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Does anyone have a link to a real world example of the double slit experiment where the photons are observed at the slits, causing the wave function of the ligh

Does anyone have a link to a real world example of the double slit experiment where the photons are observed at the slits, causing the wave function of the light to collapse so the light acts as a particle beyond the slit, ending up in two piles on the detector screen, rather than the wave pattern. Every time I ask this, some do-gooder will not read a word I wrote and send me a video of the basic slit experiment and think they've somehow educated me. Every time. It's amazing. What I'm looking for is a photo or video of a real experiment showing just two groupings. There a million photos/videos of the wave pattern. I'm looking for an example with exactly two clumps of photons because the light is observed as it passes each slit. In real life, not a computer simulation. Watch this video if you're unclear what I'm asking: https://youtu.be/Q1YqgPAtzho https://youtu.be/Q1YqgPAtzho

tome 5y ago
If you're trying to say there's something that seem suspicious about such claims then I agree with you. I don't know what it means to "observe" a photon at a slit without completely invalidating the experiment.
- russellbeattie 5y ago
  I'm just stating the double slit experiment as explained in that PBS video and others and curious about seeing an actual picture. My only suspicion is that no one has done the actual experiment in a long time.
  - tome 5y ago
    Ah, well the video is about electrons, and it's somewhat more plausible to "observe" them going through one slit or the other, since they will emit an electromagnetic field. There do seem to be such recent experiments, for example https://phys.org/news/2011-01-which-way-detector-mystery-double-slit.html https://phys.org/news/2011-01-which-way-detector-mystery-dou...
    - russellbeattie 5y ago
      That's a great link! Thanks! Derp, sorry... Electrons and photons are completely different types of particles. I'm getting things mixed up. And I had just skimmed that video again! I need to pay attention. Still, I would have loved for the authors of that paper to get a pic of the setup and results on the computer monitor next to it or something. Also, isn't this stuff fundamental to theoretical quantum encryption? If we try to observe information as it flows by, we always alter it in detectable ways because of the observation effect? I think? (In some ways it's absurd that here we are, everyday people, chatting away trying to get a mental hold on the weird, abstract yet fundamental way the universe works, as dreamed up by literal scientific geniuses a century ago. But in reality, getting a general grasp of this stuff is knowledge you need to have in so many fields, from suburban electrician to anyone working in high tech. Crazy.)
wrycoder 5y ago
You are asking that the screen be moved back to the slits - less than a slit-slit distance away. The wave aspect of the EM field remains downstream of the slits. The photon aspect is only exhibited at the screen. There may be no such images, because it’s not interesting to observe two bright spots. There has to be enough path length difference to allow the phase difference causing the interference. Think about the classical case. The mystery is not the interference, it’s that the photon density at the screen tracks the predicted interference pattern, even if they arrive at one per second. Bohm’s pilot wave theory has an explanation for this.
- russellbeattie 5y ago
  > There may be no such images, because it’s not interesting to observe two bright spots. *Seriously?* There are an unlimited amount of uninteresting pictures on the internet, but no one has bothered to take a picture of a fundamental claim of quantum mechanics because it's so trivial as to be boring? Really??
  - aeternum 5y ago
    You can do the experiment yourself with a laser pointer and two slits.
    - russellbeattie 5y ago
      LOL. See paragraph #2 of my original post. Thank you so much.
      - aeternum 5y ago
        If you try it yourself and continue moving the 'screen' closer towards the two slits, the wave pattern will eventually disappear and you will have the two 'piles' of photons you refer to. There's nothing like testing it yourself in 'real life' if you remain unconvinced.
        5y ago
deleted 5y ago
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CuriouslyC 5y ago
I don't have the link handy but IIRC the result of the experiment when you have minimally invasive detectors at the slits is that depending on the distance of the slits from the final plate and the separation of the slits you'll see either two broad smears, or one wide smear with just a few interference patterns in the middle.
- russellbeattie 5y ago
  I've searched for hours so if you actually have a link, I would appreciate it.

tome 5y ago

If you're trying to say there's something that seem suspicious about such claims then I agree with you. I don't know what it means to "observe" a photon at a slit without completely invalidating the experiment.

russellbeattie 5y ago
I'm just stating the double slit experiment as explained in that PBS video and others and curious about seeing an actual picture. My only suspicion is that no one has done the actual experiment in a long time.
- tome 5y ago
  Ah, well the video is about electrons, and it's somewhat more plausible to "observe" them going through one slit or the other, since they will emit an electromagnetic field. There do seem to be such recent experiments, for example https://phys.org/news/2011-01-which-way-detector-mystery-double-slit.html https://phys.org/news/2011-01-which-way-detector-mystery-dou...
  - russellbeattie 5y ago
    That's a great link! Thanks! Derp, sorry... Electrons and photons are completely different types of particles. I'm getting things mixed up. And I had just skimmed that video again! I need to pay attention. Still, I would have loved for the authors of that paper to get a pic of the setup and results on the computer monitor next to it or something. Also, isn't this stuff fundamental to theoretical quantum encryption? If we try to observe information as it flows by, we always alter it in detectable ways because of the observation effect? I think? (In some ways it's absurd that here we are, everyday people, chatting away trying to get a mental hold on the weird, abstract yet fundamental way the universe works, as dreamed up by literal scientific geniuses a century ago. But in reality, getting a general grasp of this stuff is knowledge you need to have in so many fields, from suburban electrician to anyone working in high tech. Crazy.)

wrycoder 5y ago

You are asking that the screen be moved back to the slits - less than a slit-slit distance away. The wave aspect of the EM field remains downstream of the slits. The photon aspect is only exhibited at the screen. There may be no such images, because it’s not interesting to observe two bright spots. There has to be enough path length difference to allow the phase difference causing the interference. Think about the classical case. The mystery is not the interference, it’s that the photon density at the screen tracks the predicted interference pattern, even if they arrive at one per second. Bohm’s pilot wave theory has an explanation for this.

russellbeattie 5y ago
> There may be no such images, because it’s not interesting to observe two bright spots. *Seriously?* There are an unlimited amount of uninteresting pictures on the internet, but no one has bothered to take a picture of a fundamental claim of quantum mechanics because it's so trivial as to be boring? Really??
- aeternum 5y ago
  You can do the experiment yourself with a laser pointer and two slits.
  - russellbeattie 5y ago
    LOL. See paragraph #2 of my original post. Thank you so much.
    - aeternum 5y ago
      If you try it yourself and continue moving the 'screen' closer towards the two slits, the wave pattern will eventually disappear and you will have the two 'piles' of photons you refer to. There's nothing like testing it yourself in 'real life' if you remain unconvinced.
      - 5y ago

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

CuriouslyC 5y ago

I don't have the link handy but IIRC the result of the experiment when you have minimally invasive detectors at the slits is that depending on the distance of the slits from the final plate and the separation of the slits you'll see either two broad smears, or one wide smear with just a few interference patterns in the middle.

russellbeattie 5y ago
I've searched for hours so if you actually have a link, I would appreciate it.