Adapted for the Internet from:

Why God Doesn't Exist

    The wave fought the particle back with the same tenacity. In 1923, DeBroglie 57 developed an equation that would
    resuscitate the dying wave theory, ironically, in the context of particles. DeBroglie discovered that the electron, like
    the photon, also exhibits wave-like behavior and can be considered to be dispersed in an integral number of waves
    around the nucleus of the atom (Fig. 3.22). The modern mechanics explain:

    “If we begin to think of electrons as waves, we’ll have to change our whole concept of
    what an ‘orbit’ is. Instead of having a little particle whizzing around the nucleus in a
    circular path, we’d have a wave sort of strung out around the whole circle. Now, the
    only way such a wave could exist is if a whole number of its wavelengths fit exactly
    around the circle. If the circumference is exactly as long as two wavelengths, say, or
    three or four or five, that’s great, but two and a half won’t cut it.”

    Davisson and Germer confirmed DeBroglie’s matter waves experimentally in 1925, when they demonstrated that
    electrons reflected off a Nickel target also exhibited diffraction patterns. Until then, it was thought that only light
    waves could produce diffraction. Schrodinger 60 improved on DeBroglie’s matter waves by developing equations
    that allow us to determine the probability of finding an electron in a given region around the nucleus.

    “Wave functions are often interpreted as describing the probability of finding their
    corresponding particle at a given point in space at a given time.”
The ribbon atom!
The atom is like Saturn, Bill. It has a hula
hoop permanently skirting its waist. More
complex atoms have more hoops.

Fig. 3.22   DeBroglie’s Electron Waves
The electron doesn’t fall towards the
nucleus as Thomson predicted because
it also behaves like a wave. This electron
has an integral number of waves and can
occupy only a certain region around the
nucleus. This model also simultaneously
accounts for Bohr’s quantum jump and
Thomson’s stability concerns.


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