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The uncertainty principle, also known as Heisenberg's indeterminacy principle, is a fundamental concept in quantum mechanics. It states that there is a limit to the precision with which certain pairs of physical properties, such as position and momentum , can be simultaneously known.
The Planck constant, or Planck's constant, denoted by , [1] is a fundamental physical constant [1] of foundational importance in quantum mechanics: a photon's energy is equal to its frequency multiplied by the Planck constant, and the wavelength of a matter wave equals the Planck constant divided by the associated particle momentum.
Symbol Name Meaning SI unit of measure alpha: alpha particle: angular acceleration: radian per second squared (rad/s 2) fine-structure constant: unitless beta: velocity in terms of the speed of light c: unitless beta particle: gamma: Lorentz factor: unitless photon: gamma ray: shear strain: radian
There is some controversy in physics as to whether such uncertainty is an irreducible property of nature or if there are "hidden variables" that would describe the state of a particle even more exactly than Heisenberg's uncertainty principle allows.
In mathematical formulas, the ± symbol may be used to indicate a symbol that may be replaced by either of the plus and minus signs, + or −, allowing the formula to represent two values or two equations. [2] If x 2 = 9, one may give the solution as x = ±3. This indicates that the equation has two solutions: x = +3 and x = −3.
3D visualization of quantum fluctuations of the quantum chromodynamics (QCD) vacuum [1]. In quantum physics, a quantum fluctuation (also known as a vacuum state fluctuation or vacuum fluctuation) is the temporary random change in the amount of energy in a point in space, [2] as prescribed by Werner Heisenberg's uncertainty principle.
While the values of the physical constants are independent of the system of units in use, each uncertainty as stated reflects our lack of knowledge of the corresponding value as expressed in SI units, and is strongly dependent on how those units are defined.
The duality relations lead naturally to an uncertainty relation—in physics called the Heisenberg uncertainty principle—between them. In mathematical terms, conjugate variables are part of a symplectic basis , and the uncertainty relation corresponds to the symplectic form .