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What is the difference between Statistical Mechanics and Quantum Mechanics


What is the difference between thermodynamics and statistical mechanics?Relation between statistical mechanics and quantum field theoryWhat are the key properties of and differences between classical and quantum statistical mechanics?Statistical mechanics: What is a “microscopic realization” of a system?What is the difference between classical thermodynamics and statistical mechanics?Statistical Mechanics deals with the same systems that Thermodynamics does?Is kinetic theory part of statistical mechanics?Density matrix in Quantum Statistical MechanicsDensity matrix in quantum computation and quantum statistical mechanicsIn the context of statistical mechanics, how should I visualize a quantum state?













0












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What is the difference between Statistical and Quantum Mechanics?
In both we try to study the property of small particles using probability and hence apply to macroscopic systems.










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Sawan Kumawat is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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    0












    $begingroup$


    What is the difference between Statistical and Quantum Mechanics?
    In both we try to study the property of small particles using probability and hence apply to macroscopic systems.










    share|cite|improve this question







    New contributor




    Sawan Kumawat is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.







    $endgroup$














      0












      0








      0


      2



      $begingroup$


      What is the difference between Statistical and Quantum Mechanics?
      In both we try to study the property of small particles using probability and hence apply to macroscopic systems.










      share|cite|improve this question







      New contributor




      Sawan Kumawat is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.







      $endgroup$




      What is the difference between Statistical and Quantum Mechanics?
      In both we try to study the property of small particles using probability and hence apply to macroscopic systems.







      quantum-mechanics statistical-mechanics






      share|cite|improve this question







      New contributor




      Sawan Kumawat is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.











      share|cite|improve this question







      New contributor




      Sawan Kumawat is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.









      share|cite|improve this question




      share|cite|improve this question






      New contributor




      Sawan Kumawat is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.









      asked 2 days ago









      Sawan KumawatSawan Kumawat

      142




      142




      New contributor




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      Check out our Code of Conduct.





      New contributor





      Sawan Kumawat is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.






      Sawan Kumawat is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.




















          3 Answers
          3






          active

          oldest

          votes


















          1












          $begingroup$

          The microscopic particles themselves in classical statistical mechanics follow classical mechanics laws.



          Elementary particles follow the laws of quantum mehanics.. Quantum mechanics was invented because elementary particles did not obey classical mechanics, but the new postulates of quantum mechanics. This, for large ensembles of quantum mechanical particles leads to quantum statistical mechanics, with differing average behaviors than the ones expected from classical statistical mechanics.






          share|cite|improve this answer









          $endgroup$




















            6












            $begingroup$

            Since you are specifically focusing on the probability aspect, this is what I will talk about. Otherwise the question and answer will be way too broad.



            In classical statistical mechanics probabilities arise due to limited knowledge of the system. This is usually due to the fact that our systems are made up of so many particles that it would be impossible to keep track of everything. Therefore, we use statistical methods to describe the system and use those statistics to determine macroscopic properties of the system.



            In terms of limited knowledge, the typical example given is a fair coin toss. We say we have a $0.5$ probability of getting heads and a $0.5$ probability of getting tails, but really this is just due to our limited knowledge of the system. If we knew the exact initial conditions of the coin flip, the interaction of the coin with the air, how the coin is caught/landed on the floor, etc. then we wouldn't need probability. We could know with exactly certainty what the result of the coin flip would be.



            The same is true for statistical mechanics. If we could know the position and momentum of every particle, how each particle interacts with each other particle, external effects, etc. then we wouldn't need statistical mechanics. We would know exactly how the entire system would behave and evolve over time. You'll notice that this and the previous example are very unreasonable though, hence we use probabilities.



            And then we have quantum mechanics. The difference here is that we can know everything there is to know about the system, yet the result of a measurement of that system will still not have a predicable outcome. All we can predict is the probability of a certain outcome. Probability seems to be an inherent property of QM that cannot be taken away like in the statistical mechanics examples above.



            Of course this doesn't mean we can't make predictions about properties of our system. Like I said above, QM does great at determining what the probabilities should be. But we can't "dig deeper", collect more system information, etc. to remove these probabilities and make each measurement of a quantum system deterministic.






            share|cite|improve this answer











            $endgroup$












            • $begingroup$
              Sorry Aaron this website as well as you provide so long answers that it seems that we are studying English literature. We Indians do not have so much time to read so much long answers. I am not blaming you please don't take it personally friend but provide very compact answer which can be understood in limited time.😍😍
              $endgroup$
              – Shreyansh
              2 days ago






            • 7




              $begingroup$
              @Shreyansh First, I timed myself, and it look me about one minute to read this answer at an average pace from start to finish. If one minute isn't "limited time", then I don't know what is. Second, I highly doubt this is the case for all Indians, so you should probably just speak for yourself.
              $endgroup$
              – Aaron Stevens
              2 days ago










            • $begingroup$
              Hi Aaron I was in great trouble yesterday so sorry for all the bad I wrote.Let's delete our comments.
              $endgroup$
              – Shreyansh
              yesterday



















            3












            $begingroup$

            In statistical mechanics the system at any time is in a definite microstate (e.g. positions and velocities of all the particles in a gas), yet we don't know what this state is. Instead, we define certain global properties of the system that are defined on longer time scales (like total energy, entropy, temperature, volume) that are useful in many processes and try to predict them (in equilibrium) from the microscopic degrees of freedom.



            In quantum mechanics, on the other hand, there are many options for what we mean by "states". The most intuitive definition is to define them in terms of things we can measure, like positions or velocities of particles, etc. However, the state is actually a wave in the space of these states and any given particle can actually spread out in state space and occupy many of these states simultaneously, with a different "amplitude" $psi$, just as a wave can spread out over space with a different amplitude at any point. (There are also restrictions on these wave functions, such as the fact that it must spread both in position $Delta x$ and in momentum $Delta p$ such that $Delta x Delta p geq hbar /2$, and similarly for other variables.) But basically the system can spread over what we would call "measurable" states.



            The probabilities come in in Quantum mechanics, for example, when you try to measure the position of a particle that is spread over many different positions. This is where quantum mechanics gets confusing and leads to endless discussions about reality, but in short, the wave function "collapses" and you only measure one position, with probability $|psi(x)|^2$.






            share|cite|improve this answer











            $endgroup$












            • $begingroup$
              Shouldn't the Heisenberg uncertainty be $Delta x Delta p gte hbar / 2$?
              $endgroup$
              – michi7x7
              2 days ago










            • $begingroup$
              Sorry, typo. Yes, of course.
              $endgroup$
              – Eric David Kramer
              2 days ago












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            3 Answers
            3






            active

            oldest

            votes








            3 Answers
            3






            active

            oldest

            votes









            active

            oldest

            votes






            active

            oldest

            votes









            1












            $begingroup$

            The microscopic particles themselves in classical statistical mechanics follow classical mechanics laws.



            Elementary particles follow the laws of quantum mehanics.. Quantum mechanics was invented because elementary particles did not obey classical mechanics, but the new postulates of quantum mechanics. This, for large ensembles of quantum mechanical particles leads to quantum statistical mechanics, with differing average behaviors than the ones expected from classical statistical mechanics.






            share|cite|improve this answer









            $endgroup$

















              1












              $begingroup$

              The microscopic particles themselves in classical statistical mechanics follow classical mechanics laws.



              Elementary particles follow the laws of quantum mehanics.. Quantum mechanics was invented because elementary particles did not obey classical mechanics, but the new postulates of quantum mechanics. This, for large ensembles of quantum mechanical particles leads to quantum statistical mechanics, with differing average behaviors than the ones expected from classical statistical mechanics.






              share|cite|improve this answer









              $endgroup$















                1












                1








                1





                $begingroup$

                The microscopic particles themselves in classical statistical mechanics follow classical mechanics laws.



                Elementary particles follow the laws of quantum mehanics.. Quantum mechanics was invented because elementary particles did not obey classical mechanics, but the new postulates of quantum mechanics. This, for large ensembles of quantum mechanical particles leads to quantum statistical mechanics, with differing average behaviors than the ones expected from classical statistical mechanics.






                share|cite|improve this answer









                $endgroup$



                The microscopic particles themselves in classical statistical mechanics follow classical mechanics laws.



                Elementary particles follow the laws of quantum mehanics.. Quantum mechanics was invented because elementary particles did not obey classical mechanics, but the new postulates of quantum mechanics. This, for large ensembles of quantum mechanical particles leads to quantum statistical mechanics, with differing average behaviors than the ones expected from classical statistical mechanics.







                share|cite|improve this answer












                share|cite|improve this answer



                share|cite|improve this answer










                answered 2 days ago









                anna vanna v

                161k8153453




                161k8153453





















                    6












                    $begingroup$

                    Since you are specifically focusing on the probability aspect, this is what I will talk about. Otherwise the question and answer will be way too broad.



                    In classical statistical mechanics probabilities arise due to limited knowledge of the system. This is usually due to the fact that our systems are made up of so many particles that it would be impossible to keep track of everything. Therefore, we use statistical methods to describe the system and use those statistics to determine macroscopic properties of the system.



                    In terms of limited knowledge, the typical example given is a fair coin toss. We say we have a $0.5$ probability of getting heads and a $0.5$ probability of getting tails, but really this is just due to our limited knowledge of the system. If we knew the exact initial conditions of the coin flip, the interaction of the coin with the air, how the coin is caught/landed on the floor, etc. then we wouldn't need probability. We could know with exactly certainty what the result of the coin flip would be.



                    The same is true for statistical mechanics. If we could know the position and momentum of every particle, how each particle interacts with each other particle, external effects, etc. then we wouldn't need statistical mechanics. We would know exactly how the entire system would behave and evolve over time. You'll notice that this and the previous example are very unreasonable though, hence we use probabilities.



                    And then we have quantum mechanics. The difference here is that we can know everything there is to know about the system, yet the result of a measurement of that system will still not have a predicable outcome. All we can predict is the probability of a certain outcome. Probability seems to be an inherent property of QM that cannot be taken away like in the statistical mechanics examples above.



                    Of course this doesn't mean we can't make predictions about properties of our system. Like I said above, QM does great at determining what the probabilities should be. But we can't "dig deeper", collect more system information, etc. to remove these probabilities and make each measurement of a quantum system deterministic.






                    share|cite|improve this answer











                    $endgroup$












                    • $begingroup$
                      Sorry Aaron this website as well as you provide so long answers that it seems that we are studying English literature. We Indians do not have so much time to read so much long answers. I am not blaming you please don't take it personally friend but provide very compact answer which can be understood in limited time.😍😍
                      $endgroup$
                      – Shreyansh
                      2 days ago






                    • 7




                      $begingroup$
                      @Shreyansh First, I timed myself, and it look me about one minute to read this answer at an average pace from start to finish. If one minute isn't "limited time", then I don't know what is. Second, I highly doubt this is the case for all Indians, so you should probably just speak for yourself.
                      $endgroup$
                      – Aaron Stevens
                      2 days ago










                    • $begingroup$
                      Hi Aaron I was in great trouble yesterday so sorry for all the bad I wrote.Let's delete our comments.
                      $endgroup$
                      – Shreyansh
                      yesterday
















                    6












                    $begingroup$

                    Since you are specifically focusing on the probability aspect, this is what I will talk about. Otherwise the question and answer will be way too broad.



                    In classical statistical mechanics probabilities arise due to limited knowledge of the system. This is usually due to the fact that our systems are made up of so many particles that it would be impossible to keep track of everything. Therefore, we use statistical methods to describe the system and use those statistics to determine macroscopic properties of the system.



                    In terms of limited knowledge, the typical example given is a fair coin toss. We say we have a $0.5$ probability of getting heads and a $0.5$ probability of getting tails, but really this is just due to our limited knowledge of the system. If we knew the exact initial conditions of the coin flip, the interaction of the coin with the air, how the coin is caught/landed on the floor, etc. then we wouldn't need probability. We could know with exactly certainty what the result of the coin flip would be.



                    The same is true for statistical mechanics. If we could know the position and momentum of every particle, how each particle interacts with each other particle, external effects, etc. then we wouldn't need statistical mechanics. We would know exactly how the entire system would behave and evolve over time. You'll notice that this and the previous example are very unreasonable though, hence we use probabilities.



                    And then we have quantum mechanics. The difference here is that we can know everything there is to know about the system, yet the result of a measurement of that system will still not have a predicable outcome. All we can predict is the probability of a certain outcome. Probability seems to be an inherent property of QM that cannot be taken away like in the statistical mechanics examples above.



                    Of course this doesn't mean we can't make predictions about properties of our system. Like I said above, QM does great at determining what the probabilities should be. But we can't "dig deeper", collect more system information, etc. to remove these probabilities and make each measurement of a quantum system deterministic.






                    share|cite|improve this answer











                    $endgroup$












                    • $begingroup$
                      Sorry Aaron this website as well as you provide so long answers that it seems that we are studying English literature. We Indians do not have so much time to read so much long answers. I am not blaming you please don't take it personally friend but provide very compact answer which can be understood in limited time.😍😍
                      $endgroup$
                      – Shreyansh
                      2 days ago






                    • 7




                      $begingroup$
                      @Shreyansh First, I timed myself, and it look me about one minute to read this answer at an average pace from start to finish. If one minute isn't "limited time", then I don't know what is. Second, I highly doubt this is the case for all Indians, so you should probably just speak for yourself.
                      $endgroup$
                      – Aaron Stevens
                      2 days ago










                    • $begingroup$
                      Hi Aaron I was in great trouble yesterday so sorry for all the bad I wrote.Let's delete our comments.
                      $endgroup$
                      – Shreyansh
                      yesterday














                    6












                    6








                    6





                    $begingroup$

                    Since you are specifically focusing on the probability aspect, this is what I will talk about. Otherwise the question and answer will be way too broad.



                    In classical statistical mechanics probabilities arise due to limited knowledge of the system. This is usually due to the fact that our systems are made up of so many particles that it would be impossible to keep track of everything. Therefore, we use statistical methods to describe the system and use those statistics to determine macroscopic properties of the system.



                    In terms of limited knowledge, the typical example given is a fair coin toss. We say we have a $0.5$ probability of getting heads and a $0.5$ probability of getting tails, but really this is just due to our limited knowledge of the system. If we knew the exact initial conditions of the coin flip, the interaction of the coin with the air, how the coin is caught/landed on the floor, etc. then we wouldn't need probability. We could know with exactly certainty what the result of the coin flip would be.



                    The same is true for statistical mechanics. If we could know the position and momentum of every particle, how each particle interacts with each other particle, external effects, etc. then we wouldn't need statistical mechanics. We would know exactly how the entire system would behave and evolve over time. You'll notice that this and the previous example are very unreasonable though, hence we use probabilities.



                    And then we have quantum mechanics. The difference here is that we can know everything there is to know about the system, yet the result of a measurement of that system will still not have a predicable outcome. All we can predict is the probability of a certain outcome. Probability seems to be an inherent property of QM that cannot be taken away like in the statistical mechanics examples above.



                    Of course this doesn't mean we can't make predictions about properties of our system. Like I said above, QM does great at determining what the probabilities should be. But we can't "dig deeper", collect more system information, etc. to remove these probabilities and make each measurement of a quantum system deterministic.






                    share|cite|improve this answer











                    $endgroup$



                    Since you are specifically focusing on the probability aspect, this is what I will talk about. Otherwise the question and answer will be way too broad.



                    In classical statistical mechanics probabilities arise due to limited knowledge of the system. This is usually due to the fact that our systems are made up of so many particles that it would be impossible to keep track of everything. Therefore, we use statistical methods to describe the system and use those statistics to determine macroscopic properties of the system.



                    In terms of limited knowledge, the typical example given is a fair coin toss. We say we have a $0.5$ probability of getting heads and a $0.5$ probability of getting tails, but really this is just due to our limited knowledge of the system. If we knew the exact initial conditions of the coin flip, the interaction of the coin with the air, how the coin is caught/landed on the floor, etc. then we wouldn't need probability. We could know with exactly certainty what the result of the coin flip would be.



                    The same is true for statistical mechanics. If we could know the position and momentum of every particle, how each particle interacts with each other particle, external effects, etc. then we wouldn't need statistical mechanics. We would know exactly how the entire system would behave and evolve over time. You'll notice that this and the previous example are very unreasonable though, hence we use probabilities.



                    And then we have quantum mechanics. The difference here is that we can know everything there is to know about the system, yet the result of a measurement of that system will still not have a predicable outcome. All we can predict is the probability of a certain outcome. Probability seems to be an inherent property of QM that cannot be taken away like in the statistical mechanics examples above.



                    Of course this doesn't mean we can't make predictions about properties of our system. Like I said above, QM does great at determining what the probabilities should be. But we can't "dig deeper", collect more system information, etc. to remove these probabilities and make each measurement of a quantum system deterministic.







                    share|cite|improve this answer














                    share|cite|improve this answer



                    share|cite|improve this answer








                    edited 2 days ago

























                    answered 2 days ago









                    Aaron StevensAaron Stevens

                    13.9k42252




                    13.9k42252











                    • $begingroup$
                      Sorry Aaron this website as well as you provide so long answers that it seems that we are studying English literature. We Indians do not have so much time to read so much long answers. I am not blaming you please don't take it personally friend but provide very compact answer which can be understood in limited time.😍😍
                      $endgroup$
                      – Shreyansh
                      2 days ago






                    • 7




                      $begingroup$
                      @Shreyansh First, I timed myself, and it look me about one minute to read this answer at an average pace from start to finish. If one minute isn't "limited time", then I don't know what is. Second, I highly doubt this is the case for all Indians, so you should probably just speak for yourself.
                      $endgroup$
                      – Aaron Stevens
                      2 days ago










                    • $begingroup$
                      Hi Aaron I was in great trouble yesterday so sorry for all the bad I wrote.Let's delete our comments.
                      $endgroup$
                      – Shreyansh
                      yesterday

















                    • $begingroup$
                      Sorry Aaron this website as well as you provide so long answers that it seems that we are studying English literature. We Indians do not have so much time to read so much long answers. I am not blaming you please don't take it personally friend but provide very compact answer which can be understood in limited time.😍😍
                      $endgroup$
                      – Shreyansh
                      2 days ago






                    • 7




                      $begingroup$
                      @Shreyansh First, I timed myself, and it look me about one minute to read this answer at an average pace from start to finish. If one minute isn't "limited time", then I don't know what is. Second, I highly doubt this is the case for all Indians, so you should probably just speak for yourself.
                      $endgroup$
                      – Aaron Stevens
                      2 days ago










                    • $begingroup$
                      Hi Aaron I was in great trouble yesterday so sorry for all the bad I wrote.Let's delete our comments.
                      $endgroup$
                      – Shreyansh
                      yesterday
















                    $begingroup$
                    Sorry Aaron this website as well as you provide so long answers that it seems that we are studying English literature. We Indians do not have so much time to read so much long answers. I am not blaming you please don't take it personally friend but provide very compact answer which can be understood in limited time.😍😍
                    $endgroup$
                    – Shreyansh
                    2 days ago




                    $begingroup$
                    Sorry Aaron this website as well as you provide so long answers that it seems that we are studying English literature. We Indians do not have so much time to read so much long answers. I am not blaming you please don't take it personally friend but provide very compact answer which can be understood in limited time.😍😍
                    $endgroup$
                    – Shreyansh
                    2 days ago




                    7




                    7




                    $begingroup$
                    @Shreyansh First, I timed myself, and it look me about one minute to read this answer at an average pace from start to finish. If one minute isn't "limited time", then I don't know what is. Second, I highly doubt this is the case for all Indians, so you should probably just speak for yourself.
                    $endgroup$
                    – Aaron Stevens
                    2 days ago




                    $begingroup$
                    @Shreyansh First, I timed myself, and it look me about one minute to read this answer at an average pace from start to finish. If one minute isn't "limited time", then I don't know what is. Second, I highly doubt this is the case for all Indians, so you should probably just speak for yourself.
                    $endgroup$
                    – Aaron Stevens
                    2 days ago












                    $begingroup$
                    Hi Aaron I was in great trouble yesterday so sorry for all the bad I wrote.Let's delete our comments.
                    $endgroup$
                    – Shreyansh
                    yesterday





                    $begingroup$
                    Hi Aaron I was in great trouble yesterday so sorry for all the bad I wrote.Let's delete our comments.
                    $endgroup$
                    – Shreyansh
                    yesterday












                    3












                    $begingroup$

                    In statistical mechanics the system at any time is in a definite microstate (e.g. positions and velocities of all the particles in a gas), yet we don't know what this state is. Instead, we define certain global properties of the system that are defined on longer time scales (like total energy, entropy, temperature, volume) that are useful in many processes and try to predict them (in equilibrium) from the microscopic degrees of freedom.



                    In quantum mechanics, on the other hand, there are many options for what we mean by "states". The most intuitive definition is to define them in terms of things we can measure, like positions or velocities of particles, etc. However, the state is actually a wave in the space of these states and any given particle can actually spread out in state space and occupy many of these states simultaneously, with a different "amplitude" $psi$, just as a wave can spread out over space with a different amplitude at any point. (There are also restrictions on these wave functions, such as the fact that it must spread both in position $Delta x$ and in momentum $Delta p$ such that $Delta x Delta p geq hbar /2$, and similarly for other variables.) But basically the system can spread over what we would call "measurable" states.



                    The probabilities come in in Quantum mechanics, for example, when you try to measure the position of a particle that is spread over many different positions. This is where quantum mechanics gets confusing and leads to endless discussions about reality, but in short, the wave function "collapses" and you only measure one position, with probability $|psi(x)|^2$.






                    share|cite|improve this answer











                    $endgroup$












                    • $begingroup$
                      Shouldn't the Heisenberg uncertainty be $Delta x Delta p gte hbar / 2$?
                      $endgroup$
                      – michi7x7
                      2 days ago










                    • $begingroup$
                      Sorry, typo. Yes, of course.
                      $endgroup$
                      – Eric David Kramer
                      2 days ago
















                    3












                    $begingroup$

                    In statistical mechanics the system at any time is in a definite microstate (e.g. positions and velocities of all the particles in a gas), yet we don't know what this state is. Instead, we define certain global properties of the system that are defined on longer time scales (like total energy, entropy, temperature, volume) that are useful in many processes and try to predict them (in equilibrium) from the microscopic degrees of freedom.



                    In quantum mechanics, on the other hand, there are many options for what we mean by "states". The most intuitive definition is to define them in terms of things we can measure, like positions or velocities of particles, etc. However, the state is actually a wave in the space of these states and any given particle can actually spread out in state space and occupy many of these states simultaneously, with a different "amplitude" $psi$, just as a wave can spread out over space with a different amplitude at any point. (There are also restrictions on these wave functions, such as the fact that it must spread both in position $Delta x$ and in momentum $Delta p$ such that $Delta x Delta p geq hbar /2$, and similarly for other variables.) But basically the system can spread over what we would call "measurable" states.



                    The probabilities come in in Quantum mechanics, for example, when you try to measure the position of a particle that is spread over many different positions. This is where quantum mechanics gets confusing and leads to endless discussions about reality, but in short, the wave function "collapses" and you only measure one position, with probability $|psi(x)|^2$.






                    share|cite|improve this answer











                    $endgroup$












                    • $begingroup$
                      Shouldn't the Heisenberg uncertainty be $Delta x Delta p gte hbar / 2$?
                      $endgroup$
                      – michi7x7
                      2 days ago










                    • $begingroup$
                      Sorry, typo. Yes, of course.
                      $endgroup$
                      – Eric David Kramer
                      2 days ago














                    3












                    3








                    3





                    $begingroup$

                    In statistical mechanics the system at any time is in a definite microstate (e.g. positions and velocities of all the particles in a gas), yet we don't know what this state is. Instead, we define certain global properties of the system that are defined on longer time scales (like total energy, entropy, temperature, volume) that are useful in many processes and try to predict them (in equilibrium) from the microscopic degrees of freedom.



                    In quantum mechanics, on the other hand, there are many options for what we mean by "states". The most intuitive definition is to define them in terms of things we can measure, like positions or velocities of particles, etc. However, the state is actually a wave in the space of these states and any given particle can actually spread out in state space and occupy many of these states simultaneously, with a different "amplitude" $psi$, just as a wave can spread out over space with a different amplitude at any point. (There are also restrictions on these wave functions, such as the fact that it must spread both in position $Delta x$ and in momentum $Delta p$ such that $Delta x Delta p geq hbar /2$, and similarly for other variables.) But basically the system can spread over what we would call "measurable" states.



                    The probabilities come in in Quantum mechanics, for example, when you try to measure the position of a particle that is spread over many different positions. This is where quantum mechanics gets confusing and leads to endless discussions about reality, but in short, the wave function "collapses" and you only measure one position, with probability $|psi(x)|^2$.






                    share|cite|improve this answer











                    $endgroup$



                    In statistical mechanics the system at any time is in a definite microstate (e.g. positions and velocities of all the particles in a gas), yet we don't know what this state is. Instead, we define certain global properties of the system that are defined on longer time scales (like total energy, entropy, temperature, volume) that are useful in many processes and try to predict them (in equilibrium) from the microscopic degrees of freedom.



                    In quantum mechanics, on the other hand, there are many options for what we mean by "states". The most intuitive definition is to define them in terms of things we can measure, like positions or velocities of particles, etc. However, the state is actually a wave in the space of these states and any given particle can actually spread out in state space and occupy many of these states simultaneously, with a different "amplitude" $psi$, just as a wave can spread out over space with a different amplitude at any point. (There are also restrictions on these wave functions, such as the fact that it must spread both in position $Delta x$ and in momentum $Delta p$ such that $Delta x Delta p geq hbar /2$, and similarly for other variables.) But basically the system can spread over what we would call "measurable" states.



                    The probabilities come in in Quantum mechanics, for example, when you try to measure the position of a particle that is spread over many different positions. This is where quantum mechanics gets confusing and leads to endless discussions about reality, but in short, the wave function "collapses" and you only measure one position, with probability $|psi(x)|^2$.







                    share|cite|improve this answer














                    share|cite|improve this answer



                    share|cite|improve this answer








                    edited 2 days ago

























                    answered 2 days ago









                    Eric David KramerEric David Kramer

                    1,021311




                    1,021311











                    • $begingroup$
                      Shouldn't the Heisenberg uncertainty be $Delta x Delta p gte hbar / 2$?
                      $endgroup$
                      – michi7x7
                      2 days ago










                    • $begingroup$
                      Sorry, typo. Yes, of course.
                      $endgroup$
                      – Eric David Kramer
                      2 days ago

















                    • $begingroup$
                      Shouldn't the Heisenberg uncertainty be $Delta x Delta p gte hbar / 2$?
                      $endgroup$
                      – michi7x7
                      2 days ago










                    • $begingroup$
                      Sorry, typo. Yes, of course.
                      $endgroup$
                      – Eric David Kramer
                      2 days ago
















                    $begingroup$
                    Shouldn't the Heisenberg uncertainty be $Delta x Delta p gte hbar / 2$?
                    $endgroup$
                    – michi7x7
                    2 days ago




                    $begingroup$
                    Shouldn't the Heisenberg uncertainty be $Delta x Delta p gte hbar / 2$?
                    $endgroup$
                    – michi7x7
                    2 days ago












                    $begingroup$
                    Sorry, typo. Yes, of course.
                    $endgroup$
                    – Eric David Kramer
                    2 days ago





                    $begingroup$
                    Sorry, typo. Yes, of course.
                    $endgroup$
                    – Eric David Kramer
                    2 days ago











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