History for Physics - "Schrödinger’s Struggles with a Complex Wave Function"

Lecture of the series History for Physics - Quantum foundations by Ricardo Karam (University of Copenhagen)
Website of the event: www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/page/...

[@HyperFocusMarshmallow]

Great lecture! 😊

[@FallenStarFeatures]

There seems to have been a persistent aversion to the complex nature of the wave function among pioneers of quantum mechanics, rooted in their desire for an entirely physical formulation of quantum physics. The fact is, however, that the quantum wave function does not exist in 3D physical space, but is defined instead in complex-valued Configuration Space, an abstract domain of potentially limitless numbers of dimensions. In order to derive physically observable manifestions of the wave function, Hermetian operators must be applied to the Schrodinger equation to produce measurable eigenvalues. A key property of these Hermetian eigenvalues is that they are always real-valued quantities, indicative of solutions that can be manifest in physical space. Of course, the probability densities of these solutions are given by the conjugate square of the wave function, which likewise always produces real-valued results.

[@sergeisuslov3859]

Don't you forget a law of conservation of energy in quantum mechanics? And stability of matter? Read Dyson article in the Notices of AMS!

[@stephenrothman6058]

when you talk about Schrodinger wrote XYZ to somebody else, or talk of his formal papers, is this in English, German or something else? Are the originals available and readable?

[@geeache1891]

A pity that he brings it hasty and somewhat nervous, despite it is quite interesting.

[@paulg444]

Very important issue for all of us teaching STEM.

[@justneoh8253]

Good talk but wonder why he was panting and gasping while talking.

[@KramerEspinoza]

Nerves