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Tunneling quantistico

1927
  • Friedrich Hund
Microscopio a scansione tunneling in un laboratorio che dimostra i principi del tunneling quantistico.

(Immagine generata a solo scopo illustrativo)

Mondo.innovazione

Quantum tunneling is a direct consequence of the Heisenberg uncertainty principle and the probabilistic nature of a particle’s location described by its wavefunction. When a particle’s wavefunction encounters a potential barrier, it does not abruptly drop to zero. Instead, it decays exponentially inside the barrier. If the barrier is thin enough, the wavefunction can have a small but non-zero amplitude on the other side. Since the probability of finding the particle is related to the square of the wavefunction’s amplitude, there is a finite probability of the particle being detected on the far side of the barrier.

The probability of tunneling decreases exponentially with the thickness of the barrier and the square root of the barrier’s height and the particle’s mass. This is why tunneling is significant for microscopic particles like electrons but negligible for macroscopic objects. For example, in nuclear fusion within the Sun, protons do not have enough thermal energy to overcome their mutual electrostatic repulsion (the Coulomb barrier). Fusion is only possible because the protons can tunnel through this barrier, allowing the strong nuclear force to bind them together. Similarly, the scanning tunneling microscope (STM) works by measuring the tunneling current of electrons between a sharp metallic tip and a sample surface, allowing for imaging with atomic resolution.

UNESCO Nomenclature: 2210
- Fisica quantistica

Tipo

Sistema astratto

Interruzione

Sostanziale

Utilizzo

Uso diffuso

Precursori

  • Schrödinger equation (1926)
  • Wave-particle duality
  • Studies of radioactivity (alpha decay)
  • Heisenberg uncertainty principle (1927)

Applicazioni

  • scanning tunneling microscope (STM)
  • tunnel diodes in electronics
  • flash memory (floating-gate transistors)
  • nuclear fusion in stars
  • alpha decay of atomic nuclei

Brevetti:

NA

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Related to: quantum tunneling, wavefunction, potential barrier, scanning tunneling microscope, nuclear fusion, alpha decay, quantum mechanics, probability.

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