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Schrödinger's cat: A thought experiment in quantum mechanics - Chad Orzel

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Austrian physicist Erwin Schrödinger, one of the founders of quantum mechanics, posed this famous question: If you put a cat in a sealed box with a device that has a 50% chance of killing the cat in the next hour, what will be the state of the cat when that time is up? Chad Orzel investigates this thought experiment.

Electrons passing through a pair of slits form an interference pattern of stripes, but electrons passing through a single slit do not. Explain how this shows that Schrödinger cat states (superpositions that are not in one state or the other, but both at the same time) exist for very small particles.

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TED-Ed Animations feature the words and ideas of educators brought to life by professional animators. Are you an educator or animator interested in creating a TED-Ed Animation? Nominate yourself here »

Meet The Creators

  • Educator Chad Orzel
  • Director Agota Vegso
  • Narrator Addison Anderson

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