The Geometry of Young’s Double Slit Experiment

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We have shown throughout this blog and its companion book “The Reality of the Fourth *Spatial* Dimension” that observations of our environment suggest that space is composed of four *spatial* dimensions instead of four-dimensional space-time.

If true one should be able to explain and predict the results of Young’s “Double-slit experiment in terms of that geometry.

Wikipedia describes the double slit experiment as being made up of “A coherent source of photons illuminating a screen after passing through a thin plate with two parallel slits cut in it.  The wave nature of light causes the light waves passing through both slits to interfere, creating an interference pattern of bright and dark bands on the screen.  However, at the screen, the light is always found to be absorbed as discrete particles, called photons.
When only one slit is open, the pattern on the screen is a diffraction pattern however, when both slits are open, the pattern is similar but with much more detailed.  These facts were elucidated by Thomas Young in a paper entitled “Experiments and Calculations Relative to Physical Optics,” published in 1803.  To a very high degree of success, these results could be explained by the method of Huygens–Fresnel principle that is based on the hypothesis that light consists of waves propagated through some medium.  However, discovery of the photoelectric effect made it necessary to go beyond classical physics and take the quantum nature of light into account.

It is a widespread misunderstanding that, when two slits are open but a detector is added to determine which slit a photon has passed through, the interference pattern no longer forms and it yields two simple patterns, one from each slit, without interference.  However, there ways to determine which slit a photon passed through in which the interference pattern will be changed but not be completely wiped out.  For instance, by placing an atom at the position of each slit and monitoring whether one of these atoms is influenced by a photon passing the interference pattern will be changed but not be completely wiped out.

The most baffling part of this experiment comes when only one photon at a time impacts a barrier with two opened slits because an interference pattern forms which is similar to what it was when multiple photons were impacting the barrier.  This is a clear implication the particle called a photon has a wave component, which simultaneously passes through both slits and interferes with itself.  (The experiment works with electrons, atoms, and even some molecules too.)”

However, one can understand the “The most baffling part of this experiment” or why the interference pattern remains when only one photon at a time impacts a screen with two opened slits by extrapolating of the laws of classical a three-dimensional environment (as is done in the this blog)  to a four *spatial* dimension.

The article, “Why is energy/mass quantized?” Oct. 4, 2007 showed it is possible to explain and wave properties of a all particles including a photon by extrapolating the laws of classical resonance in a three dimensional environment to a matter wave moving on “surface” of a three dimensional space manifold with respect to a fourth *spatial* dimension.  It also explains why all energy must be quantized or exists in these discrete resonant systems when observed.

Briefly it showed the four conditions required for resonance to occur in a classical environment, an object, or substance with a natural frequency, a forcing function at the same frequency as the natural frequency, the lack of a damping frequency and the ability for the substance to oscillate spatial would occur in a matter wave moving in four *spatial* dimensions.

The existence of four *spatial* dimensions would give a matter wave the ability to oscillate spatially on a “surface” between a third and fourth *spatial* dimensions thereby fulfilling one of the requirements for classical resonance to occur.

These oscillations would be caused by an event such as the decay of a subatomic particle or the shifting of an electron in an atomic orbital.  This would force the “surface” of a three-dimensional space manifold with respect to a fourth *spatial* dimension to oscillate with the frequency associated with the energy of that event.

However, the oscillations caused by such an event would serve as forcing function allowing a resonant system or “structure” to be established in four spatial dimensions.

As was shown in that article these resonant systems in four spatial dimensions are responsible for its quantum mechanical properties.

This cannot be done if one defines the universe in terms of four-dimensional space-time because time is only observed to move in one direction forward and therefore could not support the bi-directional movement required to derive classical resonance.

The reason why the interference patterns remains when one photon at a time is fired at the barrier with both slits open or “the most baffling part of this experiment” is because, as mentioned earlier it is made up of a resonant system or “structure” therefore it occupies an extended volume which is directly related to the wavelength of that system.

This means a portion of a photon’s energy could simultaneously pass both slits, if the diameter of its volume exceeds the separation of the slits and recombine on the other side to generate an interference pattern. 

It also explains why the interference pattern disappears, in most cases when a detector is added to determine which slit a photon has passed through.  The energy required to measure which one of the two slits its energy passes through interacts with it causing the wavelength of that portion to change so that it will not have the same resonant characteristics as one that passed through the other slit   Therefore, the energy passing thought that slit will not be able to interact, in most cases with the energy passing through the other one to form an interference pattern on the screen.

However it also explains why, as was mentioned in the Wikipedia article “there are ways to determine which slit a photon passed through that will cause a change in the interference pattern but will not completely wiped it out.

The fact that the interference pattern can still occur even if a measurement is made is because if the energy passing through one of the two slits is altered by a relatively small amount compared to what it originally was classical wave mechanics tells us it will be able to interact to form a slightly different resonant system with a slightly different interference pattern on the other side than would be the case if no measurement was taken.

It should be pointed out that the fact that an interference pattern can be observed when a detector is added is a direct contraction of the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics.  It demands when a detector is added to the experiment to determine which slit a photon has passed through the interference pattern can no longer form.

However, this also means there should be a quantifiable minimum value of interaction between a measuring device and a photon that will permit the interference pattern although somewhat altered to be reestablished on the other side after measuring which slit the photon passes through.

One can also define the reason, in terms classical wave mechanics why the energy impacting the screen is not continuous but takes the form of discrete packet of energy such as a photon.

As mentioned earlier, the article “Why is energy/mass quantized?” showed energy will be propagated through space in quantized resonant systems if one applies the concept of classical mechanics to a matter wave on surface of a three dimension space.  Therefore, because its energy must be propagated through space to be observed the energy impacting the screen will have the discrete non-wavelike characteristics of a particle.

Richard Feynman the farther of Quantum Electrodynamics or “OED” realized the significance of this experiment because it demonstrates the inseparability of the wave and particle properties of particles and felt a complete understanding of quantum mechanics could be gleaned from carefully thinking through its implications.

The above article demonstrates why.

It shows the quantum mechanical and wave properties of energy/mass displayed in the double slit experiment can be understood if one assumes they are made up of a resonant system in a moving on a “surface” of a three-dimensional space manifold with respect to a fourth *spatial* dimension.

As mentioned earlier it is not possible to derive the outcome of the double slit experiment terms of four dimensional space-time because time is only observed to move in one direction forward and therefore could not support the bi-directional movement required to derive classical resonance.

Later Jeff

Copyright Jeffrey O’Callaghan 2010

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