Title: How Does Observing Particles Influence Their Behavior?
Headings: How Does Observing Particles Influence Their Behavior?
How Does Observing Particles Influence Their Behavior?
[highlight color=”blue”]Question: In the double slit experiment what is it about observation that changes the way the molecules behave? Is it the simple act of observation or a disruption from the observation equipment? [/highlight]
What About the Experiment Itself?
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Where Things Get Tricky:
WATCH: Dr Quantum – Double Slit Experiment
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Content: [Reference: How Stuff Works]
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The Observer Effect in principle (Credit: Quantum Magic Group)
Where Things Get Tricky: When we start working with very small amounts of energy, we notice a problem: light, the means by which we observe most things, is itself powerful enough to completely change what is going on. So light would be the medicine ball in the analogy. It is energetic enough to cause significant changes on a quantum scale. Any attempt to measure something on the quantum scale will invariably result in altering what you were trying to measure at the start. Sometimes, this isn’t that big of a problem, but then again, sometimes it is (as seen in the double slit experiment). To be clear, having observed something doesn’t change anything, but the nature of how something is observed is what is causing the observer effect.