ABSTRACT
The new quantum theory was a mathematical description of the way in which an electron behaves when bounded by some kind of potential – such as being in an electric field, acting as a harmonic oscillator or simply being confined to a certain area of space. This mathematical description was then interpreted to be a description of the electron as being probabilistic. It was Schrödinger’s wave equation, together with de Broglie’s concept of a matter wave, that led to various important concepts like the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, an explanation of the emission and absorption of photons in atoms, quantum tunnelling and so on. This chapter explains what Schrödinger did – the marriage of waves and particles.
