off light but then measuring light itself, measuring is destructive.

[–] DragonTypeWyvern@literature.cafe 2 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Lol this guy still believes in particles

[–] DrQuint@lemm.ee 1 points 2 years ago

Ah! A field absolutist. Keep preaching, friend.

[–] Klear@sh.itjust.works 1 points 2 years ago

"Detecting" equals "interaction" in this context. You can't detect them without detecting them.

[–] IlIllIIIllIlIlIIlI@lemmy.world 1 points 2 years ago

Im not an expert but tour comment should be on top. Knowing this, all makes sense so easy.

[–] elxeno@lemm.ee 1 points 2 years ago (1 children)

What if u look at only one of the slits?