Thomas V Marcella 2002 Eur. J. Phys. 23 615 doi:10.1088/0143-0807/23/6/303
Thomas V Marcella
Show affiliationsA quantum experiment consists of a preparation procedure followed by the measurement of a specified observable. In the experiments considered here, the y-component of momentum is measured after a particle passes through a system of slits. The source–slit system is the preparation apparatus that determines the initial state |ψ
. Recognizing that a system of slits is a position-measuring device allows us to determine |ψ
. Then, a straightforward calculation gives P (py) = |
py |ψ
|2 the probability that a particle will pass through a system of slits with momentum py = p sin θ. Interference effects are inherent in this probability function. We perform the calculation for four different slit systems. The method is suitable for an upper level course in quantum mechanics.
03.65.Ta Foundations of quantum mechanics; measurement theory
Issue 6 (November 2002)
Received 8 April 2002
Published 15 October 2002
Thomas V Marcella 2002 Eur. J. Phys. 23 615
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