Momentum transfer to a free floating double slit: realization of a thought experiment from the Einstein-Bohr debates

We simultaneously measured the momentum transferred to a free-floating molecular double slit and the momentum change of the atom scattering from it. Our experimental results are compared to quantum mechanical and semiclassical models. The results reveal that a classical description of the slits, whi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physical review letters 2013-09, Vol.111 (10), p.103201-103201, Article 103201
Main Authors: Schmidt, L Ph H, Lower, J, Jahnke, T, Schößler, S, Schöffler, M S, Menssen, A, Lévêque, C, Sisourat, N, Taïeb, R, Schmidt-Böcking, H, Dörner, R
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:We simultaneously measured the momentum transferred to a free-floating molecular double slit and the momentum change of the atom scattering from it. Our experimental results are compared to quantum mechanical and semiclassical models. The results reveal that a classical description of the slits, which was used by Einstein in his debate with Bohr, provides a surprisingly good description of the experimental results, even for a microscopic system, if momentum transfer is not ascribed to a specific pathway but shared coherently and simultaneously between both.
ISSN:0031-9007
1079-7114
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevLett.111.103201