Wave–particle duality
What Wave–particle duality means in Physics A-Level, as defined for AQA, OCR.
Definitions of Wave–particle duality
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Reference: AQA
Current physics accepts both wave and photon behaviour depending on the experiment, with interference and diffraction showing wave behaviour and emission and absorption showing particle-like behaviour.
The link between wave and particle behaviour of matter, explained by the de Broglie equation.
Electrons behave as waves in diffraction but as particles in other experiments.
Topics that use Wave–particle duality
- Interference (AQA A-Level)
- Wave–particle duality (OCR A-Level)
Related terms
- Atomic spacing
- Coherence
- Coherent monochromatic sources
- Coherent sources
- Constructive interference
- Constructive superposition
- de Broglie wavelength
- Destructive interference
Using Wave–particle duality in the exam
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