Abstract
Quantum physics is challenging for young students, but also a source of fascination. Observation is a key concept in order to understand how principles and experimental results in quantum physics differ from what we are used to in classical physics and everyday experiences. In this study we investigate how pre-university physics students understand the concept of observation in the case of the famous double-slit experiment with electrons and interpretations of its results. We found that a conception of observation as looking, meaning a passive registration, is prevalent among students. This causes serious problems in understanding quantum physics and leads to very unproductive speculations that links to mysticism. Some students considered observation as measurement involving some sort of apparatus, but very few expressed the key idea of measurement as interaction. We discuss how a more explicit discussion of what observation means in quantum physics can benefit students’ understanding of principles in quantum physics and their philosophical consequences.
Highlights
Quantum physics is a part of physics that is challenging to grasp but that often fascinates students, since it breaks fundamentally with our experiences of the physical world and with what is taught in classical physics
In quantum physics the role of observation becomes fundamentally different from classical physics, since, according to standard interpretations, a measurement will determine the state of a physical system rather than merely detect it
This is not surprising in light of how quantum physics breaks with what students are familiar with from classical physics and everyday experience
Summary
Quantum physics is a part of physics that is challenging to grasp but that often fascinates students, since it breaks fundamentally with our experiences of the physical world and with what is taught in classical physics. The study is undertaken in Norwegian upper secondary schools by means of recorded role-play discussions in small groups of students that forms part of teaching in quantum physics, and three group interviews focusing on interpretations of the double slit experiment with electrons. The context of the research is a teaching activity about the double-slit experiment with electrons where students are given a role-play task in pairs or small groups.
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Published Version
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