SUBJECT CODE

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AbstractDe Broglies postulate predicts that all matter has a
wave-particle duality, and that the wavelength of a particle
reduces as momentum increases, being a precursor to modern
quantum physics. Braggs law of reflection allows the derivation
of the lattice spacing of crystals to be calculated, which is a
precursor to modern crystallography. The MOD3 experiment
was preformed to confirm the de Broglie postulate and calculate
the lattice spacing of graphite. The results confirmed de Broglies
postulate and the lattice spacings of graphite were found to be d
10

= 0.233 nm, and d
11
= 0.131 nm.
I. INTRODUCTION
At the end of the 19
th
century, there were two differing
views on the nature of light. That is that light consists of
waves of electromagnetic fields which propagate according to
Maxwells equations, and proven experimentally by
diffraction experiments
[3]
. Einstein postulated that light was
emitted and absorbed by localized packets of energy called
photons that have energy
[3]
;


Where v is the frequency of the light and h is Plancks
constant. Einsteins postulate was confirmed experimentally
over the next two decades.
It then became evident that light exhibits both particle-like
and wave-like properties.
In 1924, Louis de Broglie in his PhD thesis, attempted to
extend the idea that all particles have a wave-particle duality.
The de Broglie equations relate the wavelength to the
momentum, and frequency to the total energy of a particle
[3]
.



Where is wavelength, p is momentum, f is frequency,
and E is energy.
In 1926, Erwin Schrdinger released a paper that described
how this matter-wave should behave by wave mechanics
presented in the form of the famous Schrdinger equation. The
Schrdinger equation is a matter-wave equivalent of
Maxwells equations, Schrdinger then used his equation to
derive the energy spectrum of hydrogen.
The following experiment aims to support de Broglies
postulates that the wavelength of a particle increases as the
momentum is reduced.
This was tested by using the 3B Scientific Physics electron
diffraction tube D U19171
[1]
. The electron diffraction tube
shows the wave nature of electrons by allowing observation of
interference caused by a beam of electrons passing through a
graphite target on a fluorescent screen
[1]
. The wavelength of
the electrons can be calculated for varied anode voltages by
measuring the radius of the diffraction ring and the distance
between the crystal layers in the graphite (lattice constants)
[1]
.
The electron diffraction tube is a highly evacuated tube
with an electron gun consisting of a pure tungsten heater
filament and a cylindrical anode all contained in a clear glass
bulb. The electrons emitted by the heated cathode are
constrained to a narrow beam by an aperture and are then
focused by means of an electron-optical system. The resulting
beam then passes through a micro mesh nickel grating
[1]
. On
this grid is a layer of polycrystalline graphitised carbon, which
affects the electrons similar to a diffraction grating, the
resulting diffraction pattern are two concentric rings
[1]
.
For a simple hexagonal crystal such as graphite, the (d
10
)
and (d
11
) planes, respectively give rise to the inner and outer
rings in the electron diffraction tube, and the ratio of the
spacings are d
10
/d
11
=
[2]



The electron diffraction tube is powered by a high voltage
power supply 5kV U33010-115, or a High voltage power
supply 5 kV U33010-230
[1]
.

Whilst also confirming the de Broglie postulate, the
theoretical values of the lattice constants (d
10
= 0.213nm, d
11
=
0.123nm) of graphite will be compared to experimental
results.
The two concentric rings produced on the target are due to
Braggs law of reflection. Braggs law of reflection describes
the diffraction of plane waves at a monocrystal as the selective
reflection of the waves at a set of lattice planes in the crystal.
The lattice planes have a fixed spacing, d; this is due to the
periodicity of the crystal structure
[2]
. This is described by the
Bragg equation


This equation allows the lattice spacing to be calculated by
striking the crystal at a right angle to reinforce the reflection
MOD3
Your name and student ID here (but remove in the turnitin-submitted copy)
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Figure 1. Electron Diffraction Tube D U19171
[1]

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SUBJECT CODE

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D
i
a
m
e
t
e
r

o
f

d
i
f
f
r
a
c
t
i
o
n

r
i
n
g

(
m
m
)

1
m
m

Applied voltage (V) 5v
Electron Diffraction with Varied Potential
Difference
Diameter of inner
diffraction ring (mm)
1mm
Diameter of outer
diffraction ring (mm)
1mm
by constructive interference, and to measure scattering
intensity versus angle.
Given a single, uniform crystal, measuring of all the
possible angles is quiet difficult. The powder method is used
to overcome this problem. Using a polycrystalline sample
(which is a combination of a large number of small crystal
domains) deposited onto a micro mesh nickel grating, will
allow all possible angles to be studied simultaneously due to
the random orientation of the small crystals
[2]
.
A beam incident on this bulk sample will produce the two
concentric rings onto the fluorescent screen. (4) in the powder
method will reduce to

Where: d is the lattice spacing in graphite (nm), R is the
radius of diffraction ring (mm), and L is the distance between
sample and screen (mm).
II. METHOD
Turn on the power supply to the electron diffraction tube;
allow the tube to heat for approximately 1 minute.
Once heated, increase the potential difference to 2 kV,
measure the diameter of the two concentric rings. Increase the
potential difference by small increments, recording the
diameter values up to a potential difference of 4.5 kV; do not
exceed 5 kV or a current of 0.2 mA
[1]
.
III. RESULTS
As the potential difference was varied, the sizes of the
concentric rings varied, in a manner described by de Broglies
postulate. The size of the rings increased as the potential
difference was decreased, which corresponds to the
wavelength of the electrons increasing as the momentum of
the particle was reduced, refer to figure 2.
The experimentally determined lattice constants of
graphite were found to be; d
10
= 0.233 nm, and d
11
= 0.131
nm.

IV. DISCUSSION

De Broglies equation:
= h/p
p =
Wavelength of electron
m Mass of an electron = 9.109E-31 kg
e Charge of an electron = 1.602E-19 C
U = applied voltage
h Planks constant = 6.626 x 10-34 m
2
kg / s

Bragg equation:

d Lattice spacing in graphite (nm)
R Radius of diffraction ring (mm)
L Distance between sample and screen (mm)

This equation can then be re-arranged to find the lattice
spacing of graphite;

The experimental values of the lattice constant of graphite
were calculated by first finding the wavelength of the
electrons at 4 kV with (2). Next, the value of the calculated
wavelength was substituted into (6) to give the two
experimental values of the lattice constants of graphite; d
10
=
0.233 nm, and d
11
= 0.131 nm. The experimental values of the
lattice constants of graphite are within 9% and 7%
respectively of the theoretical lattice constants given. The ratio
of d
10
/d
11
of the experimental results was found to be 1.78,
compared the theoretical result of 1.73 gives an accuracy of
3%.
V. CONCLUSIONS
De Broglies postulate predicted that all particles have a
wave-particle duality, where the wavelength of a particle is
related to the momentum and Plancks constant (2).
The experimental results support de Broglies postulate, as
the momentum of a particle increases, the wavelength
decreases.
The experimentally determined lattice constants of graphite
were found to be d
10
= 0.233 nm, and d
11
= 0.131 nm, which
approximately obeys the ratio for a simple hexagonal crystal
of .
The de Broglie postulate and Braggs law of reflection were
the precursors to modern crystallography techniques and
confirmed that all matter has a wave-particle duality.
References
[1] LMS. (MOD3) Electron Diffraction experimental instructions. Retrieved
17/04/2014.https://lms.latrobe.edu.au/pluginfile.php/1600977/mod_resourc
e/content/1/Electron%20Diffraction.pdf .
[2] Menga, Y. S., Cedera, G., Greyc, C. P., Yoond, W.S., and Shao-Horn, Y.
(2003). Understanding the Crystal Structure of Layered LiNi0.5Mn0.5O2
by Electron Diffraction and Powder Diffraction Simulation.
Electrochemical and Solid-State Letters.
[3] De Broglie, L. (1970). The reinterpretation of wave mechanics. Foundations
of Physics. 1(1), 5-15.
Figure 2. Graph of diameter of diffraction ring changing with applied voltage.
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