Key Contributors to Quantum Mechanics

Flashcards covering key terms and concepts related to significant scientists and principles in quantum mechanics.

Louis de Broglie

● In 1923, the idea of a quantum of energy was generally accepted.

● It was already known that light had a dual nature: wave-like and

particle-like (i.e. a photon).

● de Broglie proposed that if a wave could act like a particle, then a particle could act like a wave.

● Hence, an electron should act like a wave

Wave-particle duality

The concept that light exhibits both wave-like and particle-like properties.

Louis de Broglie

● In 1923, the idea of a quantum of energy was generally accepted.

● It was already known that light had a dual nature: wave-like and

particle-like (i.e. a photon).

● de Broglie proposed that if a wave could act like a particle, then a particle could act like a wave.

● Hence, an electron should act like a wave

Wave-particle duality

The concept that light exhibits both wave-like and particle-like properties.

Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle

It is impossible to simultaneously know the exact position and speed of a particle.

Probability distributions

3-D representations of where an electron is most likely to be found, derived from the wave equation.

Orbitals

Regions in an atom where there is a high probability of finding electrons; includes s, p, d, and f types.

Wave Equation

Mathematical formula used to describe the wave-like behavior of electrons.

Werner Heisenberg

● It is difficult to visualize a particle, like an electron, as a wave.

● It is even more difficult to measure something that we cannot touch.

● Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle – It is impossible to simultaneously know the exact position and speed of a particle.

● We can only specify the probability of finding an electron at a certain location.

Erwin Schroedinger

● Created the physics to describe an electron’s wave-like behaviour --- The Wave Equation.

● The wave equation can be manipulated to produce 3-D probability distributions referred to as orbitals

spdf orbitals

Each orbital can hold either 1 or 2 (max!) electron(s). The orbital represents the most likely location in which to find a particular electron of an atom.