wave–particle duality
E650605
Wave–particle duality is a fundamental concept in quantum mechanics stating that every quantum entity, such as an electron or photon, exhibits both wave-like and particle-like properties depending on how it is observed.
All labels observed (2)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| wave–particle duality canonical | 1 |
| wave–particle duality of matter | 1 |
How this entity was disambiguated
This entity first appeared as the object of triple T7230000 — resolving that mention is where its identity was fixed. The disambiguator weighed these candidate entities and picked the highlighted one (or “None”, minting a new entity). This is how homonymy is resolved: the same surface form can point to different entities.
NED1
Entity disambiguation (via context triple)
gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07
Target entity: wave–particle duality Context triple: [de Broglie wavelength formula, expresses, wave–particle duality]
-
A.
double-slit experiment
The double-slit experiment is a foundational quantum physics experiment that dramatically demonstrates wave–particle duality and the role of measurement in determining physical outcomes.
-
B.
wave theory of light
The wave theory of light is the scientific model that explains light as a propagating wave, accounting for phenomena such as interference, diffraction, and polarization.
-
C.
pilot-wave theory
Pilot-wave theory is a deterministic interpretation of quantum mechanics in which particles have definite trajectories guided by an underlying wave.
-
D.
uncertainty principle
The uncertainty principle is a fundamental concept in quantum mechanics stating that certain pairs of physical properties, such as position and momentum, cannot both be known to arbitrary precision simultaneously.
-
E.
Einstein–Podolsky–Rosen paradox
The Einstein–Podolsky–Rosen paradox is a thought experiment that challenges the completeness of quantum mechanics by highlighting the strange, nonlocal correlations predicted for entangled particles.
- F. None of above. chosen
- G. Unsure - the case is ambiguous/there is not enough information to decide.
NED2
Entity disambiguation (via description)
gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07
Target entity: wave–particle duality Target entity description: Wave–particle duality is a fundamental concept in quantum mechanics stating that every quantum entity, such as an electron or photon, exhibits both wave-like and particle-like properties depending on how it is observed.
-
A.
double-slit experiment
The double-slit experiment is a foundational quantum physics experiment that dramatically demonstrates wave–particle duality and the role of measurement in determining physical outcomes.
-
B.
wave theory of light
The wave theory of light is the scientific model that explains light as a propagating wave, accounting for phenomena such as interference, diffraction, and polarization.
-
C.
pilot-wave theory
Pilot-wave theory is a deterministic interpretation of quantum mechanics in which particles have definite trajectories guided by an underlying wave.
-
D.
uncertainty principle
The uncertainty principle is a fundamental concept in quantum mechanics stating that certain pairs of physical properties, such as position and momentum, cannot both be known to arbitrary precision simultaneously.
-
E.
Einstein–Podolsky–Rosen paradox
The Einstein–Podolsky–Rosen paradox is a thought experiment that challenges the completeness of quantum mechanics by highlighting the strange, nonlocal correlations predicted for entangled particles.
- F. None of above. chosen
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
physical concept
ⓘ
principle of quantum mechanics ⓘ |
| appliesTo |
all quantum entities
ⓘ
atom ⓘ electron ⓘ molecule ⓘ neutron ⓘ photon ⓘ |
| characterizedBy |
diffraction
ⓘ
interference patterns ⓘ localized detection events ⓘ probabilistic outcomes ⓘ |
| context | microscopic scale ⓘ |
| describes |
complementary wave and particle aspects
ⓘ
particle-like behavior of radiation ⓘ wave-like behavior of matter ⓘ |
| evidencedBy |
C. J. Davisson and L. H. Germer
ⓘ
linked to:
Clinton Davisson
Compton scattering ⓘ
linked to:
Compton effect
Davisson–Germer experiment ⓘ Young’s double-slit experiment with electrons ⓘ
linked to:
double-slit experiment
electron diffraction experiments ⓘ photoelectric effect experiments ⓘ single-photon double-slit experiments ⓘ |
| field |
physics
ⓘ
quantum mechanics ⓘ |
| formalizedBy |
Schrödinger equation
ⓘ
de Broglie wavelength ⓘ
linked to:
de Broglie wavelength formula
|
| hasAspect |
particle behavior
ⓘ
wave behavior ⓘ |
| hasConsequence |
limits of classical descriptions of nature
ⓘ
need for probabilistic description of physical systems ⓘ |
| historicallyProposedBy | Louis de Broglie ⓘ |
| historicallySupportedBy |
Albert Einstein
ⓘ
Erwin Schrödinger ⓘ Niels Bohr ⓘ Werner Heisenberg ⓘ |
| implies |
light has particle properties
ⓘ
matter has wave properties ⓘ measurement affects observed behavior ⓘ |
| interpretationDependentOn | quantum interpretation ⓘ |
| notObservedClassicallyAs | simultaneous wave and particle in classical physics ⓘ |
| relatedTo |
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
ⓘ
linked to:
uncertainty principle
complementarity principle ⓘ de Broglie hypothesis ⓘ double-slit experiment ⓘ photoelectric effect ⓘ quantum field theory ⓘ quantum superposition ⓘ |
How these facts were elicited
The pipeline generated the facts above by prompting gpt-5.1 with this entity's name + description and the instruction below.
Instruction
You are a knowledge base construction expert. Given a subject entity and a description of it, return factual statements that you know for the subject as a JSON list of dictionaries(triples), where keys must be "subject", "predicate" and "object". The number of facts may be very high, between 25 to 50 or more, for very popular subjects. For less popular subjects, the number of facts can be very low, like 5 or 10. # Requirements - If you don't know the subject at all, return an empty list. - If the subject is not a named entity, return an empty list. - Include at least one triple where predicate is "instanceOf". - Do not get too wordy. - Separate several objects into multiple triples with one object.
Input
Subject: wave–particle duality Description of subject: Wave–particle duality is a fundamental concept in quantum mechanics stating that every quantum entity, such as an electron or photon, exhibits both wave-like and particle-like properties depending on how it is observed.
Referenced by (2)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
subject linked to:
7th Duke of Broglie
linked to: wave–particle duality