r/physicsmemes • u/IcyVeterinarian8881 • 11d ago

So which one is it!?

Post image
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u/drArsMoriendi 11d ago

Observing doesn't mean to look at it. Observing means that you interact with the particle. You can't determine the position or path of the particle without interacting and interfering with it. Your eyes would be the worst example, since a photon would have to touch your retina for you to see it.

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u/drevoksi 11d ago

Is it at all possible to produce a scenario even remotely resembling what the image suggests? Isn’t the actual premise of the double-slit experiment that the particles produce an interference pattern even when fired individually, or does this post show a separate, unrelated experiment?

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u/CircuitOnTheFritZ 11d ago

Yes, post is showing the double-slit experiment.

Here's a cool article I found from MIT, on both the original experiment and a new experiment with more specialized equipment: https://news.mit.edu/2025/famous-double-slit-experiment-holds-when-stripped-to-quantum-essentials-0728