The first ever photograph of light as both a particle and wave

ÉCOLE POLYTECHNIQUE FÉDÉRALE DE LAUSANNE EPFL ^ | March 2, 2015 | Staff

[C19fan]

Light behaves both as a particle and as a wave. Since the days of Einstein, scientists have been trying to directly observe both of these aspects of light at the same time. Now, scientists at EPFL have succeeded in capturing the first-ever snapshot of this dual behavior.

Quantum mechanics tells us that light can behave simultaneously as a particle or a wave. However, there has never been an experiment able to capture both natures of light at the same time; the closest we have come is seeing either wave or particle, but always at different times. Taking a radically different experimental approach, EPFL scientists have now been able to take the first ever snapshot of light behaving both as a wave and as a particle. The breakthrough work is published in Nature Communications.

[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

Very, very cool!

[bunkerhill7]

Now that`s a real Schroooo-dinger!!

[C19fan]

I am not impressed until I see the same experiment done on a cat so the cat is photographed both dead and alive. MEOW.

[Snickering Hound]

[WayneS]

Since the days of Einstein, scientists have been trying to directly observe both of these aspects of light at the same time.

Did they try LSD or psilocybin mushrooms?

[WayneS]

The Schrodinger family is equally unimpressed.

[Quality_Not_Quantity]

The Schrodinger family is equally unimpressed.

Or are they???

[Walmartian]

It’s the Quantum Enigma!

[gr8eman]

Both...that’s how they saw the wave and quanta simultaneously!

[WayneS]

Good point.

It is also possible they are both unimpressed and impressed at the same time.

[WayneS]

That sounds uncomfortable.

[WayneS]

Oh, wait. Never mind.

You said “enigma”.

I read it wrong the first time.

[Hot Tabasco]

It’s the Quantum Enigma!

Had one of those prior to my last colonoscopy.......

[KarlInOhio]

I am not impressed until I see the same experiment done on a cat so the cat is photographed both dead and alive. MEOW.

I'm holding out for a Grumpy Cat cameo on Walking Dead.

[Weirdad]

It is a cool thing, but I do NOT think that this demonstrates both characteristics of light simultaneously, nor does it prove (at least as described in the lay article) that it is even possible to observe both at the same time.

It seems that they are AVERAGING observations and then calling it simultaneous. Only electrons that hit a photon show particle responses. Only near misses show wave.

It is no different than the two slit experiment with the photo paper being left in place for both the wave aspects (the pattern with both slits open) and also for the photons as particles going through each hole open by itself. If you look at that film you can see both characteristics on the same piece of film, but it is not “simultaneous”.

(started typing and got called away, so this is sent after the first comment with nmo review of other comments — sorry if redundant)

[TexasCajun]

Warp Factor 1 ..catch the wave.

[IronJack]

I asked Heisenberg about this.

He was uncertain.

[Pontiac]

bump

[ForYourChildren]

Is the waveform real?