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2BasicPhysics

21Introduction
Inthischapter,weshallexaminethemostfundamentalideasthatwehaveaboutphysicsthenatureofthingsasweseethematthepresenttime.Weshallnot
discussthehistoryofhowweknowthatalltheseideasaretrueyouwilllearnthesedetailsinduetime.

Thethingswithwhichweconcernourselvesinscienceappearinmyriadforms,andwithamultitudeofattributes.Forexample,ifwestandontheshoreand
lookatthesea,weseethewater,thewavesbreaking,thefoam,thesloshingmotionofthewater,thesound,theair,thewindsandtheclouds,thesunandthe
bluesky,andlightthereissandandtherearerocksofvarioushardnessandpermanence,colorandtexture.Thereareanimalsandseaweed,hungerand
disease,andtheobserveronthebeachtheremaybeevenhappinessandthought.Anyotherspotinnaturehasasimilarvarietyofthingsandinfluences.Itis
alwaysascomplicatedasthat,nomatterwhereitis.Curiositydemandsthatweaskquestions,thatwetrytoputthingstogetherandtrytounderstandthis
multitudeofaspectsasperhapsresultingfromtheactionofarelativelysmallnumberofelementalthingsandforcesactinginaninfinitevarietyof
combinations.

Forexample:Isthesandotherthantherocks?Thatis,isthesandperhapsnothingbutagreatnumberofverytinystones?Isthemoonagreatrock?Ifwe
understoodrocks,wouldwealsounderstandthesandandthemoon?Isthewindasloshingoftheairanalogoustothesloshingmotionofthewaterinthesea?
Whatcommonfeaturesdodifferentmovementshave?Whatiscommontodifferentkindsofsound?Howmanydifferentcolorsarethere?Andsoon.Inthis
waywetrygraduallytoanalyzeallthings,toputtogetherthingswhichatfirstsightlookdifferent,withthehopethatwemaybeabletoreducethenumberof
differentthingsandtherebyunderstandthembetter.

Afewhundredyearsago,amethodwasdevisedtofindpartialanswerstosuchquestions.Observation,reason,andexperimentmakeupwhatwecallthe
scientificmethod.Weshallhavetolimitourselvestoabaredescriptionofourbasicviewofwhatissometimescalledfundamentalphysics,orfundamental
ideaswhichhavearisenfromtheapplicationofthescientificmethod.

Whatdowemeanbyunderstandingsomething?Wecanimaginethatthiscomplicatedarrayofmovingthingswhichconstitutestheworldissomething
likeagreatchessgamebeingplayedbythegods,andweareobserversofthegame.Wedonotknowwhattherulesofthegameareallweareallowedtodo
istowatchtheplaying.Ofcourse,ifwewatchlongenough,wemayeventuallycatchontoafewoftherules.Therulesofthegamearewhatwemeanby
fundamentalphysics.Evenifwekneweveryrule,however,wemightnotbeabletounderstandwhyaparticularmoveismadeinthegame,merelybecauseit
istoocomplicatedandourmindsarelimited.Ifyouplaychessyoumustknowthatitiseasytolearnalltherules,andyetitisoftenveryhardtoselectthe
bestmoveortounderstandwhyaplayermovesashedoes.Soitisinnature,onlymuchmoresobutwemaybeableatleasttofindalltherules.Actually,we
donothavealltherulesnow.(Everyonceinawhilesomethinglikecastlingisgoingonthatwestilldonotunderstand.)Asidefromnotknowingallofthe
rules,whatwereallycanexplainintermsofthoserulesisverylimited,becausealmostallsituationsaresoenormouslycomplicatedthatwecannotfollowthe

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playsofthegameusingtherules,muchlesstellwhatisgoingtohappennext.Wemust,therefore,limitourselvestothemorebasicquestionoftherulesof
thegame.Ifweknowtherules,weconsiderthatweunderstandtheworld.

Howcanwetellwhethertheruleswhichweguessatarereallyrightifwecannotanalyzethegameverywell?Thereare,roughlyspeaking,threeways.
First,theremaybesituationswherenaturehasarranged,orwearrangenature,tobesimpleandtohavesofewpartsthatwecanpredictexactlywhatwill
happen,andthuswecancheckhowourruleswork.(Inonecorneroftheboardtheremaybeonlyafewchesspiecesatwork,andthatwecanfigureout
exactly.)

Asecondgoodwaytocheckrulesisintermsoflessspecificrulesderivedfromthem.Forexample,theruleonthemoveofabishoponachessboardisthatit
movesonlyonthediagonal.Onecandeduce,nomatterhowmanymovesmaybemade,thatacertainbishopwillalwaysbeonaredsquare.So,without
beingabletofollowthedetails,wecanalwayscheckourideaaboutthebishopsmotionbyfindingoutwhetheritisalwaysonaredsquare.Ofcourseitwill
be,foralongtime,untilallofasuddenwefindthatitisonablacksquare(whathappenedofcourse,isthatinthemeantimeitwascaptured,anotherpawn
crossedforqueening,anditturnedintoabishoponablacksquare).Thatisthewayitisinphysics.Foralongtimewewillhavearulethatworksexcellently
inanoverallway,evenwhenwecannotfollowthedetails,andthensometimewemaydiscoveranewrule.Fromthepointofviewofbasicphysics,the
mostinterestingphenomenaareofcourseinthenewplaces,theplaceswheretherulesdonotworknottheplaceswheretheydowork!Thatisthewayin
whichwediscovernewrules.

Thethirdwaytotellwhetherourideasarerightisrelativelycrudebutprobablythemostpowerfulofthemall.Thatis,byroughapproximation.Whilewe
maynotbeabletotellwhyAlekhinemovesthisparticularpiece,perhapswecanroughlyunderstandthatheisgatheringhispiecesaroundthekingtoprotect
it,moreorless,sincethatisthesensiblethingtodointhecircumstances.Inthesameway,wecanoftenunderstandnature,moreorless,withoutbeingableto
seewhateverylittlepieceisdoing,intermsofourunderstandingofthegame.

Atfirstthephenomenaofnaturewereroughlydividedintoclasses,likeheat,electricity,mechanics,magnetism,propertiesofsubstances,chemical
phenomena,lightoroptics,xrays,nuclearphysics,gravitation,mesonphenomena,etc.However,theaimistoseecompletenatureasdifferentaspectsofone
setofphenomena.Thatistheprobleminbasictheoreticalphysics,todaytofindthelawsbehindexperimenttoamalgamatetheseclasses.Historically,we
havealwaysbeenabletoamalgamatethem,butastimegoesonnewthingsarefound.Wewereamalgamatingverywell,whenallofasuddenxrayswere
found.Thenweamalgamatedsomemore,andmesonswerefound.Therefore,atanystageofthegame,italwayslooksrathermessy.Agreatdealis
amalgamated,buttherearealwaysmanywiresorthreadshangingoutinalldirections.Thatisthesituationtoday,whichweshalltrytodescribe.

Somehistoricexamplesofamalgamationarethefollowing.First,takeheatandmechanics.Whenatomsareinmotion,themoremotion,themoreheatthe
systemcontains,andsoheatandalltemperatureeffectscanberepresentedbythelawsofmechanics.Anothertremendousamalgamationwasthediscoveryof
therelationbetweenelectricity,magnetism,andlight,whichwerefoundtobedifferentaspectsofthesamething,whichwecalltodaytheelectromagnetic
field.Anotheramalgamationistheunificationofchemicalphenomena,thevariouspropertiesofvarioussubstances,andthebehaviorofatomicparticles,
whichisinthequantummechanicsofchemistry.

Thequestionis,ofcourse,isitgoingtobepossibletoamalgamateeverything,andmerelydiscoverthatthisworldrepresentsdifferentaspectsofonething?
Nobodyknows.Allweknowisthataswegoalong,wefindthatwecanamalgamatepieces,andthenwefindsomepiecesthatdonotfit,andwekeeptrying
toputthejigsawpuzzletogether.Whetherthereareafinitenumberofpieces,andwhetherthereisevenabordertothepuzzle,isofcourseunknown.Itwill
neverbeknownuntilwefinishthepicture,ifever.Whatwewishtodohereistoseetowhatextentthisamalgamationprocesshasgoneon,andwhatthe
situationisatpresent,inunderstandingbasicphenomenaintermsofthesmallestsetofprinciples.Toexpressitinasimplemanner,whatarethingsmadeof
andhowfewelementsarethere?

22Physicsbefore1920
Itisalittledifficulttobeginatoncewiththepresentview,soweshallfirstseehowthingslookedinabout1920andthentakeafewthingsoutofthatpicture.
Before1920,ourworldpicturewassomethinglikethis:Thestageonwhichtheuniversegoesisthethreedimensionalspaceofgeometry,asdescribedby
Euclid,andthingschangeinamediumcalledtime.Theelementsonthestageareparticles,forexampletheatoms,whichhavesomeproperties.First,the
propertyofinertia:ifaparticleismovingitkeepsongoinginthesamedirectionunlessforcesactuponit.Thesecondelement,then,isforces,whichwere
thenthoughttobeoftwovarieties:First,anenormouslycomplicated,detailedkindofinteractionforcewhichheldthevariousatomsindifferent
combinationsinacomplicatedway,whichdeterminedwhethersaltwoulddissolvefasterorslowerwhenweraisethetemperature.Theotherforcethatwas
knownwasalongrangeinteractionasmoothandquietattractionwhichvariedinverselyasthesquareofthedistance,andwascalledgravitation.This
lawwasknownandwasverysimple.Whythingsremaininmotionwhentheyaremoving,orwhythereisalawofgravitationwas,ofcourse,notknown.

Adescriptionofnatureiswhatweareconcernedwithhere.Fromthispointofview,then,agas,andindeedallmatter,isamyriadofmovingparticles.Thus
manyofthethingswesawwhilestandingattheseashorecanimmediatelybeconnected.Firstthepressure:thiscomesfromthecollisionsoftheatomswith
thewallsorwhateverthedriftoftheatoms,iftheyareallmovinginonedirectionontheaverage,iswindtherandominternalmotionsaretheheat.There
arewavesofexcessdensity,wheretoomanyparticleshavecollected,andsoastheyrushofftheypushuppilesofparticlesfartherout,andsoon.Thiswave
ofexcessdensityissound.Itisatremendousachievementtobeabletounderstandsomuch.Someofthesethingsweredescribedinthepreviouschapter.

Whatkindsofparticlesarethere?Therewereconsideredtobe92atthattime:92differentkindsofatomswereultimatelydiscovered.Theyhaddifferent
namesassociatedwiththeirchemicalproperties.

Thenextpartoftheproblemwas,whataretheshortrangeforces?Whydoescarbonattractoneoxygenorperhapstwooxygens,butnotthreeoxygens?
Whatisthemachineryofinteractionbetweenatoms?Isitgravitation?Theanswerisno.Gravityisentirelytooweak.Butimagineaforceanalogousto
gravity,varyinginverselywiththesquareofthedistance,butenormouslymorepowerfulandhavingonedifference.Ingravityeverythingattractseverything
else,butnowimaginethattherearetwokindsofthings,andthatthisnewforce(whichistheelectricalforce,ofcourse)hasthepropertythatlikesrepelbut
unlikesattract.Thethingthatcarriesthisstronginteractioniscalledcharge.

Thenwhatdowehave?Supposethatwehavetwounlikesthatattracteachother,aplusandaminus,andthattheystickveryclosetogether.Supposewehave
anotherchargesomedistanceaway.Woulditfeelanyattraction?Itwouldfeelpracticallynone,becauseifthefirsttwoareequalinsize,theattractionforthe
oneandtherepulsionfortheotherbalanceout.Thereforethereisverylittleforceatanyappreciabledistance.Ontheotherhand,ifwegetveryclosewiththe
extracharge,attractionarises,becausetherepulsionoflikesandattractionofunlikeswilltendtobringunlikesclosertogetherandpushlikesfartherapart.
Thentherepulsionwillbelessthantheattraction.Thisisthereasonwhytheatoms,whichareconstitutedoutofplusandminuselectriccharges,feelvery
littleforcewhentheyareseparatedbyappreciabledistance(asidefromgravity).Whentheycomeclosetogether,theycanseeinsideeachotherand
rearrangetheircharges,withtheresultthattheyhaveaverystronginteraction.Theultimatebasisofaninteractionbetweentheatomsiselectrical.Sincethis
forceissoenormous,alltheplussesandallminuseswillnormallycometogetherinasintimateacombinationastheycan.Allthings,evenourselves,are

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madeoffinegrained,enormouslystronglyinteractingplusandminusparts,allneatlybalancedout.Onceinawhile,byaccident,wemayruboffafew
minusesorafewplusses(usuallyitiseasiertoruboffminuses),andinthosecircumstanceswefindtheforceofelectricityunbalanced,andwecanthensee
theeffectsoftheseelectricalattractions.

Togiveanideaofhowmuchstrongerelectricityisthangravitation,considertwograinsofsand,amillimeteracross,thirtymetersapart.Iftheforcebetween
themwerenotbalanced,ifeverythingattractedeverythingelseinsteadoflikesrepelling,sothattherewerenocancellation,howmuchforcewouldtherebe?
Therewouldbeaforceofthreemilliontonsbetweenthetwo!Yousee,thereisvery,verylittleexcessordeficitofthenumberofnegativeorpositivecharges
necessarytoproduceappreciableelectricaleffects.Thisis,ofcourse,thereasonwhyyoucannotseethedifferencebetweenanelectricallychargedor
unchargedthingsofewparticlesareinvolvedthattheyhardlymakeadifferenceintheweightorsizeofanobject.

Withthispicturetheatomswereeasiertounderstand.Theywerethoughttohaveanucleusatthecenter,whichispositivelyelectricallychargedandvery
massive,andthenucleusissurroundedbyacertainnumberofelectronswhichareverylightandnegativelycharged.Nowwegoalittleaheadinourstory
toremarkthatinthenucleusitselftherewerefoundtwokindsofparticles,protonsandneutrons,almostofthesameweightandveryheavy.Theprotonsare
electricallychargedandtheneutronsareneutral.Ifwehaveanatomwithsixprotonsinsideitsnucleus,andthisissurroundedbysixelectrons(thenegative
particlesintheordinaryworldofmatterareallelectrons,andtheseareverylightcomparedwiththeprotonsandneutronswhichmakenuclei),thiswouldbe
atomnumbersixinthechemicaltable,anditiscalledcarbon.Atomnumbereightiscalledoxygen,etc.,becausethechemicalpropertiesdependuponthe
electronsontheoutside,andinfactonlyuponhowmanyelectronsthereare.Sothechemicalpropertiesofasubstancedependonlyonanumber,thenumber
ofelectrons.(Thewholelistofelementsofthechemistsreallycouldhavebeencalled1 ,2 ,3 ,4 ,5 ,etc.Insteadofsayingcarbon,wecouldsayelement
six,meaningsixelectrons,butofcourse,whentheelementswerefirstdiscovered,itwasnotknownthattheycouldbenumberedthatway,andsecondly,it
wouldmakeeverythinglookrathercomplicated.Itisbettertohavenamesandsymbolsforthesethings,ratherthantocalleverythingbynumber.)

Morewasdiscoveredabouttheelectricalforce.Thenaturalinterpretationofelectricalinteractionisthattwoobjectssimplyattracteachother:plusagainst
minus.However,thiswasdiscoveredtobeaninadequateideatorepresentit.Amoreadequaterepresentationofthesituationistosaythattheexistenceofthe
positivecharge,insomesense,distorts,orcreatesaconditioninspace,sothatwhenweputthenegativechargein,itfeelsaforce.Thispotentialityfor
producingaforceiscalledanelectricfield.Whenweputanelectroninanelectricfield,wesayitispulled.Wethenhavetworules:(a)chargesmakea
field,and(b)chargesinfieldshaveforcesonthemandmove.Thereasonforthiswillbecomeclearwhenwediscussthefollowingphenomena:Ifwewereto
chargeabody,sayacomb,electrically,andthenplaceachargedpieceofpaperatadistanceandmovethecombbackandforth,thepaperwillrespondby
alwayspointingtothecomb.Ifweshakeitfaster,itwillbediscoveredthatthepaperisalittlebehind,thereisadelayintheaction.(Atthefirststage,when
wemovethecombratherslowly,wefindacomplicationwhichismagnetism.Magneticinfluenceshavetodowithchargesinrelativemotion,somagnetic
forcesandelectricforcescanreallybeattributedtoonefield,astwodifferentaspectsofexactlythesamething.Achangingelectricfieldcannotexistwithout
magnetism.)Ifwemovethechargedpaperfartherout,thedelayisgreater.Thenaninterestingthingisobserved.Althoughtheforcesbetweentwocharged
objectsshouldgoinverselyasthesquareofthedistance,itisfound,whenweshakeacharge,thattheinfluenceextendsverymuchfartheroutthanwewould
guessatfirstsight.Thatis,theeffectfallsoffmoreslowlythantheinversesquare.

Hereisananalogy:Ifweareinapoolofwaterandthereisafloatingcorkverycloseby,wecanmoveitdirectlybypushingthewaterwithanothercork.If
youlookedonlyatthetwocorks,allyouwouldseewouldbethatonemovedimmediatelyinresponsetothemotionoftheotherthereissomekindof
interactionbetweenthem.Ofcourse,whatwereallydoistodisturbthewaterthewaterthendisturbstheothercork.Wecouldmakeupalawthatifyou
pushedthewateralittlebit,anobjectclosebyinthewaterwouldmove.Ifitwerefartheraway,ofcourse,thesecondcorkwouldscarcelymove,forwemove
thewaterlocally.Ontheotherhand,ifwejigglethecorkanewphenomenonisinvolved,inwhichthemotionofthewatermovesthewaterthere,etc.,and
wavestravelaway,sothatbyjiggling,thereisaninfluenceverymuchfartherout,anoscillatoryinfluence,thatcannotbeunderstoodfromthedirect
interaction.Thereforetheideaofdirectinteractionmustbereplacedwiththeexistenceofthewater,orintheelectricalcase,withwhatwecallthe
electromagneticfield.

Theelectromagneticfieldcancarrywavessomeofthesewavesarelight,othersareusedinradiobroadcasts,butthegeneralnameiselectromagneticwaves.
Theseoscillatorywavescanhavevariousfrequencies.Theonlythingthatisreallydifferentfromonewavetoanotheristhefrequencyofoscillation.Ifwe
shakeachargebackandforthmoreandmorerapidly,andlookattheeffects,wegetawholeseriesofdifferentkindsofeffects,whichareallunifiedby
specifyingbutonenumber,thenumberofoscillationspersecond.Theusualpickupthatwegetfromelectriccurrentsinthecircuitsinthewallsofa
buildinghaveafrequencyofaboutonehundredcyclespersecond.Ifweincreasethefrequencyto500 or1000kilocycles(1 kilocycle = 1000 cycles)per
second,weareontheair,forthisisthefrequencyrangewhichisusedforradiobroadcasts.(Ofcourseithasnothingtodowiththeair!Wecanhaveradio
broadcastswithoutanyair.)Ifweagainincreasethefrequency,wecomeintotherangethatisusedforFMandTV.Goingstillfurther,weusecertainshort
waves,forexampleforradar.Stillhigher,andwedonotneedaninstrumenttoseethestuff,wecanseeitwiththehumaneye.Intherangeoffrequency
from5 10 to10 cyclespersecondoureyeswouldseetheoscillationofthechargedcomb,ifwecouldshakeitthatfast,asred,blue,orvioletlight,
14 15

dependingonthefrequency.Frequenciesbelowthisrangearecalledinfrared,andaboveit,ultraviolet.Thefactthatwecanseeinaparticularfrequencyrange
makesthatpartoftheelectromagneticspectrumnomoreimpressivethantheotherpartsfromaphysicistsstandpoint,butfromahumanstandpoint,of
course,itismoreinteresting.Ifwegoupevenhigherinfrequency,wegetxrays.Xraysarenothingbutveryhighfrequencylight.Ifwegostillhigher,we
getgammarays.Thesetwoterms,xraysandgammarays,areusedalmostsynonymously.Usuallyelectromagneticrayscomingfromnucleiarecalled
gammarays,whilethoseofhighenergyfromatomsarecalledxrays,butatthesamefrequencytheyareindistinguishablephysically,nomatterwhattheir
source.Ifwegotostillhigherfrequencies,sayto10 cyclespersecond,wefindthatwecanmakethosewavesartificially,forexamplewiththesynchrotron
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hereatCaltech.Wecanfindelectromagneticwaveswithstupendouslyhighfrequencieswithevenathousandtimesmorerapidoscillationinthewaves
foundincosmicrays.Thesewavescannotbecontrolledbyus.

Table21TheElectromagneticSpectrum
Frequencyinoscillations/sec Name Roughbehavior
10
2
Electricaldisturbance Field
5 10
5
106
Radiobroadcast

10
8
FMTV

10
10
Radar

5 10
14
10 15
Light Waves
10
18
Xrays
10
21
rays,nuclear
10
24
rays,artificial
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10
27
rays,incosmicrays
Particle

23Quantumphysics
Havingdescribedtheideaoftheelectromagneticfield,andthatthisfieldcancarrywaves,wesoonlearnthatthesewavesactuallybehaveinastrangeway
whichseemsveryunwavelike.Athigherfrequenciestheybehavemuchmorelikeparticles!Itisquantummechanics,discoveredjustafter1920,which
explainsthisstrangebehavior.Intheyearsbefore1920,thepictureofspaceasathreedimensionalspace,andoftimeasaseparatething,waschangedby
Einstein,firstintoacombinationwhichwecallspacetime,andthenstillfurtherintoacurvedspacetimetorepresentgravitation.Sothestageischanged
intospacetime,andgravitationispresumablyamodificationofspacetime.Thenitwasalsofoundthattherulesforthemotionsofparticleswereincorrect.
ThemechanicalrulesofinertiaandforcesarewrongNewtonslawsarewrongintheworldofatoms.Instead,itwasdiscoveredthatthingsonasmall
scalebehavenothinglikethingsonalargescale.Thatiswhatmakesphysicsdifficultandveryinteresting.Itishardbecausethewaythingsbehaveona
smallscaleissounnaturalwehavenodirectexperiencewithit.Herethingsbehavelikenothingweknowof,sothatitisimpossibletodescribethis
behaviorinanyotherthananalyticways.Itisdifficult,andtakesalotofimagination.

Quantummechanicshasmanyaspects.Inthefirstplace,theideathataparticlehasadefinitelocationandadefinitespeedisnolongerallowedthatiswrong.
Togiveanexampleofhowwrongclassicalphysicsis,thereisaruleinquantummechanicsthatsaysthatonecannotknowbothwheresomethingisandhow
fastitismoving.Theuncertaintyofthemomentumandtheuncertaintyofthepositionarecomplementary,andtheproductofthetwoisboundedbyasmall
constant.Wecanwritethelawlikethis:x p /2,butweshallexplainitinmoredetaillater.Thisruleistheexplanationofaverymysteriousparadox:
iftheatomsaremadeoutofplusandminuscharges,whydonttheminuschargessimplysitontopofthepluscharges(theyattracteachother)andgetso
closeastocompletelycancelthemout?Whyareatomssobig?Whyisthenucleusatthecenterwiththeelectronsaroundit?Itwasfirstthoughtthatthiswas
becausethenucleuswassobigbutno,thenucleusisverysmall.Anatomhasadiameterofabout10 cm.Thenucleushasadiameterofabout10 cm.
8 13

Ifwehadanatomandwishedtoseethenucleus,wewouldhavetomagnifyituntilthewholeatomwasthesizeofalargeroom,andthenthenucleuswould
beabarespeckwhichyoucouldjustaboutmakeoutwiththeeye,butverynearlyalltheweightoftheatomisinthatinfinitesimalnucleus.Whatkeepsthe
electronsfromsimplyfallingin?Thisprinciple:Iftheywereinthenucleus,wewouldknowtheirpositionprecisely,andtheuncertaintyprinciplewouldthen
requirethattheyhaveaverylarge(butuncertain)momentum,i.e.,averylargekineticenergy.Withthisenergytheywouldbreakawayfromthenucleus.
Theymakeacompromise:theyleavethemselvesalittleroomforthisuncertaintyandthenjigglewithacertainamountofminimummotioninaccordance
withthisrule.(Rememberthatwhenacrystaliscooledtoabsolutezero,wesaidthattheatomsdonotstopmoving,theystilljiggle.Why?Iftheystopped
moving,wewouldknowwheretheywereandthattheyhadzeromotion,andthatisagainsttheuncertaintyprinciple.Wecannotknowwheretheyareand
howfasttheyaremoving,sotheymustbecontinuallywigglinginthere!)

Anothermostinterestingchangeintheideasandphilosophyofsciencebroughtaboutbyquantummechanicsisthis:itisnotpossibletopredictexactlywhat
willhappeninanycircumstance.Forexample,itispossibletoarrangeanatomwhichisreadytoemitlight,andwecanmeasurewhenithasemittedlightby
pickingupaphotonparticle,whichweshalldescribeshortly.Wecannot,however,predictwhenitisgoingtoemitthelightor,withseveralatoms,whichone
isgoingto.Youmaysaythatthisisbecausetherearesomeinternalwheelswhichwehavenotlookedatcloselyenough.No,therearenointernalwheels
nature,asweunderstandittoday,behavesinsuchawaythatitisfundamentallyimpossibletomakeaprecisepredictionofexactlywhatwillhappenina
givenexperiment.Thisisahorriblethinginfact,philosophershavesaidbeforethatoneofthefundamentalrequisitesofscienceisthatwheneveryousetup
thesameconditions,thesamethingmusthappen.Thisissimplynottrue,itisnotafundamentalconditionofscience.Thefactisthatthesamethingdoesnot
happen,thatwecanfindonlyanaverage,statistically,astowhathappens.Nevertheless,sciencehasnotcompletelycollapsed.Philosophers,incidentally,say
agreatdealaboutwhatisabsolutelynecessaryforscience,anditisalways,sofarasonecansee,rathernaive,andprobablywrong.Forexample,some
philosopherorothersaiditisfundamentaltothescientificeffortthatifanexperimentisperformedin,say,Stockholm,andthenthesameexperimentisdone
in,say,Quito,thesameresultsmustoccur.Thatisquitefalse.Itisnotnecessarythatsciencedothatitmaybeafactofexperience,butitisnotnecessary.For
example,ifoneoftheexperimentsistolookoutattheskyandseetheauroraborealisinStockholm,youdonotseeitinQuitothatisadifferent
phenomenon.But,yousay,thatissomethingthathastodowiththeoutsidecanyoucloseyourselfupinaboxinStockholmandpulldowntheshadeand
getanydifference?Surely.Ifwetakeapendulumonauniversaljoint,andpullitoutandletgo,thenthependulumwillswingalmostinaplane,butnot
quite.SlowlytheplanekeepschanginginStockholm,butnotinQuito.Theblindsaredown,too.Thefactthatthishappeneddoesnotbringonthedestruction
ofscience.Whatisthefundamentalhypothesisofscience,thefundamentalphilosophy?Westateditinthefirstchapter:thesoletestofthevalidityofanyidea
isexperiment.IfitturnsoutthatmostexperimentsworkoutthesameinQuitoastheydoinStockholm,thenthosemostexperimentswillbeusedto
formulatesomegenerallaw,andthoseexperimentswhichdonotcomeoutthesamewewillsaywerearesultoftheenvironmentnearStockholm.Wewill
inventsomewaytosummarizetheresultsoftheexperiment,andwedonothavetobetoldaheadoftimewhatthiswaywilllooklike.Ifwearetoldthatthe
sameexperimentwillalwaysproducethesameresult,thatisallverywell,butifwhenwetryit,itdoesnot,thenitdoesnot.Wejusthavetotakewhatwesee,
andthenformulatealltherestofourideasintermsofouractualexperience.

Returningagaintoquantummechanicsandfundamentalphysics,wecannotgointodetailsofthequantummechanicalprinciplesatthistime,ofcourse,
becausetheseareratherdifficulttounderstand.Weshallassumethattheyarethere,andgoontodescribewhatsomeoftheconsequencesare.Oneofthe
consequencesisthatthingswhichweusedtoconsideraswavesalsobehavelikeparticles,andparticlesbehavelikewavesinfacteverythingbehavesthe
sameway.Thereisnodistinctionbetweenawaveandaparticle.Soquantummechanicsunifiestheideaofthefieldanditswaves,andtheparticles,allinto
one.Nowitistruethatwhenthefrequencyislow,thefieldaspectofthephenomenonismoreevident,ormoreusefulasanapproximatedescriptioninterms
ofeverydayexperiences.Butasthefrequencyincreases,theparticleaspectsofthephenomenonbecomemoreevidentwiththeequipmentwithwhichwe
usuallymakethemeasurements.Infact,althoughwementionedmanyfrequencies,nophenomenondirectlyinvolvingafrequencyhasyetbeendetected
aboveapproximately10 cyclespersecond.Weonlydeducethehigherfrequenciesfromtheenergyoftheparticles,byarulewhichassumesthatthe
12

particlewaveideaofquantummechanicsisvalid.

Thuswehaveanewviewofelectromagneticinteraction.Wehaveanewkindofparticletoaddtotheelectron,theproton,andtheneutron.Thatnewparticle
iscalledaphoton.Thenewviewoftheinteractionofelectronsandphotonsthatiselectromagnetictheory,butwitheverythingquantummechanicallycorrect,
iscalledquantumelectrodynamics.Thisfundamentaltheoryoftheinteractionoflightandmatter,orelectricfieldandcharges,isourgreatestsuccesssofarin
physics.Inthisonetheorywehavethebasicrulesforallordinaryphenomenaexceptforgravitationandnuclearprocesses.Forexample,outofquantum
electrodynamicscomeallknownelectrical,mechanical,andchemicallaws:thelawsforthecollisionofbilliardballs,themotionsofwiresinmagneticfields,
thespecificheatofcarbonmonoxide,thecolorofneonsigns,thedensityofsalt,andthereactionsofhydrogenandoxygentomakewaterareall
consequencesofthisonelaw.Allthesedetailscanbeworkedoutifthesituationissimpleenoughforustomakeanapproximation,whichisalmostnever,but
oftenwecanunderstandmoreorlesswhatishappening.Atthepresenttimenoexceptionsarefoundtothequantumelectrodynamiclawsoutsidethenucleus,
andtherewedonotknowwhetherthereisanexceptionbecausewesimplydonotknowwhatisgoingoninthenucleus.

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Inprinciple,then,quantumelectrodynamicsisthetheoryofallchemistry,andoflife,iflifeisultimatelyreducedtochemistryandthereforejusttophysics
becausechemistryisalreadyreduced(thepartofphysicswhichisinvolvedinchemistrybeingalreadyknown).Furthermore,thesamequantum
electrodynamics,thisgreatthing,predictsalotofnewthings.Inthefirstplace,ittellsthepropertiesofveryhighenergyphotons,gammarays,etc.It
predictedanotherveryremarkablething:besidestheelectron,thereshouldbeanotherparticleofthesamemass,butofoppositecharge,calledapositron,and
thesetwo,comingtogether,couldannihilateeachotherwiththeemissionoflightorgammarays.(Afterall,lightandgammaraysareallthesame,theyare
justdifferentpointsonafrequencyscale.)Thegeneralizationofthis,thatforeachparticlethereisanantiparticle,turnsouttobetrue.Inthecaseofelectrons,
theantiparticlehasanothernameitiscalledapositron,butformostotherparticles,itiscalledantisoandso,likeantiprotonorantineutron.Inquantum
electrodynamics,twonumbersareputinandmostoftheothernumbersintheworldaresupposedtocomeout.Thetwonumbersthatareputinarecalledthe
massoftheelectronandthechargeoftheelectron.Actually,thatisnotquitetrue,forwehaveawholesetofnumbersforchemistrywhichtellshowheavy
thenucleiare.Thatleadsustothenextpart.

24Nucleiandparticles
Whatarethenucleimadeof,andhowaretheyheldtogether?Itisfoundthatthenucleiareheldtogetherbyenormousforces.Whenthesearereleased,the
energyreleasedistremendouscomparedwithchemicalenergy,inthesameratioastheatomicbombexplosionistoaTNTexplosion,because,ofcourse,the
atomicbombhastodowithchangesinsidethenucleus,whiletheexplosionofTNThastodowiththechangesoftheelectronsontheoutsideoftheatoms.
Thequestionis,whataretheforceswhichholdtheprotonsandneutronstogetherinthenucleus?Justastheelectricalinteractioncanbeconnectedtoa
particle,aphoton,Yukawasuggestedthattheforcesbetweenneutronsandprotonsalsohaveafieldofsomekind,andthatwhenthisfieldjigglesitbehaves
likeaparticle.Thustherecouldbesomeotherparticlesintheworldbesidesprotonsandneutrons,andhewasabletodeducethepropertiesoftheseparticles
fromthealreadyknowncharacteristicsofnuclearforces.Forexample,hepredictedtheyshouldhaveamassoftwoorthreehundredtimesthatofanelectron
andloandbehold,incosmicraystherewasdiscoveredaparticleoftherightmass!Butitlaterturnedouttobethewrongparticle.Itwascalledameson,or
muon.

However,alittlewhilelater,in1947or1948,anotherparticlewasfound,the meson,orpion,whichsatisfiedYukawascriterion.Besidestheprotonandthe
neutron,then,inordertogetnuclearforceswemustaddthepion.Now,yousay,Ohgreat!,withthistheorywemakequantumnucleodynamicsusingthe
pionsjustlikeYukawawantedtodo,andseeifitworks,andeverythingwillbeexplained.Badluck.Itturnsoutthatthecalculationsthatareinvolvedinthis
theoryaresodifficultthatnoonehaseverbeenabletofigureoutwhattheconsequencesofthetheoryare,ortocheckitagainstexperiment,andthishasbeen
goingonnowforalmosttwentyyears!

Sowearestuckwithatheory,andwedonotknowwhetheritisrightorwrong,butwedoknowthatitisalittlewrong,oratleastincomplete.Whilewehave
beendawdlingaroundtheoretically,tryingtocalculatetheconsequencesofthistheory,theexperimentalistshavebeendiscoveringsomethings.Forexample,
theyhadalreadydiscoveredthismesonormuon,andwedonotyetknowwhereitfits.Also,incosmicrays,alargenumberofotherextraparticleswere
found.Itturnsoutthattodaywehaveapproximatelythirtyparticles,anditisverydifficulttounderstandtherelationshipsofalltheseparticles,andwhat
naturewantsthemfor,orwhattheconnectionsarefromonetoanother.Wedonottodayunderstandthesevariousparticlesasdifferentaspectsofthesame
thing,andthefactthatwehavesomanyunconnectedparticlesisarepresentationofthefactthatwehavesomuchunconnectedinformationwithoutagood
theory.Afterthegreatsuccessesofquantumelectrodynamics,thereisacertainamountofknowledgeofnuclearphysicswhichisroughknowledge,sortof
halfexperienceandhalftheory,assumingatypeofforcebetweenprotonsandneutronsandseeingwhatwillhappen,butnotreallyunderstandingwherethe
forcecomesfrom.Asidefromthat,wehavemadeverylittleprogress.Wehavecollectedanenormousnumberofchemicalelements.Inthechemicalcase,
theresuddenlyappearedarelationshipamongtheseelementswhichwasunexpected,andwhichisembodiedintheperiodictableofMendeleev.Forexample,
sodiumandpotassiumareaboutthesameintheirchemicalpropertiesandarefoundinthesamecolumnintheMendeleevchart.Wehavebeenseekinga
Mendeleevtypechartforthenewparticles.OnesuchchartofthenewparticleswasmadeindependentlybyGellMannintheU.S.A.andNishijimainJapan.
Thebasisoftheirclassificationisanewnumber,liketheelectriccharge,whichcanbeassignedtoeachparticle,calleditsstrangeness,S .Thisnumberis
conserved,liketheelectriccharge,inreactionswhichtakeplacebynuclearforces.

Table22ElementaryParticles

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InTable22arelistedalltheparticles.Wecannotdiscussthemmuchatthisstage,butthetablewillatleastshowyouhowmuchwedonotknow.Underneath
eachparticleitsmassisgiveninacertainunit,calledtheMeV.OneMeVisequalto1.783 10 gram.Thereasonthisunitwaschosenishistorical,and
27

weshallnotgointoitnow.Moremassiveparticlesareputhigheruponthechartweseethataneutronandaprotonhavealmostthesamemass.Invertical
columnswehaveputtheparticleswiththesameelectricalcharge,allneutralobjectsinonecolumn,allpositivelychargedonestotherightofthisone,andall
negativelychargedobjectstotheleft.

Particlesareshownwithasolidlineandresonanceswithadashedone.Severalparticleshavebeenomittedfromthetable.Theseincludetheimportant
zeromass,zerochargeparticles,thephotonandthegraviton,whichdonotfallintothebaryonmesonleptonclassificationscheme,andalsosomeofthe
newerresonances(K ,, ).Theantiparticlesofthemesonsarelistedinthetable,buttheantiparticlesoftheleptonsandbaryonswouldhavetobelistedin

anothertablewhichwouldlookexactlylikethisonereflectedonthezerochargecolumn.Althoughalloftheparticlesexcepttheelectron,neutrino,photon,
graviton,andprotonareunstable,decayproductshavebeenshownonlyfortheresonances.Strangenessassignmentsarenotapplicableforleptons,sincethey
donotinteractstronglywithnuclei.

Allparticleswhicharetogetherwiththeneutronsandprotonsarecalledbaryons,andthefollowingonesexist:Thereisalambda,withamassof
1115MeV,andthreeothers,calledsigmas,minus,neutral,andplus,withseveralmassesalmostthesame.Therearegroupsormultipletswithalmostthe

samemass,withinoneortwopercent.Eachparticleinamultiplethasthesamestrangeness.Thefirstmultipletistheprotonneutrondoublet,andthenthereis
asinglet(thelambda)thenthesigmatriplet,andfinallythexidoublet.Veryrecently,in1961,evenafewmoreparticleswerefound.Oraretheyparticles?
Theylivesoshortatime,theydisintegratealmostinstantaneously,assoonastheyareformed,thatwedonotknowwhethertheyshouldbeconsideredasnew
particles,orsomekindofresonanceinteractionofacertaindefiniteenergybetweenthe and productsintowhichtheydisintegrate.

Inadditiontothebaryonstheotherparticleswhichareinvolvedinthenuclearinteractionarecalledmesons.Therearefirstthepions,whichcomeinthree
varieties,positive,negative,andneutraltheyformanothermultiplet.WehavealsofoundsomenewthingscalledKmesons,andtheyoccurasadoublet,K +

andK .Also,everyparticlehasitsantiparticle,unlessaparticleisitsownantiparticle.Forexample,the andthe areantiparticles,butthe isitsown

0 + 0

antiparticle.TheK andK areantiparticles,andtheK andK .Inaddition,in1961wealsofoundsomemoremesonsormaybemesonswhich

+ 0
0

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disintegratealmostimmediately.Athingcalledwhichgoesintothreepionshasamass780 onthisscale,andsomewhatlesscertainisanobjectwhich
disintegratesintotwopions.Theseparticles,calledmesonsandbaryons,andtheantiparticlesofthemesonsareonthesamechart,buttheantiparticlesofthe
baryonsmustbeputonanotherchart,reflectedthroughthechargezerocolumn.

JustasMendeleevschartwasverygood,exceptforthefactthattherewereanumberofrareearthelementswhichwerehangingoutloosefromit,sowehave
anumberofthingshangingoutloosefromthischartparticleswhichdonotinteractstronglyinnuclei,havenothingtodowithanuclearinteraction,anddo
nothaveastronginteraction(Imeanthepowerfulkindofinteractionofnuclearenergy).Thesearecalledleptons,andtheyarethefollowing:thereisthe
electron,whichhasaverysmallmassonthisscale,only0.510MeV.Thenthereisthatother,themuon,whichhasamassmuchhigher,206 timesasheavy
asanelectron.Sofaraswecantell,byallexperimentssofar,thedifferencebetweentheelectronandthemuonisnothingbutthemass.Everythingworks
exactlythesameforthemuonasfortheelectron,exceptthatoneisheavierthantheother.Whyisthereanotheroneheavierwhatistheuseforit?Wedonot
know.Inaddition,thereisaleptonwhichisneutral,calledaneutrino,andthisparticlehaszeromass.Infact,itisnowknownthattherearetwodifferent
kindsofneutrinos,onerelatedtoelectronsandtheotherrelatedtomuons.

Finally,wehavetwootherparticleswhichdonotinteractstronglywiththenuclearones:oneisaphoton,andperhaps,ifthefieldofgravityalsohasa
quantummechanicalanalog(aquantumtheoryofgravitationhasnotyetbeenworkedout),thentherewillbeaparticle,agraviton,whichwillhavezero
mass.

Whatisthiszeromass?Themassesgivenherearethemassesoftheparticlesatrest.Thefactthataparticlehaszeromassmeans,inaway,thatitcannotbe
atrest.Aphotonisneveratrest,itisalwaysmovingat186,000milesasecond.Wewillunderstandmorewhatmassmeanswhenweunderstandthetheory
ofrelativity,whichwillcomeinduetime.

Thusweareconfrontedwithalargenumberofparticles,whichtogetherseemtobethefundamentalconstituentsofmatter.Fortunately,theseparticlesarenot
alldifferentintheirinteractionswithoneanother.Infact,thereseemtobejustfourkindsofinteractionbetweenparticleswhich,intheorderofdecreasing
strength,arethenuclearforce,electricalinteractions,thebetadecayinteraction,andgravity.Thephotoniscoupledtoallchargedparticlesandthestrengthof
theinteractionismeasuredbysomenumber,whichis1/137.Thedetailedlawofthiscouplingisknown,thatisquantumelectrodynamics.Gravityiscoupled
toallenergy,butitscouplingisextremelyweak,muchweakerthanthatofelectricity.Thislawisalsoknown.Thentherearethesocalledweakdecaysbeta
decay,whichcausestheneutrontodisintegrateintoproton,electron,andneutrino,relativelyslowly.Thislawisonlypartlyknown.Thesocalledstrong
interaction,themesonbaryoninteraction,hasastrengthof1 inthisscale,andthelawiscompletelyunknown,althoughthereareanumberofknownrules,
suchasthatthenumberofbaryonsdoesnotchangeinanyreaction.

Table23ElementaryInteractions
Coupling Strength* Law
Photontochargedparticles 10
2
Lawknown
Gravitytoallenergy 10
40
Lawknown
Weakdecays 10
5
Lawpartlyknown
Mesonstobaryons 1 Lawunknown(somerulesknown)
*Thestrengthisadimensionlessmeasureofthecouplingconstantinvolvedineachinteraction( meansoftheorder).

Thisthen,isthehorribleconditionofourphysicstoday.Tosummarizeit,Iwouldsaythis:outsidethenucleus,weseemtoknowallinsideit,quantum
mechanicsisvalidtheprinciplesofquantummechanicshavenotbeenfoundtofail.Thestageonwhichweputallofourknowledge,wewouldsay,is
relativisticspacetimeperhapsgravityisinvolvedinspacetime.Wedonotknowhowtheuniversegotstarted,andwehavenevermadeexperimentswhich
checkourideasofspaceandtimeaccurately,belowsometinydistance,soweonlyknowthatourideasworkabovethatdistance.Weshouldalsoaddthatthe
rulesofthegamearethequantummechanicalprinciples,andthoseprinciplesapply,sofaraswecantell,tothenewparticlesaswellastotheold.Theorigin
oftheforcesinnucleileadsustonewparticles,butunfortunatelytheyappearingreatprofusionandwelackacompleteunderstandingoftheir
interrelationship,althoughwealreadyknowthattherearesomeverysurprisingrelationshipsamongthem.Weseemgraduallytobegropingtowardan
understandingoftheworldofsubatomicparticles,butwereallydonotknowhowfarwehaveyettogointhistask.

Copyright1963,2006,2013bytheCaliforniaInstituteofTechnology,
MichaelA.Gottlieb,andRudolfPfeiffer

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