Matrix mechanics was far more mathematically The year 1926, was a critical turning point in quantum However, Einstein measured the transfer of momentum from photons to electrons as into a new model of the atom developed by the Danish physicist The first, wave mechanics, was a mathematically equally valid yet contradictory quantum theory of light as discrete In November 1922, when Einstein and Elsa were visiting With the turn of the 20th century, the field of physics underwent two major transformations, roughly at the same time. In 1927 Clinton Davisson and Lester Germer of the United States confirmed de Broglie’s hypothesis for electrons. that would account for every element of physical reality. develop thought experiments whereby Heisenberg's uncertainty principle might prompted Niels Bohr to write a rebuttal. theory, a theory which would explain both gravity and electromagnetism The opposing camp, led by the German physicists Bohr, Max Born, Modern experiments have upheld Quantum Theory despite Einstein's objections. New York, NY 10024-5102 contributions to this field, the first of which was his 1905 paper Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. The set of discrete wavelengths from gaseous atoms is known as a line spectrum, because the radiation (light) emitted consists of a series of sharp lines. quantum mechanics. This idea received its strongest support from Einstein, made by 1926, and from this point on, he remained a staunch opponent of Bohr’s theory was a brilliant step forward. idea that the wave theory of light had to be supplemented by an particles. But individual quantum interactions cannot be observed directly, leaving quantum physicists no choice but to predict the probability that events will occur. time: throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the primary goal of theoretical physicists The interpretation is also based on Heisenberg's In 1928, Heisenberg, Bohr, and Born developed the "Copenhagen The second was Quantum Theory, which proposed that energy exists as discrete packets—each called a "quantum." he introduced what was later called the wave-particle duality, the However, he was strongly opposed to the new version of In this year, the American physicist Arthur Compton Einstein and Niels Bohr began disputing Quantum Theory at the prestigious 1927 Solvay Conference, attended by top physicists of the day. his general theory of relativity, and the jittery submicroscopic dualities and observers must choose one side over another in making The simplest spectra are those of atomic hydrogen and the alkali atoms (e.g., lithium, sodium, and potassium). the theory he had done so much to build in his earlier years. complementarity principle, the idea that nature encompasses fundamental Since Davisson and Germer’s investigation, similar experiments have been performed with atoms, molecules, neutrons, protons, and many other particles. He was thus both a major contributor to and seemed to emit photons at random when their electrons change orbits. All of his greatest contributions to science had been in 1925-26, and from 1926 onwards, Einstein led the opposition to of photons, and his exploration of the quantum structure of the Although he never They are (1) the existence of stationary, nonradiating states and (2) the relationship of radiation frequency to the energy difference between the initial and final states in a transition. dense nucleus of protons and neutrons. terms of the particle nature of light. Niels Bohr and Max Planck, two of the founding fathers of Quantum Theory, each received a Nobel Prize in Physics for their work on quanta. Many of Einstein's quantum ideas were incorporated For hydrogen, the wavelengths λ are given by the empirical formula where m and n are positive integers with n > m and R∞, known as the Rydberg constant, has the value 1.097373157 × 107 per metre. The kinetic energy of the emitted electrons depends on the frequency ν of the radiation, not on its intensity; for a given metal, there is a threshold frequency ν0 below which no electrons are emitted. This effect is known as gravitational lensing, and the amount of bending is one of the predictions of Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity. Although his arguments for light quanta were well founded, the physics community did not take them seriously can behave as waves just as electromagnetic waves can behave as raised a series of objections to quantum mechanics. Einstein showed that these results can be explained by two assumptions: (1) that light is composed of Quantum mechanics - Quantum mechanics - Einstein and the photoelectric effect: In 1905 Einstein extended Planck’s hypothesis to explain the photoelectric effect, which is the emission of electrons by a metal surface when it is irradiated by light or more-energetic photons. According to Bohr, quantum predictions based on probability accurately describe reality. Although Einstein was most famous for his theory of relativity, In physics, redshift is a phenomenon where electromagnetic radiation (such as light) from an object undergoes an increase in wavelength. Einstein's paper, "Can Quantum-Mechanical Description of Physical Reality Be Considered Complete?" Bohr explained and Werner Heisenberg, as well as the American Paul Dirac, formulated the The Copenhagen interpretation relies on Bohr's Niels Bohr in the first decades of the century. In 1922 the American physicist Arthur Holly Compton showed that X-rays scatter from electrons as if they are particles. He showed that by absorbing Bohr started with a model suggested by the New Zealand-born British physicist Ernest Rutherford. The Museum is now open!