GoodSoundClub - Romy the Cat's Audio Site

In the Forum: Audio Discussions
In the Thread: It’s mad, mad, mad... electricity.

Post Subject: What is quantum tunneling?Posted by drdna on: 11/14/2008

There is no mystery to quantum mechanics. Tunneling is a deceptive term, as it refers to an imaginary "hill" of potential that must be overcome.

Imagine it like miniature golf. There is a big hill with a tiny hole at the bottom and you want to get the ball to the other side. You have to hit the ball with enough energy to get over the hill, but sometimes a low energy ball can get through the hole into the tunnel at the bottom, if it is hit just right -- but it is a 1 in a 100 shot.

But why?

Take it a step further. There is a hole on the other side where we want the golf ball to end up. When we hit the high energy balls they are traveling too fast to drop into the hole. Only the slow moving ball that "sneaks" through the tunnel can have the correct speed to drop into the hole.

That is why we use quantum mechanics in things like scanning tunneling electron microscopes.

So what is the "hill and tunnel" in real life? It is because all electrons and subatomic particles exist not as constant objects, but actually as probability expressions of an energy field. They have the properties we expect MOST of the time, but sometimes will act in a low probability way and do what classic physics would say is impossible (classic physics is like saying there is a hill, but no tunnel at the bottom -- no low probability shots).

As to synergistic research, it sounds like pure marketing.

Adrian

Rerurn to Romy the Cat's Site