- #1
Thecla
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- TL;DR Summary
- QM description of radioactive atom
In Sheldon Glashow's critical review of "What is Real? The Unfinished Quest for the Meaning of Quantum Physics" by Adam Becker, there is one paragraph I don't understand. In Glashow's thought experiment of a single radioactive atom in a box:
My thought experiment is like Schrödinger’s, but without the cat. A single X atom is placed in a sealed box. Four hours later, the box is opened. The atom survives in roughly half the times the experiment is repeated. Is the confined atom in a superposition of having decayed or not decayed until the box is opened? Does the act of opening the box collapse the wave function?No, and no again.
I always thought that the wave function of the atom in a box can be described as a linear combination of decayed and non decayed states, but Dr. Glashow seems to say no.
My thought experiment is like Schrödinger’s, but without the cat. A single X atom is placed in a sealed box. Four hours later, the box is opened. The atom survives in roughly half the times the experiment is repeated. Is the confined atom in a superposition of having decayed or not decayed until the box is opened? Does the act of opening the box collapse the wave function?No, and no again.
I always thought that the wave function of the atom in a box can be described as a linear combination of decayed and non decayed states, but Dr. Glashow seems to say no.