Abstract

Neutron Interferometer Experiments Studying Fundamental Features of Quantum Mechanics

Author(s): Peter Lucas*

Quantum theory provides the greatest explanation for microscopic components of matter as well as radiation. It was introduced in the twentieth century and has had varying degrees of success. Although the theory's probabilistic predictions of final experimental outcomes are found to be highly accurate, there is no general agreement on what is actually going on with a quantum system "en route," or rather the perceptible intermediate behaviour of a quantum system, such as the particle's behaviour in the double-slit experiment. Neutron interferometry using single silicon perfect crystals is well established as a versatile instrument for testing fundamental quantum mechanics phenomena, in which an input neutron beam is coherently split into two or three beam channels separated by several centimetres.