Biography:Thomas Young (scientist)
| Thomas Young
| |
|---|---|
| Born | 13 June 1773 Milverton, Somerset, England |
| Died | 10 May 1829 London, England
|
| Known for | Double-slit experiment; wave theory of light; Young's modulus |
Thomas Young (13 June 1773 - 10 May 1829) was an English polymath whose double-slit interference experiment became a classic demonstration of the wave nature of light.
Quantum context
Young's interference experiment predated quantum mechanics, but it became central to quantum physics because single-particle interference shows that wave-like probability amplitudes govern quantum behavior.
His name is therefore linked from the Physics:Quantum eraser experiment, where interference and which-path information are used to probe complementarity.
Linked Quantum Collection pages
- Physics:Quantum eraser experiment
- Physics:Quantum Wave-particle duality
- Physics:Quantum interference
- Physics:Quantum Complementarity principle
References
- "Thomas Young". Encyclopaedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Thomas-Young.
- Young, Thomas (1804). "Experiments and calculations relative to physical optics". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London 94: 1-16. doi:10.1098/rstl.1804.0001.
Author: Harold Foppele
Source attribution: Biography:Thomas Young (scientist)