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6.4.7 Heisenberg
By the end of this lesson you can:
- State the Heisenberg uncertainty principle
- Calculate uncertainty in position or momentum
- Explain its significance
🎥Watch
Learn the idea: a short explanation, then a check.
In classical physics, knowing an object's position and speed allows us to predict its exact path. In the quantum realm, however, nature imposes a fundamental limit on certainty.
Formulated by Werner Heisenberg in 1927, the Uncertainty Principle states that the more precisely you measure a subatomic particle's position (Δx), the less precisely you can know its momentum (Δp), and vice versa:
Δx · Δp ≥ ħ⁄2
Rather than a flaw in our measurement tools, this uncertainty is an intrinsic wave-particle property of matter. Watch the video above to explore why "the more you know, the less you know" underpins the fundamental behavior of the quantum universe.