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Historical Origins of Quantum Mechanics
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Which of the following statements best describes the relationship between wave-particle duality and quantum superposition in the context of the historical development of quantum mechanics?

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A

Wave-particle duality illustrates that particles can behave solely as waves or solely as particles, while quantum superposition shows that particles can exist in multiple states simultaneously.

B

Wave-particle duality demonstrates how particles exhibit both wave-like and particle-like properties, while quantum superposition explains how these properties can coexist in a system.

C

Wave-particle duality implies that quantum mechanics is fundamentally deterministic, whereas quantum superposition suggests that outcomes are strictly probabilistic.

D

Wave-particle duality and quantum superposition are unrelated concepts that evolved independently in the study of quantum mechanics.

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Answer

Wave‑particle duality showed that light and matter act sometimes as waves and sometimes as particles, a fact that led Einstein to propose photons and de Broglie to suggest matter waves, hinting that objects can have two seemingly opposite natures. This duality suggested that the state of a quantum system could be a mixture of many possibilities at once, a concept that became formalized as quantum superposition. Schrödinger’s wave equation made it clear that a particle’s wavefunction could be a superposition of different positions or momenta, unifying the dual behaviors mathematically. Thus, wave‑particle duality sparked the idea that particles can be in multiple states simultaneously, and quantum superposition provided the precise language to describe that coexistence. For example, an electron in a double‑slit experiment exists in a superposition of passing through both slits, producing an interference pattern that reveals its wave nature.

Detailed Explanation

Wave-particle duality shows that particles like electrons act as waves and particles at the same time. Other options are incorrect because The mistake is thinking particles can be only waves or only particles at different times; This idea assumes duality means certainty and superposition means randomness.

Key Concepts

wave-particle duality
quantum superposition
Topic

Historical Origins of Quantum Mechanics

Difficulty

medium level question

Cognitive Level

understand

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